What does friendship mean to you? Is it the support provided by someone who picks you up after a medical procedure or brings you supper when you’ve sprained your ankle? Is it the solace that comes when you sit up late into the night discussing things that hold meaning for you? Or perhaps, the faith in one’s self that is regenerated by receiving a no-interest loan at a time of life transition? Or the sense of longevity that comes from staying connected to a childhood neighbor or schoolmate?
Having moved around as a child, I didn’t discover the gifts of friendship until I was a young adult working in the civil rights movement and later doing grassroots empowerment in developing countries. Now I’m involved in training administrators for our public schools. As a result of choosing this kind of personally meaningful engagement, I have met many incredible people who have become life-long friends.
These buddies came to my rescue this past year as I struggled with how to get my most recent series of art works shown. Among my allies I discovered those who were Brutally Honest Colleagues, those who were Resource Locaters, and those who were Coaches.
The Brutally Honest folks were communications colleagues who shot down my ideas for how and to whom to present the work. They showed me how I was off base and what objections I would face. They probed my intentions and examined my rationales. When tears of frustration glistened on my cheeks, they sent me home to plumb more deeply into what the series meant and why I cared about it. Unhinged by not having answers to their queries, I vented with friends who are avid readers and researchers.
These Resource Locators told me what they’d been reading and a couple of books threw off sparks. Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath sounded as though it would help me think through how to present my artwork in a way that captured people’s interest. The Art of Pilgrimage by Phil Cousineau touched on experiences that had given rise to the paintings in the first place. Indeed, reading those two books convinced me that “Pilgrimage: Wonder, Encounter, Witness” was a more “sticky” title for the series than “Lessons from the Village.”
The Brutally Honest Colleagues helped me see that Pilgrimage would be a non-commercial exhibition. Instead of approaching galleries I needed to contact public art centers and museums. I located a couple of places that might be appropriate venues, but cowered when I received their guidelines for exhibition proposals. Three months passed with me doing nothing with my “sticky” idea. That’s when my coaching associates entered the fray.
Coaches ask exceedingly practical questions: Have you made a comprehensive list of non-commercial sites around the state? How many do you need? How long would it take you to do that research? What does “20 images” mean? How can you find out? Do all 20 images have to be from the series you want to show? How many digital images do you have from the series? What’s your next step? By the way, is there any opportunity you can exploit?
The coaches weren’t posing the deeply profound questions that the Brutally Honest Colleagues asked. They weren’t stimulating my thinking the way the Resource Locaters did. They were trying to get me off my duff and into action in the world. They succeeded. My first Pilgrimage exhibition is scheduled for March 2010.
Friendship is like a favorite pair of shoes, comfortable and long-suffering. It’s a relationship that has withstood the test of time, the ups and downs of crisis and misunderstandings. It’s the camaraderie developed by working shoulder to shoulder.
As you peruse your network of friends, ask yourself what roles they play for you and you for them. Give gratitude for the priceless gifts they bestow on you, for their solidarity with your purposes and for their ongoing belief in you.
Having moved around as a child, I didn’t discover the gifts of friendship until I was a young adult working in the civil rights movement and later doing grassroots empowerment in developing countries. Now I’m involved in training administrators for our public schools. As a result of choosing this kind of personally meaningful engagement, I have met many incredible people who have become life-long friends.
These buddies came to my rescue this past year as I struggled with how to get my most recent series of art works shown. Among my allies I discovered those who were Brutally Honest Colleagues, those who were Resource Locaters, and those who were Coaches.
The Brutally Honest folks were communications colleagues who shot down my ideas for how and to whom to present the work. They showed me how I was off base and what objections I would face. They probed my intentions and examined my rationales. When tears of frustration glistened on my cheeks, they sent me home to plumb more deeply into what the series meant and why I cared about it. Unhinged by not having answers to their queries, I vented with friends who are avid readers and researchers.
These Resource Locators told me what they’d been reading and a couple of books threw off sparks. Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath sounded as though it would help me think through how to present my artwork in a way that captured people’s interest. The Art of Pilgrimage by Phil Cousineau touched on experiences that had given rise to the paintings in the first place. Indeed, reading those two books convinced me that “Pilgrimage: Wonder, Encounter, Witness” was a more “sticky” title for the series than “Lessons from the Village.”
The Brutally Honest Colleagues helped me see that Pilgrimage would be a non-commercial exhibition. Instead of approaching galleries I needed to contact public art centers and museums. I located a couple of places that might be appropriate venues, but cowered when I received their guidelines for exhibition proposals. Three months passed with me doing nothing with my “sticky” idea. That’s when my coaching associates entered the fray.
Coaches ask exceedingly practical questions: Have you made a comprehensive list of non-commercial sites around the state? How many do you need? How long would it take you to do that research? What does “20 images” mean? How can you find out? Do all 20 images have to be from the series you want to show? How many digital images do you have from the series? What’s your next step? By the way, is there any opportunity you can exploit?
The coaches weren’t posing the deeply profound questions that the Brutally Honest Colleagues asked. They weren’t stimulating my thinking the way the Resource Locaters did. They were trying to get me off my duff and into action in the world. They succeeded. My first Pilgrimage exhibition is scheduled for March 2010.
Friendship is like a favorite pair of shoes, comfortable and long-suffering. It’s a relationship that has withstood the test of time, the ups and downs of crisis and misunderstandings. It’s the camaraderie developed by working shoulder to shoulder.
As you peruse your network of friends, ask yourself what roles they play for you and you for them. Give gratitude for the priceless gifts they bestow on you, for their solidarity with your purposes and for their ongoing belief in you.
