This ongoing research project explores how creativity operates at the intersection of art, design, science, and engineering, with a specific focus on creative processes and educational innovation. The aim is to develop a conceptual model that makes visible the entangled relationships between these domains and their influence on creative output, especially within the context of artificial creativity and the challenges educators face in creative fields.
At the heart of this project lies the Krebs Cycle of Creativity, originally conceptualized by Neri Oxman (2016), which draws a parallel between the metabolic processes of the biological Krebs cycle and the exchange of knowledge between four domains: art, science, design, and engineering. In this cycle, science converts information into knowledge, engineering translates knowledge into utility, design shapes utility into behavior, and art transforms behavior into new perceptions, ultimately feeding back into scientific inquiry. This model emphasizes creativity as a fluid, interdependent system, rather than a linear or siloed process.
In parallel, this project draws on the framework of the Five Elements of Creativity - actor, process, outcome, domain, and space -which are frequently cited in creativity research as core dimensions for understanding how and where creative work takes place (Glăveanu, 2013; Wingström et al., 2022). These elements provide an analytical structure for identifying who is involved in the creative act, how creativity unfolds, what is produced, the context or discipline within which the work occurs, and the spatial-social conditions that shape it.
By overlaying these two frameworks, this research proposes a hybrid model of creativity.
The ongoing work involves visualizing this hybrid model through infographics and diagrams to support research communication and curriculum development. The goal is to create a threedimensional model that can be applied to creative practices that include generative AI and artificial creativity.
This hybrid model does not aim to replace existing creativity frameworks but to extend them into interdisciplinary contexts where creative acts are increasingly mediated by technology. It also supports reflective practice in creative education by offering a tool to identify the underlying structures and values that guide a project.
References
Oxman, N. (2016). Age of Entanglement. Journal of Design and Science. https://doi.org/10.21428/7e0583ad
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Wingström, Roosa & Hautala, Johanna & Lundman, Riina. (2022). Redefining Creativity in the Era of AI? Perspectives of Computer Scientists and New Media Artists. Creativity Research Journal. 36. 1-17. 10.1080/10400419.2022.2107850.
Glăveanu, V. P. (2013). Rewriting the language of creativity: The Five A’s framework. Review of General Psychology, 17(1), 69–81. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029528
