Johnathon Strebly

Note: This event is in person, but if you would like to attend online (via Zoom), please click here to register for the virtual event.

The first global theme of 2023 is 'TOUCH' and we are grateful to be joined by one of the original CMVan volunteers, Johnathon Strebly, a designer, photographer, design leader, chief of staff, and community-builder.

Strebly brings a wealth of creative leadership and systems-thinking supporting numerous organizations navigating growth, while remaining true to their core values and culture. An expert in capacity-building, he has enabled many organizations to discover and achieve their strategic vision.

As Past President of the International Council of Design (ICoD), founder of the brand strategy and communications agency The Notice Group, former Director of Creative Services for HCMA Architecture+Design, past president of the Design Professionals of Canada (DesCan), and most recently working with the Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw, Squamish Nation in his role as Chief of Staff, Johnathon brings decades of experience and involvement in the applied arts, encouraging growth and change in creative systems, challenging and contributing to the contemporary fabric of system and service design required today, and tomorrow.



As usual, we asked our featured speaker a handful of probing questions to give us a deeper glimpse into their life and relationship with creativity:

How do you define creativity and apply it in your life and career?

Fortunately, I have had amazing opportunities to apply creativity throughout my life and career, and I look forward to sharing some of these touchpoints in the presentation. Defining creativity is both easy and impossible. For me, creativity is the foundation of the best conversations, the dialogue needed to transition from opportunity or concern, to solution and action. I love the line “If you only do what you know, you will never grow”. We all desire change, some more meaningfully than others. Growth and change requires courage and a commitment to doing the work to evoke the change needed. Creativity is fundamental and an essential requirement to develop the ideas that challenge status quo and introduce other ways of seeing and engaging opportunities that contribute to amplifying the good in our world.

Where do you find your best creative inspiration or energy?

In negative space. The spaces between the known and accessible. A designer’s eye and mind is calibrated to seeing the details in everything we touch, or that touches us. By being present and available to these details, patterns emerge and within these patterns we reveal the spaces yet to be connected or filled, the bridges yet to be built, the conversations we have not had. These voids are opportunities, they are questions, they are where we are challenged to present something new, and that challenge is what inspires and moves me.

What’s one piece of creative advice or a tip you wish you’d known as a young person?

If you think you know something, try teaching it. Teach as many types of learners as possible. Challenge yourself to say the same thing in a myriad of ways and mediums to get the core message across. There is no one way to share information and there is no one target audience that will experience your work. If you wish to use the words Inclusivity, Accessibility, Equity, and/or Empathy, you better be prepared to explore every way of sharing the work possible.

Who (living or dead) would you most enjoy hearing speak at CreativeMornings?

Haruki Murakami. An award winning author sharing dystopian environments from a background of coffeehouses, whiskey bars, vintage jazz vinyl, long distance running, and asking biting questions of life and love.

What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done?

So many crazy things! Thankfully (most) were done before the advent of social media! Shhhhhh… secrets.

What’s your one guilty creative indulgence?

A strong whiskey cocktail and vintage jazz vinyl is a blissful pairing.

What are you reading these days?

"Namwayut" by Chief Robert Joseph,
"It Didn’t Start With You" by Mark Wolynn, and "Healthy Boundaries" by Chase Hill

What fact about you would surprise people?

I travelled across Canada by train because of Lego.

If you could open a door and go anywhere, where would that be?

Death Valley, California.

What myths about creativity would you like to set straight?

Two myths actually: that creativity is easy; and that creativity is hard.

What are you proudest of in your life?

That work I have done has positively impacted individuals, communities, and that the work is still continuing benefitting others.

Where was the last place you travelled?

Globally? Kaunas, Lithuania. Regionally? San Francisco, California.

What music are you listening to these days?

Jazz. Jazz. And more jazz.

What was the best surprise you’ve experienced so far in life?

One night in a back street taverna in Spain, where I was simultaneously introduced to Paella, Rioja Wine, and Flamenco.

Where is your favourite place to escape?

On a plane. Going anywhere.

What was the best advice you were ever given?

If you know you are giving, you are doing it wrong.

What practises, rituals, or habits contribute to your creative work?

Cursive handwriting with a fountain pen. Slow shit down and see every damn letter form. Patience. Life is too fast these days.