your pack

Daily Creator K.M. sent me this quote today as part of a longer email but I thought it was so good for us that I'm pulling it out and putting it up for our consideration today.

" Now this is the law of the jungle........
....the law runneth forward and back,
For the strength of the pack is the wolf,
and the strength of the wolf is the pack."

- Rudyard Kipling

At the end of November, I was invited to a meeting with TDF where 10 really amazing playwrights gathered in a room to talk about the future of theatre. The constant refrain in the room was the "creation of community" in LA and this quote, the holidays and the success of my weekly Women's Creativity Group has really got me thinking about how artists can connect, gather and work together.

We are strong as individuals but we are even stronger as a "pack of wild artists!" moving through the world. And not just gathering for a specific project and then scattered to our lives after that project has ended (which is the life of anyone in theatre) but the creation of an extended creative force.

A non-exclusive, all-inclusive think tank of creativity connected for the purpose of CREATION ENERGY, PROGRESSIVE THOUGHTS & ACTIONS, the building of new forms, the pushing of boundaries!

Wow - clearly I drank the Koolaid this morning.

TODAY'S CREATIVITY CHALLENGE:

Think about the artists in the world that inspire you. Think about the artists around you that you could connect with to create community.

Maybe it's 2 other people you'd like to meet with on a regular basis to just talk about art, design, museums, dance, etc.

Maybe you can host a weekly gathering of artists for a creativity session.

Maybe you can join a group.

Maybe you can apply for a residency. (The MacDowell is amazing!)

The creative process can be very isolating and gathering artists can sometimes feel like you're herding cats. But the exchange of ideas and the energy of a creativity group CANNOT BE BEAT! I strongly encourage you to find or create your pack.

If you'd like me to post a call for packmembers for the city you're in (because we have artists on this list from MN, TX, WV, CA, NY, NJ, FL, NC, MA, AZ, WY - all over) then just email me the information of how you'd like to be reached and I'll post it here: abramsclient_sj@verizon.net