The Art of Serendipity

Serendipity and creativity are both broad, widely disputed, and yet consistently popular concepts, relevant to understanding the positive aspects of our daily lives and even human progress in the arts and sciences. The chapters in this book reflects a variety of theoretical and practical approaches to serendipity in various domains, including creative problem solving, sculpture, writing, theatre and design. Chapter authors address issues such as the nature of the ‘prepared mind’, the role of accidents, serendipity as a skill or way of engaging with the world and, indeed, how serendipity works as a concept and in practice in relation to the dynamic flow of the creative system. Those who wish to explore the nature of chance in art and creativity, as well as in their daily lives, will find much to ponder in these pages.

Wendy Ross is a Senior Lecturer at London Metropolitan University. Her main topic of research is the role of material serendipity in higher cognitive processes such as insight problem solving and creativity.

Samantha Copeland is an Assistant Professor in Ethics and Philosophy of Technology, at Delft University of Technology, and founding Co-Chair of the Serendipity Society. She works on ethical issues in transformative contexts, such as resilience planning and engineering, the development and application of emerging medical technologies, and transdisciplinary research.