The 2012 Oregon Art Summit theme focused on the topic of Leadership in the Arts.
The theme of this year’s Oregon Art Summit centered around the topic of Leadership, and was addressed through four main sub-categories: listening, way-finding, storytelling and empowerment. In order to exemplify these four pillars of great leadership, courage became the foundation upon which everything else stood. I sincerely appreciated Eric Booth’s message surrounding the word bravo and the way he unpacked this word into its most basic meaning. The word, as it is commonly used, relates to the word ‘bravery’ – simply meaning, “an act of courage.” At our table we talked about the courage it takes to become a leader, and to humbly, yet courageously, lead in a way that is full of passion and purpose.
Dan Wieden, co-founder of Wieden + Kennedy, talks openly about the importance of embracing failure as part of the creative-process.
We talked about a certain quality of charisma and resiliency in leadership. Leaders drawing others to the mission through words and actions. Dan Wieden, co-founder of Wieden + Kennedy, mentioned the importance of leaders creating an environment where it is not only acceptable to fail, but encouraged to fail. Strong leaders tend to allocate this type of space for the creation of messy mistakes, attempted pursuits that do not pan out, and ideas that often never see the light of day. It is through strategic risk-taking that one’s creative potential can ultimately be achieved.
What we yearn for is a sense of compassion in our leaders – those who can relate to and take on our collective and individual concerns. Desirable leaders are those who empower us to be the best we can be and who push us confidently in the direction of our greatest potential. Furthermore, leaders who provide space for freedom (for creative thinking and self-expression) – by encouraging us to think bigger rather than conform smaller – are of those of highest admiration. These qualities require a certain amount of courage to embody.
Most of our table-talk discussions were full of rigor and intelligence, and I cherish the insights and contributions made by each person. There were eight different people from eight different parts of Oregon with eight different views on leadership. What I learned was that everyone (everyone) defines good leadership differently. Each personal definition is legitimate and important to consider when grappling with the topic of leadership.
RACC's board chair, Lina Garcia Seabold, speaks at the PechaKucha session with Andrew Dickson.
Through the table-talk experience and the PechaKucha presentations that followed, I came to fully understand the connection between good leadership and storytelling. What surprised me most was the observation that leaders are, in fact, great storytellers. Good leaders compel and captivate – providing their audience with visionary relevance in which to identify with. Storytelling is a vehicle through which to inspire the continued efforts of those working in the arts. The main take-away from the conference (that I stuffed inside my pocket for future business cards) is this notion of arts advocates acting as “agents of artistic experience.” The concept is that we all have the common goal of bringing collective, common energy together. As Eric Booth suggested, “All of us, we are in the yearning business. That is what distinguishes us. Our job is to wake-up the yearning in people. The fulfillment and reward is that they want to yearn their way into the next opportunity.” Through empowering, listening, way-finding and storytelling, these four pillars of leadership allow for an awakening of the essential yearning in others. Attending the summit turned out to be a great moment, as an emerging leader, to talk about, contemplate and think about leadership as it relates to the arts.