Tag: art

creativity

Wonder: Journeys great and small

Christa Avampato

Journeys

Go slowly in taking the step;
and fast when counting stars.
Make music with your heels,
give back the place to Place,
sing to the sound of the road
and break the spiritful track
with your wide beliefs
in what passes underground
and rises wrung and right: unbound.

~Dolores Kendrick, 2002

In my new neighborhood, there is a sculpture by the metro stop called Journeys by Barbara Grygutis and it has a poem also entitled Journeys by the Washington poet laureate, Dolores Kendrick. I walked by it this morning with Phin and it gave me a magical, cosmic sense of well-being. While these last few months have been intensely stressful in many ways, I now feel a new chapter has opened.

I have so many stories to share in the coming days – about my moving day angel, the value of journeys great and small, taking time to play with puppies, lower chakras, and taking time to settle and root. I am taking it all in—the good and the challenging—and learning.

creativity

Wonder: Theater saved me while I was moving

Christa Avampato

I’m moving to my new apartment today. As I was taping up the few remaining boxes, I felt another wave of nervous wash over me. And then theatre saved me, again, the same way it’s saved me so many times before.

I started humming the beautiful song I’ve Been Here Before from the musical, Closer Than Ever. I have been here many times before. I’ve felt these feelings. I’ve dealt with uncertainty and change in inordinate amounts. And you know what? I’m always, eventually, just fine. By some miracle, it always works out because I work. And work and work and work.

This time is no different. If anything, it’s far easier than my last move. I took one more (very) deep breath and went back to taping boxes. That’s how every move everywhere gets done: one box at a time.

creativity

Wonder: Music saves us

Christa Avampato

“It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” ~Frederick Douglass

I heard this quote over the weekend during a tear-jerking story by journalist Steve Hartman. This story is about a 78-year-old partially paralyzed pianist, Norman Malone, who learned to play with only his left hand after his father almost bludgeoned him and his brothers to death with a hammer. I sobbed. The light and beauty in this man is present in his voice, his eyes, and his music. Even that horrid night couldn’t take music from him. He grew up to become a choral instructor so he could share his love of music with children. After all, it saved him, so of course it can save others.

Recently, finally, he had the opportunity to give his first public performance and it was stunning. And on that stage, through that stream of tears, he couldn’t find the words to express what that performance and what music means to him. He kept it to himself. And I couldn’t help but see that somewhere in him that sweet boy who survived such brutality lives on. And shines on, 70 years later.

Frederick Douglass was absolutely right. It is so much easier to build children up than to repair adults from the trauma of life. The arts, music, dance, writing, and all creative outlets help us hang on to our very essence and give us the opportunity to share it with others. I am heart-broken by Norman’s story, and I am also immensely inspired by it. Art saves. Art heals. Art perseveres.

 

creativity

Wonder: An artist at work in Trinidad, Cuba

Christa Avampato
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Photo I took of an artist at work in his studio in Trinidad, Cuba

I snapped this photo in Trinidad, a city in central Cuba that is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was late at night and the only light that flowed onto the street was from his studio. He was hard at work despite the late hour, and that resonates with me. We create when and where we can,  and it’s often in these quiet, solitary moments that we can most clearly channel our inspiration and get it all down so that we might share it with the world.

I love to see artists at work in their environments because the location invariably has some impact on the art. Is an artist trying to create his way out of an unfortunate situation? Is she inspired by what surrounds her as she creates? Does he create in spite of the environment or because of it? I love art for this reason: there are always more questions.

creativity

Wonder: 19 (Cuban) seconds for a photo

Christa Avampato
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The duo who took my photo in 19 (Cuban) seconds

“Get an old-fashioned photo!” the young man called to me in Parque Central in Old Havana.

“How long does it take to develop?” I asked.

“19 seconds.”

I should have known better. Everything in Cuba takes a long time. Every. Little. Thing. No one is in a hurry to do anything or go anywhere. In Cuba, even time takes time. People say it’s frozen in time in the 1950s. I’d go back much further than that.

What I didn’t realize is that we weren’t paying for a photo. We were paying for the experience of having the photo taken. An old man and a young man had a ramshackle camera, the likes of which I’d never seen. Jerry rigged from old parts gathered from discarded items (reduce, recycle, reuse, again and again and again is a way of life in Cuba), we watched in wonder over the 19 minutes, not the 19 seconds it took to snap and develop the photo. The show was worth every penny if the 2 bucks we paid, and then some.

This was always the way all over Cuba. You don’t pay for goods, you pay for the experience you gain and the time of the people you meet gathering the goods. You invest in the people and their ingenuity. Once you make that mental leap, waiting isn’t an inconvenience nor a chore in Cuba. It’s an honor, a gift, and a pleasure.

creativity

Wonder: It’s time for leadership to be an art form

Christa Avampato

I spent this morning on Google Hangout with my Ethics professor, Ed Freeman, and it’s one of the very best work mornings I’ve spent in a long time. We had an introductory call about the book project we’re working on and it left me feeling hopefully, happy, and excited about the future.

This is how we should all feel about our work—glad and grateful to be a part of it. The second that our work lives start to take the turn of groaning as we hop (or begrudgingly roll) out of bed, we’re in trouble. That’s going to happen once in a while. I’m not under any kind of delusion that work is nothing but sunshine, rainbows, and unicorns. Sometimes, it’s just challenging, difficult, and exhausting.

But is a tough day just a tough day or is it a repetitive pattern that makes us feel like we’re going nowhere fast? If it’s the latter, then it’s time to turn a door into a window and climb out of a bad situation by any means necessary. Once this kind of pattern gets entrenched in a workplace, it takes a massive amount of enlightened leadership to change it. And I’m sorry to say that leaders who have the courage, fortitude, creativity, and empathy to take on the Herculean effort of a culture shift are rare.

And that’s about to change. Ed and I are working on a project that makes enlightened and fearless leadership the norm, not the exception. We’re doing it through unconventional thinking and even more unconventional action. I can’t wait to get these ideas out into the world, and I hope you’ll all come along for the ride with us. More soon…

creativity

Wonder: My podcast interview on yoga, creativity, and business

Christa Avampato

I am so honored to have been interviewed for the podcast, RelatE, a project from The Relational Economy. I talk about creativity, the imagination, writing, art, business, theater, education, my education at Penn and Darden (especially the work I’m doing with Ed Freeman), my travels, service, family, yoga, and meditation. Listen, share, repeat! I’d love to hear your thoughts, ideas, and questions. My virtual door is always open to all of you, and I look forward to the conversation. Click here: http://therelationaleconomy.com/podcast/interview-with-creative-business-professional-christa-avampato/

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http://therelationaleconomy.com/podcast/interview-with-creative-business-professional-christa-avampato/

 

creativity

Wonder: Kennedy Center Arts Summit today

Christa Avampato

I’m spending today at the Kennedy Center Arts Summit presented in association with the Aspen Institute Arts Program and Citizen University.

“The Arts Summit is an annual spring convening, hosted by the Kennedy Center, designed to bring thought leaders from the arts and related fields together for conversation and connection. Set to be held in Washington, DC on April 25, 2016, the 2016 edition of the Summit will focus on Citizen Artistry, the idea of using the arts to influence positive change in people’s lives. Together, we will examine this idea, and its application in today’s society, through the lens of ideals John F. Kennedy set forth for our country during his Presidency: courage, service, justice, freedom, gratitude, exploration, and innovation. The program will serve as a blueprint and launching pad for both the Kennedy Center’s celebration of JFK’s 100th Birthday during the 2016-17 season, and for new collaborations and initiatives among participants.”

There are many ways for you to participate today, even if you can’t be at the event in D.C.

The agenda for the day can be found here.
The livestream will screen here.
Follow along on Twitter via the hashtag #artssummit.
I’ll be sharing what I’m seeing and hearing here.

creativity

Wonder: House of Sweden Handicraft in Washington, D.C.

Christa Avampato

On Tuesday I went to House of Sweden, an extension of the Swedish Embassy here in Washington, D.C. Their exhibit Next Level Craft – Cutting Edge Handicraft from Sweden is a compact and perfect combination of art, craft, fashion, and history. From shoes made of woven thatches of wood to glass beavers to led-faceted fashion accessories, this exhibit blend tradition with modern times in a way that leaves me wanting to finally take the Lapland adventure I’ve been dreaming of for years.

The exhibit runs through this Sunday, April 24th, at House of Sweden. See it.

creativity

Wonder: Swimming in Dark Waters with Rhiannon Giddens, Leyla McCalla, and Bhi Bhiman

Christa Avampato
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(From left to right): Leyla McCalla, Rhiannon Giddens, and Bhi Bhiman at Lisner Auditorium

“If you want to understand what’s happening today, find out what happened 150 years ago. If people had the courage to live that history, the least I can do is read about it.” ~Rhiannon Giddens

Last night I went to see and hear Rhiannon Giddens, Layla McCalla, and Bhi Bhiman perform at Lisner Auditorium in a performance they called Swimming in Dark Waters: Other Voices of the American Experience. While work songs and spirituals have been songs of protest and freedom, Rhiannon explained that they wanted to travel a different musical road last night. They wanted to use a mashup of folk, classical, and pop to tell a story of struggle, personal power, love, change, and hope. It was an incredibly powerful performance. Their voices, music, and message were so concentrated that they pierced the hearts and minds of the packed house.

All of the songs were rooted in culture, history, and art, and for me that was the message I needed. History is a potent tool. It can help us make sense of what’s happening around us now, and inform the decisions we make going forward. I left the concert feeling both whole and heartbroken, sad and joyful, determined and dreamy. And that’s the magic of music – it can make us feel so much all at once and then help us to reconcile the internal and external difference.