As I was writing the final blog post for this batch, I got distracted, as I often do. This time, it was the cover story from this week's New Times, entitled "The Cool Index: Ten Years Later, Phoenix Is Still Hot. But Is It Finally Cool?" It's a followup on an article written ten years ago about the then-burgeoning downtown Phoenix arts scene, buoyed by a few hardscrabble creative entrepreneurs. The article aims to reexamine those folks a decade onward, reflecting on whether Phoenix is finally "Cool."
I understand the Creative Class. I understand entrepreneurship. I understand social geography. I understand gentrification. And I understand exactly the kind of capital in which the New Times traffics.
This article, like so many others, aims to cast judgment upon the conservative, podunk town that, oh, I don't know, birthed the New Times itself and allowed it to grow into the national "alt"-weekly conglomerate it is. The one that bought the freaking Village Voice--the grandfather of the alt-weekly medium of journalism.
Yeah, it's pretty much the objective of every major New Times article to exert some sort of holier-than-thou assessment of a given concert, politician, creative movement, et al. But this time, it's different. Lo and behold, it's a positive article about the growth of the city! But here's the thing a hip, creative-class publication will never get about this city: it's not all about the "creativity" of these folks and the dozens of unusual projects they're taking on at any given time.
The things the article neglects to mention in its glossy overview are the exact reasons why I am in Phoenix. The exact reasons why I've connected with the very people being mentioned in the article. We're in Phoenix because it's hard. We're in Phoenix because we're trying to build a better place. For (most of) us, it's not about creating the next Portland or Seattle. It's about creating an inclusive place, one that celebrates its LGBTQIA community, one that celebrates its Latin residents and welcomes future ones, one that has affordable housing options, one that repurposes blight and makes it something beautiful.
I found a glimmer of hope in the words of Beatrice Moore, the so-called "grande dame" of the funky thoroughfare of Grand Avenue. She cringes every time at the use of the word "cool." While ever a believer in hard work and beautification and livability, she doesn't want anyone to feel unwelcome--except those who seek to scrub out the very grubby charm of her neighborhood.
The unglamorous parts that the New Times forgets to mention are the parts that make up the everyday lives of those they champion in the article: the zoning meetings, the protests, the countless dollars and hours, the grants written, the applications, the fundraisers, the painting, the drywall.
It's THAT can-do spirit that keeps me here, and THAT pride that keeps these people believing in Phoenix.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Career Services Webinar--A Digital Portfolio
For my second Career Services event, I chose to listen in on the webinar offered on creating a digital portfolio. While I have always taken care of my online presence and in particular my resumé, this presentation offered me a new perspective in bringing my work online, translating it into a truly living documentation of my accomplishments. Most importantly, I saw how to put together a website which allows prospective employers to cycle quickly through my entire body of work.
My portfolio includes everything from photography to news articles to editorials to panel discussion moderation to research papers to policy papers to curation to art installation. Therefore, in order to even give my work some semblance of order requires a truly multimedia platform. Through the webinar, I came to understand how best to market myself in order to promote a variety of skills and bodies of work. Especially as I end my internship at a contemporary art museum and my work at student-news publication, I must be certain to properly document the work I performed at each business. In order to ensure such jobs were worth my time, I need to use them to my advantage in pursuing future endeavors.
My portfolio includes everything from photography to news articles to editorials to panel discussion moderation to research papers to policy papers to curation to art installation. Therefore, in order to even give my work some semblance of order requires a truly multimedia platform. Through the webinar, I came to understand how best to market myself in order to promote a variety of skills and bodies of work. Especially as I end my internship at a contemporary art museum and my work at student-news publication, I must be certain to properly document the work I performed at each business. In order to ensure such jobs were worth my time, I need to use them to my advantage in pursuing future endeavors.
Farewells
Today I moderated my final Downtown Devil Discussion. Begun the Fall of my freshman year, this panel discussion series has been highly formative for me as a student, downtown Phoenix resident, and burgeoning member of the community.
The first DDD was arguably my first downtown-centric public event. I was invited by my RCSL at the time, Dustin Volz, who was attempting to woo me into joining Downtown Devil, the student-run news publication he and a few others had founded to serve the downtown Phoenix community and its then-new student population. He knew I had a keen interest in downtown Phoenix, and thought I would find it of interest.
Fast-forward a few months and I was co-writing an Innovation Challenge proposal with Dustin and a few others to fund an extension of the Discussion series in the form of a magazine (unsuccessful). Fast-forward again and I was the Director of Community Initiatives for the Downtown Devil. Fast-forward yet again and I was moderating the very Discussion I had been invited to attend one year earlier. And now, after three semesters at the helm of the event, I have given up my role to focus on my thesis, and the many other jobs I have gained in the meantime.
The Downtown Devil Discussions were created as an extension of an innovative hyper-local news publication, aiming to keep its finger on the pulse of downtown Phoenix as it grew and evolved. From attending, moderating, organizing, and promoting these events, I created a niche for myself and the publication in the community--bringing together diverse interests to discuss critical issues facing the area. Over the semesters the events have covered ASU/community interactions, small-businesses and entrepreneurship, transportation, sustainability, arts and culture, gentrification, and much more. And (if I may brag), I still haven't seen an event like it in town.
While I am sad to step down from the organization, it is a pleasure to have helped birth something which truly has contributed to the city I love so much.
The first DDD was arguably my first downtown-centric public event. I was invited by my RCSL at the time, Dustin Volz, who was attempting to woo me into joining Downtown Devil, the student-run news publication he and a few others had founded to serve the downtown Phoenix community and its then-new student population. He knew I had a keen interest in downtown Phoenix, and thought I would find it of interest.
Fast-forward a few months and I was co-writing an Innovation Challenge proposal with Dustin and a few others to fund an extension of the Discussion series in the form of a magazine (unsuccessful). Fast-forward again and I was the Director of Community Initiatives for the Downtown Devil. Fast-forward yet again and I was moderating the very Discussion I had been invited to attend one year earlier. And now, after three semesters at the helm of the event, I have given up my role to focus on my thesis, and the many other jobs I have gained in the meantime.
The Downtown Devil Discussions were created as an extension of an innovative hyper-local news publication, aiming to keep its finger on the pulse of downtown Phoenix as it grew and evolved. From attending, moderating, organizing, and promoting these events, I created a niche for myself and the publication in the community--bringing together diverse interests to discuss critical issues facing the area. Over the semesters the events have covered ASU/community interactions, small-businesses and entrepreneurship, transportation, sustainability, arts and culture, gentrification, and much more. And (if I may brag), I still haven't seen an event like it in town.
While I am sad to step down from the organization, it is a pleasure to have helped birth something which truly has contributed to the city I love so much.
Organizational Strengths
Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art's structure is unique, to say the least. It exists as a nonprofit organization, one of three branches of the Scottsdale Cultural Council, which itself was created as a nonprofit to administer arts and culture in the city of Scottsdale by the city government.
The (minimal) government funding does provide the organization with some amount of stability. But it certainly doesn't hurt that the museum and its sister organizations are identified with arguably Phoenix's wealthiest suburb. While delegation of responsibilities does help the SMoCA to focus on itself at times, it does lead to bureaucratic difficulties, especially when pursuing an exhibition or performance that might be considered "controversial."
To be clear, SMoCA itself has an excellent, kind, welcoming, intelligent, and dynamic staff. However, as a program of the Cultural Council, this means all its smaller decisions are subject to bigger scrutiny. This has been especially true in recent years as the Cultural Council has gone through a handful of different Presidents/CEOs, making that kind of stability difficult to achieve. Therefore, frustrations with this upper management are not uncommon.
Managing such a dynamic museum is a difficult proposition. As with any public/private partnership, some things get lost in translation, and I have seen this happen several times as both an outside observer and intern at the museum. So, while I could note that I would prefer the museum be an independent entity, the kinds of partnerships which have occurred between branches of the Scottsdale Cultural Council (see: Canal Convergence, This is a Present From a Small Distant World, etc.), the pros far outweigh the cons.
The (minimal) government funding does provide the organization with some amount of stability. But it certainly doesn't hurt that the museum and its sister organizations are identified with arguably Phoenix's wealthiest suburb. While delegation of responsibilities does help the SMoCA to focus on itself at times, it does lead to bureaucratic difficulties, especially when pursuing an exhibition or performance that might be considered "controversial."
To be clear, SMoCA itself has an excellent, kind, welcoming, intelligent, and dynamic staff. However, as a program of the Cultural Council, this means all its smaller decisions are subject to bigger scrutiny. This has been especially true in recent years as the Cultural Council has gone through a handful of different Presidents/CEOs, making that kind of stability difficult to achieve. Therefore, frustrations with this upper management are not uncommon.
Managing such a dynamic museum is a difficult proposition. As with any public/private partnership, some things get lost in translation, and I have seen this happen several times as both an outside observer and intern at the museum. So, while I could note that I would prefer the museum be an independent entity, the kinds of partnerships which have occurred between branches of the Scottsdale Cultural Council (see: Canal Convergence, This is a Present From a Small Distant World, etc.), the pros far outweigh the cons.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Building a Network
If I have learned anything from my nearly 2.5 years in college, it's all about making connections. From my first classroom guest speaker to the present, I always make a point to show my interest to those with which I come into contact.
Through simple personal contacts and without formal applications, I have been offered opportunities for grantwriting, blogging, panel moderation, conference speaking, internships, arts magazine writing, gallery curation, concert booking, and much, much more. Truly, the thing I have found most vital is showing people that you care, and can do whatever is thrown at you.
Ever since I first E-mailed the IceHouse to ask about volunteering at the landmark, ever-endangered art space, I have taken the opportunity to introduce myself those whose work I found interesting, or with whom I might have something in common. Serendipity becomes quite easy when you are willing to talk. It seems like every week I am asked by someone new to participate in a new project, or recommend a friend for a new venture. The best part: it isn't about shmoozing.
While most people see this kind of networking as self-aggrandizing, I find my work to be truly invigorating. When you actually care about the causes and work that you are pursuing, people see that passion and look to ignite it into real and substantive action. What begins as a big, menacing city becomes a close circle of people with the same, mutually-beneficial goals at heart. Within my own network, I have found dozens of people eager to build a sustainable, dense, creative community of their own, rather than importing someone else's culture, or worse yet, simply moving away to find a culture that already exists.
I care about the work that I do. Though it is at times exhausting and seemingly endless, there is never a moment when I regret talking to someone new and opening up a new door of opportunity.
Through simple personal contacts and without formal applications, I have been offered opportunities for grantwriting, blogging, panel moderation, conference speaking, internships, arts magazine writing, gallery curation, concert booking, and much, much more. Truly, the thing I have found most vital is showing people that you care, and can do whatever is thrown at you.
Ever since I first E-mailed the IceHouse to ask about volunteering at the landmark, ever-endangered art space, I have taken the opportunity to introduce myself those whose work I found interesting, or with whom I might have something in common. Serendipity becomes quite easy when you are willing to talk. It seems like every week I am asked by someone new to participate in a new project, or recommend a friend for a new venture. The best part: it isn't about shmoozing.
While most people see this kind of networking as self-aggrandizing, I find my work to be truly invigorating. When you actually care about the causes and work that you are pursuing, people see that passion and look to ignite it into real and substantive action. What begins as a big, menacing city becomes a close circle of people with the same, mutually-beneficial goals at heart. Within my own network, I have found dozens of people eager to build a sustainable, dense, creative community of their own, rather than importing someone else's culture, or worse yet, simply moving away to find a culture that already exists.
I care about the work that I do. Though it is at times exhausting and seemingly endless, there is never a moment when I regret talking to someone new and opening up a new door of opportunity.
Contemporary Art as Public Service
Though many struggle to find the purpose of much contemporary art, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art takes its mission as a truly-public, educational facility to heart in its every activity. Run as a public/private partnership under the Scottsdale Cultural Council, SMoCA offers an enormous array of programming to meet the needs of the diverse community it serves in the Valley.
Firstly, the Museum offers free admission every Thursday, and participates in the citywide weekly artwalk, making itself a constantly-available cultural resource, rather than existent only in a silo. Complimentary entry is also offered to attendees of the numerous annual festivals that take place in the adjacent Civic Center plaza. In these instances, SMoCA removes itself from the perceived ivory tower, and places itself on the level of all people with the ability to reach its doorstep.
In addition to free entry, SMoCA offers tours throughout each month directed to seniors and youth, respectively, making sure diverse demographics are able to see and understand the art on display at the museum. Events like this season's poetry and bike-art workshops specifically offer teens the opportunity to engage in artistic practice modeled after and in response to exhibits currently on display. Year-round, the Visions program visits high schools across the Valley to give teens the ability to create multimedia art, with the potential to have it displayed in the museum's student gallery, located inside the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, next door to the museum.
Lastly, SMoCA offers programming diverse in both media and presentation, ensuring that all people can engage and find something valuable in the work they display. Video installations and sound pieces fill one room, while whimsical sculptures and drawings take over another; minimalist paintings and contemporary portraits take the wall in a single line, while looking-glasses peer into the wall in the next room.
While many view art (and especially contemporary art) as superfluous or non-essential, SMoCA emphatically makes the case for the opposite to be true.
Firstly, the Museum offers free admission every Thursday, and participates in the citywide weekly artwalk, making itself a constantly-available cultural resource, rather than existent only in a silo. Complimentary entry is also offered to attendees of the numerous annual festivals that take place in the adjacent Civic Center plaza. In these instances, SMoCA removes itself from the perceived ivory tower, and places itself on the level of all people with the ability to reach its doorstep.
In addition to free entry, SMoCA offers tours throughout each month directed to seniors and youth, respectively, making sure diverse demographics are able to see and understand the art on display at the museum. Events like this season's poetry and bike-art workshops specifically offer teens the opportunity to engage in artistic practice modeled after and in response to exhibits currently on display. Year-round, the Visions program visits high schools across the Valley to give teens the ability to create multimedia art, with the potential to have it displayed in the museum's student gallery, located inside the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, next door to the museum.
Lastly, SMoCA offers programming diverse in both media and presentation, ensuring that all people can engage and find something valuable in the work they display. Video installations and sound pieces fill one room, while whimsical sculptures and drawings take over another; minimalist paintings and contemporary portraits take the wall in a single line, while looking-glasses peer into the wall in the next room.
While many view art (and especially contemporary art) as superfluous or non-essential, SMoCA emphatically makes the case for the opposite to be true.
The Music of My Youth?
In connection with my recent trip to The Fest in Florida, I began to ruminate on why so few people are interested in attending such an immense, dynamic event. What it always seems to come down to is this (false) perception: punk is for the kids.
It seems everyone and their mother goes through a "punk" phase in one form or another. Whether it be Ramones or Simple Plan or NoFX, everybody seems to dip their toe in the water, before rapidly removing it by high school or college, only to look back nostalgically and scoff at their perceived immaturity.
The truth about punk though, is much more dynamic. In listening to punk and its many iterations over the past 13 years of my life, I can say that this seemingly simple music of rebellion has more to say than most other forms of music combined. Inclusive of the poppy hooks of Lemuria, the focused aggression of Paint It Black, and the sheer technicality of A Wilhelm Scream, punk can mean a lot of things to a lot of people.
Generally, definitions include a certain do-it-yourself attitude, an eschewing of the mainstream (whatever that means to the given listener), and a bit of crunch, edge, or rawness to the music itself. Founded as the music of pure rebellion, punk has certainly evolved over its now-lengthy lifespan. If one is willing to truly listen closely, punk artists offer humorous spit-takes, complex rhythms, excellent energy, and some of the most biting political, social, and philosophical critiques in classic or modern music. Kids music? Far from it.
While misunderstood youngsters might be attracted to the nasally whine of pop-punk made by the Menzingers, older, more aggressive ones may find release in the power of hardcore like White Lung. And older, more thoughtful folks will keep the spirit of their youth alive alongside nostalgic ruminations from Restorations and Gaslight Anthem.
For those willing to give it a chance, punk isn't the sole affection of scruffy, smelly, mohawked youth. Instead, it can also be the music of social change, and the stuff of dissertations.*
*Thanks to Greg Graffin of Bad Religion for making that statement true.
It seems everyone and their mother goes through a "punk" phase in one form or another. Whether it be Ramones or Simple Plan or NoFX, everybody seems to dip their toe in the water, before rapidly removing it by high school or college, only to look back nostalgically and scoff at their perceived immaturity.
The truth about punk though, is much more dynamic. In listening to punk and its many iterations over the past 13 years of my life, I can say that this seemingly simple music of rebellion has more to say than most other forms of music combined. Inclusive of the poppy hooks of Lemuria, the focused aggression of Paint It Black, and the sheer technicality of A Wilhelm Scream, punk can mean a lot of things to a lot of people.
Generally, definitions include a certain do-it-yourself attitude, an eschewing of the mainstream (whatever that means to the given listener), and a bit of crunch, edge, or rawness to the music itself. Founded as the music of pure rebellion, punk has certainly evolved over its now-lengthy lifespan. If one is willing to truly listen closely, punk artists offer humorous spit-takes, complex rhythms, excellent energy, and some of the most biting political, social, and philosophical critiques in classic or modern music. Kids music? Far from it.
While misunderstood youngsters might be attracted to the nasally whine of pop-punk made by the Menzingers, older, more aggressive ones may find release in the power of hardcore like White Lung. And older, more thoughtful folks will keep the spirit of their youth alive alongside nostalgic ruminations from Restorations and Gaslight Anthem.
For those willing to give it a chance, punk isn't the sole affection of scruffy, smelly, mohawked youth. Instead, it can also be the music of social change, and the stuff of dissertations.*
*Thanks to Greg Graffin of Bad Religion for making that statement true.
FEST 12
This past weekend, I attended The Fest. Simple, even dumb, name. Simple, even dumb, concept. Far from a simple experience.
Over 400 bands performing at 15 venues over four days, taking over the entirety of downtown Gainesville, Florida. A little overwhelming in reality? You could say so.
For the relatively small community of folks who purchase their records from the Gainesville label No Idea and read the snark of Punknews.org, this annual festival is Christmas, New Year's, a birthday, and more, all in one. Only roughly 4-5,000 folks attend, but for those who do, it's the greatest number of like-minded people any attendee is apt to see in his or her lifetime. Punk bands appear at every turn, and so-called "punk celebrities" mingle around every corner, as fans and bands both new and old mingle together on a fully-leveled playing field, taking pride in the ramshackle community they have built together over the past 12 years.
I went into the Fest never having been to a multi-day music festival, and knew going in that pacing myself would be paramount to ensuring my enjoyment of each and every band I wanted to see. While the whole "not feeling terrible at the end of it all" thing didn't quite work out in the end, I still was able to see over 40 bands across the four days, traversing seven different venues and innumerable drunkards along the way.
While debauchery was certainly present, Fest as a whole has a certain sacred air around it, as everyone seems to innately know that the event is something truly special, something that cannot afford to be ruined. Therefore, any time things nearly got out of hand, a cooler head would intervene and make certain that no one was permanently hurt, nor would the experience of all be kept from greatness.
Among the best sets of the weekend: J Robbins acoustic best-of, Restorations, Toby Foster/Ginger Alford/Eric Ayotte mega-set, Hop Along, Fake Problems, The Lawrence Arms, The Menzingers, Lemuria, RVIVR. Check them each out, and you might find something new!
Over 400 bands performing at 15 venues over four days, taking over the entirety of downtown Gainesville, Florida. A little overwhelming in reality? You could say so.
For the relatively small community of folks who purchase their records from the Gainesville label No Idea and read the snark of Punknews.org, this annual festival is Christmas, New Year's, a birthday, and more, all in one. Only roughly 4-5,000 folks attend, but for those who do, it's the greatest number of like-minded people any attendee is apt to see in his or her lifetime. Punk bands appear at every turn, and so-called "punk celebrities" mingle around every corner, as fans and bands both new and old mingle together on a fully-leveled playing field, taking pride in the ramshackle community they have built together over the past 12 years.
I went into the Fest never having been to a multi-day music festival, and knew going in that pacing myself would be paramount to ensuring my enjoyment of each and every band I wanted to see. While the whole "not feeling terrible at the end of it all" thing didn't quite work out in the end, I still was able to see over 40 bands across the four days, traversing seven different venues and innumerable drunkards along the way.
While debauchery was certainly present, Fest as a whole has a certain sacred air around it, as everyone seems to innately know that the event is something truly special, something that cannot afford to be ruined. Therefore, any time things nearly got out of hand, a cooler head would intervene and make certain that no one was permanently hurt, nor would the experience of all be kept from greatness.
Among the best sets of the weekend: J Robbins acoustic best-of, Restorations, Toby Foster/Ginger Alford/Eric Ayotte mega-set, Hop Along, Fake Problems, The Lawrence Arms, The Menzingers, Lemuria, RVIVR. Check them each out, and you might find something new!
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