TORONTO—UPDATE/FEB. 27, 2012: THANKS FOR SENDING IN YOUR SNAPSHOTS. I'VE POSTED SOME OF YOUR MESSY DESK SUBMISSIONS ON OUR ONLINE GALLERY. WE'D LOVE TO GET MORE SUBMISSIONS. KEEP SENDING THEM OUR WAY.] Some people swear that creativity equals messy desk (or crowded computer desktops or both). Others cannot work without a neat and clear surface. Most of us are in the middle — and the neatness of our workspace varies depending on how far along we are on a project. But is there an ideal workspace configuration or neatness one needs for creative collaboration and design work? Design Edge wants to know.


Design Edge's May/June 2012 issue will focus on how workspace and studio interiors affects creative work. But first, we're conducting a survey of just how messy designers' desks are. Send the editor, Nancy Kay Clark, a snapshot of your creative workspace (resist the urge to clean it up first) and let her know how you rate yourself in terms of neatness on a scale of 1 (always neat as a pin) to 5 (can never see the desk's surface) and also tell her how the the space works or doesn't work for you. As well, if you've got an interesting studio space that you would like to share with Design Edge readers, let the editor know. Selected images and quotes will be included the in the May/June 2012 print and iPad editions.


And just so you aren't embarrassed to share images of your messy workspaces, here's an image gallery of the Design Edge staff's workspaces.