When Kary Schulman the Director of Grants for the Arts said this conference should feel like a "spa day", I though she was kidding, I mean conferences are meant to be painful right? But she was right, I feel invigorated and giddy; I' m not sure how long it will last, but I'm going to ride this wave. Schulman set the tone right, she spoke eloquently about the reasons for a conference on new thinking - to form community because we need it. She also made a brilliant point about the fact that the economy has never been good for artists - starving artists anyone?! and talked about what drives artists, which is not monetary compensation, but rather a desire to make community and in large make the world a better place.
Our first speaker, Jonah Lehrer literally stole my heart (so cute! too bad he is married), he was so cute, amazingly smart and insightful. Lehrer is a neurocientist and the author of the best selling books Proust Was a Neurocientist, in which he argues that many 20th and 21st century discoveries of neuroscience are actually re-discoveries of insights that were made earlier by artists like Marcel Proust, Gertude Stein and Cezanne, and How We Decide, in which he argues that there are two parts of the brain involved in decision-making, a rational part and an emotional part and how in spite of the believe that rational decisions are better, both parts are actually needed to make decisions.
Leher who is only 25 y/o (ugh people like him make me feel like a loser!), did a terrific job at engaging the audience and I am sure I was not the only fan. He had the perfect combination between storytelling and neuroscience talk; he cited neurologist Antonio Damasio's study on Elliot, a man who after the removal of a tumor on its frontal lobe was perfectly normal in all regards except for the loss of emotion. Although common belief will make him the best decision maker,the fact was that Elliot struggled even with simple decisions like choosing a black from a blue pen. The study of Elliot's behavior led to the discovery that emotions play a large role in decision making, larger than it was once believed. This might sound silly, but I found it so illuminating! specially because all my life I've strived to be a rational thinker, good to know sometimes your gut is right.
More impact-full and often quoted throughout the conference was "The Marshmallow Experiment", a study about delayed gratification and self discipline, in which a group of 4 years olds were given the option to eat a treat right away or wait for 15 minutes - treat present, for two treats. Although all kids chose to wait in hopes of receiving 2 treats, waiting was actually harder than they had imagined and while some kids were able to wait the full time, some ate the marshmallow right away. Impulse control, this study found, is actually tied to success as it demonstrates he ability to forgo instant pleasure for future benefit. From then on all I can think was...when would I have eaten the Marshmallow?
Leher did not only share gimmick study results, but set a nice tone for a conference in new ideas. It was refreshing!
Next up a less creative but beautifully approached theme...the recession and its relationship to the current state of the Arts. I can't tell you how many art symposiums, conferences and talks focus all their energy in bad news. Yes this is a recession, yes we are poorer than we were before, yes art organizations are dying, and yes attracting and retaining audiences is going to be harder than it ever was before. Now What? Judilee Reed from LINC - leveraging investments in creativity and someone who not only ate the marshmallow withing the first few minutes, but also got all the kids to give them to her (analyze this!) shared the findings of a 2009 study. Tho some where not surprising "artists are more likely to have second jobs" others where really inspiring "artist are hopeful 89% believe they have a special role in strengthening communities". Reed did a superb job in not only relating the grueling and expected facts of the state of the Arts, but also showing the resilient and adaptable qualities of artists.
Following the facts, Cora Mirakami from the Center for Cultural Innovation led a panel with Reed, seasoned choreographer Margaret Jenkins and artist extraordinaire Jaime Cortez. Jenkins provided infinite wisdom talking about the ever present need to move forward in spite of poor circumstances saying "the only way to keep your balance is by moving forward". She is so right, sometimes we forget that time doesn't stop for anyone, and that sometimes all we can and must do is move forward.
Jaime Cortez shared his multi-faceted experience,; he spoke about the need for artists to exploit all of their skills and engage in multiple economies in order to more effectively support their creative endeavors. In short, sustainability requires adaptation.
Another major point brought up during this panel was the current non-profit art structure and the shift that the majority of artist experience: from creative to administrator. This is a logical progression, the individual artist turns into an organization in order to receive more support, which in turn means that the artist spends more time administering work and securing funding than creating work. This discussion stroke a cord in me, I believe that artist must be allowed the space to create and administrators (like me) should provide the structure and backbone to allow for the work to happen. It is unfortunate to see that there are more accidental arts administrators than people actually seeking the field; until more people see arts administration as a profession and not a logical progression in the life of an artist then the arts will face many issues. I believe that in order for this to happen the field of Arts Administration needs to become more fiscally viable, sustainable and realistic wages are the only way we will attract the talent arts organizations need.
After a much deserved lunch break we were re-energized and ready for round two. Diane Sanchez from the East Bay Community Foundation moderated a panel on new models for donor/ supporter mobilization. This discussion included hilariously talented performance artist Phillip Huang, Perry Chen the co- founder of funding platform kickstarter.com and James Rucker the co-founder of ColorOf Change which develops innovative campaign support platforms for people of color. Although I was often confused by Diane's questions, this panel was really informative, specially in showing the impact of small contributions in achieving change. The most fun part of the entire conference and the moment when I thought "I love the arts I wouldn't have it any other way" was when Huang got up in and said "what is up mother******?" all in his bedazzled glory. Huang, was indeed born to perform he had tremendous energy and led us through and impromptu fundraising exercise/ competition along side Michelle Tea - getting a total of around $400.00 from the audience. Moral of the story, ask and you shall receive. Ask while wearing sequence and you shall receive a lot.
The last panel was a look into the future, taking media as an example of a field affected by technology and forced to evolve. This panel was bittersweet, it started with a news clip filmed in 1981 about the future of print media, in this clip newspapers were begging computer users to get their content online, one "computer owner" (yes, this was the term used to describe this man) complained about the slow upload - 3 hours, and reassured newspapers that this method would never tromp actually print. Ugh, it was difficult to watch specially considering the state of journalism. Moderator Jon Funakibi from San Francisco State University kept the conversation positive as did Laura Sydell, the Arts and Technology correspondent for NPR and Hugo Morales founder of Radio Bilingue. The need to evolve in order to survive was even more evident in this panel; indeed bittersweet - I'm donating to NPR!
Dynamic Adaptability delivered what it promised: a day looking into the creative ways artists and entrepreneurs have solved problems. It provided insights into the ever changing nature of the field, it made us laugh, think and re-energize!
