THE GROOVE - How to Be a Cross-Pollinator

THE GROOVE

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In nature, the cross-pollination of flowers is facilitated by various agents: wind, water, insects, birds, and other animals. They carry pollen from one flower to another, allowing the fusion of male and female gametes and eventually leading to the formation of seeds and fruits. The point of cross-pollination is the promotion of genetic diversity within plant populations, generating offspring with unique traits and adaptations and enhancing the species' chances of survival and evolution.

In the worlds of business and art, cross-pollination is vital. Attainable only when artists and entrepreneurs are humble enough and have the presence of mind to know that they can't possibly know everything. Avoiding the mentality that things have to be self-contained and "pure" allows you to invite in the perspective of others who can add an expansive dimension to yours.

Considered one of the greatest artist-innovators of the 20th century, Carlos Cruz-Diez was a master of cross-pollination, inexhaustibly merging art, design, math, science, architecture, technology, and social elements into his work.

Dynamism and change are required if you want to cross-pollinate. In this ever-evolving world, flexibility and adaptability are crucial for success.

Born in 1923 in Caracas, Venezuela, Cruz-Diez moved permanently to Paris in 1960, where he hoped people would better understand his kinetic art.

Fascinated by the dynamism of geometry and the properties of colors, Cruz-Diez experimented by placing lines of different hues in precise geometric grids, creating an optical illusion. The colors behaved in different ways, forming gradients and new colors in the eye of the spectator even if they weren’t used in the actual artwork. Additionally, the works seem to move as you move and the perspective changes depending on the angle where you position yourself.

By understanding that nothing is static, you can embrace change proactively, transforming challenges into opportunities and bringing an external perspective while remaining relevant in your respective field.

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson said: "Truly innovative solutions to problems come primarily from the cross-pollination of disciplines. And this cross-pollination is entirely unpredictable in its nature and its direction.”

The beauty of looking for solutions outside of your field is that you don’t necessarily know what’s going to result. The unpredictable becomes part of the equation, and that is where fun and failures collide.

Cruz-Diez developed some of his most interesting inventions in the early 1970s. With the oil crisis, plastic products like the PVC sticks Cruz-Diez had been using for his intricate artworks disappeared from the market. Instead, he decided to work with aluminum sheets. He would print lines of color and create other effects he hadn't before considered.

He was unable to find the cutting and piercing machines with the millimetric precision he needed, so he designed and manufactured his own machines. On top of everything, he had to experiment quite a bit to get the colors to stick to the aluminum without chipping. He bathed the sheets and rods with nitric acid, but that didn't work. It almost caused an explosion. Then he tried degreasing the aluminum with detergent…that didn't work either.

Finally, sanding the aluminum first, then washing it with soap, next applying a coat of zinc chromate, then sanding again, finishing it with a coat of white acrylic paint, and at last, screen printing on them line by line gave him the result he wanted.

Every artwork, intervention, and installation that Cruz-Diez worked on, no matter how little or how huge, always involved rigorous mathematical and geometric precision. One millimeter out of place, and the expected visual effect of an entire composition was ruined. An inexact cut or an opening, and the sheet or rod had to be discarded.

This interdisciplinary approach highlights the importance of merging different fields and combining insights from various domains that can lead to groundbreaking breakthroughs. Every time Cruz-Diez tried something new he was stepping into the realm of the unpredictable. And I ask you, what’s the worst thing that can happen if you try the same approach?

There’s no cross-pollination without inviting other perspectives. It could be that you are borrowing and learning from other fields, or it could be that you are involving people in your work who have experience and knowledge in areas you don’t.

Cruz-Diez said there was a social element to everything he did. Even though his premise wasn’t social justice, or human bodies, dramas, or comedies, he wanted the people who came in contact with his work to engage deeply with it. He accomplished that and more.

When the artist was assigned the massive project to design the floors of the Caracas International Airport that millions of people would step on, he decided to travel to many countries in Europe looking for the perfect material. In 1973, he finally found a compound of feldspar and silica called Sialex. This is inherently colored and practically indestructible, ideal to withstand the abrasion of constant footsteps. But the best part is that once he installed his famous grid, the floors “move” with the passersby, changing colors and dimensions to give the optical illusion of kinetic art.

This installation opened the door for Cruz-Diez to have a fruitful and lucrative career where cross-pollination became the trademark of his practice.

His work was the subject of almost 300 solo exhibitions in more than 20 countries, alongside more than 140 architectural interventions. Among them are the platform of the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines railway station near Paris, France; a gigantic undulating sculpture at Juan Carlos I Park in Madrid, Spain; a suspended wall in the Olympic Park in Seoul, Korea; and the walkways at the Marlins ballpark stadium in Miami.

When you invite external expertise into your space, promote dialogue, and encourage participation, it is possible that cross-pollination gives rise to innovation. Even in his writing, Cruz-Diez didn’t shy away from pulling things from different spheres. He told us that his goal was for us to appreciate color as “a reality which acts on the human being with the same intensity as cold, heat, sound, and so on.”

Like the intertwining roots of diverse plant species, the exchange of ideas, perspectives, and methodologies invigorates domains and fosters growth and resilience. Cross-pollination cultivates a culture of adaptability and creative problem-solving, leading to the development of groundbreaking art, products, and services that cater to an ever-evolving world.

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HOW CREATIVITY RULES THE WORLD

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TEDX TALK

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I share three lessons I have learned from artists that always work for anyone in their careers. Watch it here.

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