Jim Clark

I always look forward to AFTA’s Annual Convention for two very specific reasons: one is to be provoked by the audacity of others; the second is to be reminded of basic truths about our field.

The provocations usually generate one of two possible self-reflections: “Why didn’t I think of that?” or, “We did something similar, but why doesn’t anyone know about it?” Regardless of how I am provoked, these moments during the conference become the “drivers” that propel me to rethink our work at home. The provocations challenge, inspire, and create a sense of professional restlessness that keeps things fresh.  Case in point, Penny Balkin Bach’s presentation on how the Association for Public Art in Philadelphia uses social media. It was challenging and inspiring because I realized my organization was not using the tools (most of which are free) that are at our finger tips to not only communicate to a larger audience but also to harness the tools of measurement that are embedded within them.

On day two, Malissa Feruzzi Shriver also provoked some soul searching about how we present ourselves to the communities we are trying to serve. For years, we, as a community of arts professionals, have talked about how the words “art” and “culture” seem to trigger unintended and, at times, negative reactions because they imply something elite or detached from “real world.” Malissa referenced an expert she had worked with in the field of arts education who suggested that perhaps we need to reframe “arts” as “applied creativity.” I noticed this comment set off a flurry of note taking.  In this day and age of the “creative class,” which in turn spawned “creative cities,” we perhaps need to adopt this nomenclature in order to be relevant to our civic and political figures who often talk about “creative industries” but are not including the “arts” in their frame of reference.

Ben Folds illustrated the second reason I attend the conference – to be reminded of basic truths.  Ben talked about the orchestra as a powerful symbol for our communities and for society.  He referenced a world in which political discord and polemic debate is the norm. The orchestra stands in stark contrast – it is an organization that acts together to create an integrated whole – yes, there is messiness behind the scenes at times, but it is how the organism behaves on stage that matters.  It is a powerful metaphor for a harmonious and interdependent community. And, on those rare and memorable moments when an orchestra plays with abandon, yet fully meshed, it creates a transcendent moment bordering on the sublime and metaphysical.  It is as if the mind, heart, and soul of those in attendance commune, if ever so briefly, creating within us a deep sense of community and of being connected to something larger than oneself.

I realize this may seem elemental, a good friend of mine in college once said that I like to articulate the obvious, so forgive me. That’s the point though, after 20 plus years working as a fundraiser for the arts I think I had become numb to my own rhetoric and arts-spiel. It all sounded new and fresh to me as I listened to Ben talk about the importance of the philharmonic from his perspective as a rock musician and someone who was firmly planted in pop culture.

It also made me think of how all aspects of the performing arts, not just the symphony, can serve as symbols for how we would like to be as a person, a community, and a society.

Dancers rely on their counterparts to be counting the same way, to be healthy and on mark so they can dance “full out,” ultimately trusting that everyone is in the right place at the right time. There is nothing more disconcerting than a hesitant dancer – it is disruptive and jarring, it breaks the spell and the power of the dance.

And, actors not only count on their fellow players to hit their marks but to know their lines and, on those occasions when the memory slips, to extemporize so the play does not come to a grinding halt. Improvisation accompanied with subtle hints or gestures are tools to keep things moving in the right direction toward the desired end. What a wonderful metaphor for working collaboratively and constructively.

So that’s why I keep coming back to Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention– to be challenged, inspired, and reminded of the awesome responsibility I/we have to make our community(ies) and, by default, our country better.