Friday, May 17, 2013

to fail and fail big: A Study of Mid-Career Artists, Success and Failure Part 1





Tweets from "to fail and fail big."

Image On Wednesday, May 1, 2013, The Field hosted a Panel Event, "to fail and fail big: A case study of Mid-career artists, Success, and Failure," at SITI Company. The panel was facilitated by Georgiana Pickett, Executive Director, Baryshnikov Arts Center. Panelists included award-winning performer and art-maker, Okwui Okpokwasili; Moira Brennan, Program Director, The MAP Fund; producer Thomas O. Kriegsmann and critically acclaimed musician, Somi. 
The following is a chronological record of tweets that were posted real time during the event: 
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Gearing up for To Fail and Fail Big our panel event at SITI Company tonight. See you there 
Here we go! Will it be frightening? Will we fail? Will we succeed? Will we move the field forward? Let's find out!
Why are we having this conversation? To discern the conditions that help artists thrive so the sector can help more artists thrive!
From Okwui Okpokwasili, "Do I feel successful? No. But I feel really f**king lucky."
Seems to me that many successful artists are failing regularly! How? Work-in-progress showings as an integral piece of creative practice.
"The only opposition is the mindset of the culture at large. Until this shifts, we will never have enough money for experimental art."
"The best presenters are the best bc of their plasticity...their ability to break the mold." Producer, Tommy Kriegsmann
Choreographer, Kimberly Bartosik, was told, "Being a white woman right now is really not working in your favor."
Does the system that created established artists even exist anymore? Great question.

Tweet #9 - retweeted by Kerry McCarthy and commented on by Karen Harvey "Maybe it's an illusion - because maybe the established artists were actually the beginning of the 'system' they thrive within?"
You keep on going. You develop a certain skin. Your success or failure cannot be what is reflected back at you from anybody.
There's a sense of entitlement to be creative in the younger generation that's not in line with our economic culture.
So many of you said it's not necessarily about failure, it's more about risk-taking and building an environment that champions those risks.
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