Fwiw, here are a few thoughts.

I believe that a topic subject can trigger the creative process through 
different approaches. A 'simple' topic like 'Glass' for instance may 
generate many different scenes, but in a certain sense I am afraid many of 
them will be rather similar in concept. This is no criticism towards the 
artists but I imagine that this might be how the triggering works. On the 
other hand, a more 'complex' topic like those provided by the TC-RTC are 
more challenging and they demand a more conscious creative effort (or such 
is my personal experience). In the end, however, both generate interesting 
and imaginative works.

The important issue is not to frighten away potential submitters, however. 
So, although I have a personal preference for the TC-RTC way of choosing 
topics, it may be that a more IRTC-like way would be preferable for the time 
being, thus attracting more submissions, establishing the competition more 
firmly that way. Maybe, we could then have a TC-RTC-like topic twice or 
thrice a year in between?

Thomas

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