A quick reprieve from “ShowCraft” before diving into a long series of bad first-draft scripts (buckle up).
I’ve been submitting a lot of grant proposals of late, and in tandem with that, taking a class and doing some reflecting on the business side of my work. What all of that has led to is a lot of time thinking about my Purpose/Vision/Mission/’Why’/any other term encapsulating my reason for existing. While I’m having some trouble identifying that particular portion, I’ve clarified (en route), some ideas about what defines my work.
I’ve come to think of these as Tenets or Pillars of my practice (I can’t decide which term is best quite yet). These are the characteristics that – in my ridiculously wide portfolio of projects and forms of work – are constants. They reflect (part of) what I believe about the world, life, people, and performing; so they don’t change as regularly as the topical themes of a project. These Pillars govern the type of work I create and how I go about creating it.
So, I present for your consumption, my Tenets:
- Intention: How I design. I curate cohesive experiences that are fully thought-out and that show immense care for the participant. Intention gives art structure.
- Storytelling: How I connect. I use storytelling techniques to communicate the theme and ideas of the project effectively. Storytelling communicates meaning.
- Curiosity: How I entertain. I use Wonderland-eque levity to intrigue the audience, introduce the unexpected, and make sure the experience is fun. Curiosity makes art intriguing.
My projects might have varying degrees of each of these guiding principles, but they’re so deeply engrained in who I am at this stage of my career, that they all pop up in each endeavor I undertake.
What are the characteristics that define your work?