In one of Van Gogh’s most productive creative periods, he was exchanging letters with a friend. Apparently the interaction spurred his creativity. As I’ve studied creativity and community over the years, I’ve noticed that relationships can be helpful for spurring new ideas, encouraging

An online expression of this tendency is surfacing in some of the online communities.

Jeong-Hyn Lim (photo by Seokyong Lee for The New York Times)
The New York Times today tells the story of a young guitarist whose identity remained in shadows until now. He had uploaded a video of himself playing the guitar and soon it was a web world phenomenon. Not only was everyone talking about it, everyone was trying to duplicate it. In the process, musicians were exchanging ideas about technique, and helping one another improve their skills.

This type of trend shines positive light on the possibilities of online interaction.