I Heart Art: Portland

Connecting to Your Community: Part Five

Isaac — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:00:50 +0000

This is fifth and final part in a series on Connecting to Your Community, inspired by the Salon Discussion on the subject in March 2011. Below is an excerpt. For the full article, follow the link at the end.

Previously in this series: Learn to Share: A Primer | Part One: Setting the Stage | Part Two: Identifying Your Motives | Part Three: Becoming a Catalyst | Part Four: Developing Synergy

Making A Difference

HYPOTHESIS
The best way to balance our commodity-driven culture is to contribute to the community through the open exchange of knowledge, ideas and information.

Seeing the Forest for the Trees

It’s been two full years since that first meeting of the minds—that planted seed that grew and blossomed into the I Heart Art: Portland program. After two full years of hosting accessible professional development workshops, convening community salon discussions, and devising unique speed-networking events that reach into Portland’s vibrant community of makers, I look back and I smile to myself.

I get emails every now and then from people who have attended one or several of the events and programs that we put on, praising us for the amazing service that we bring to the community. They talk about finding the courage to take their creative business to the next level, finding a home for their creations to be sold and valued, and feeling like they’re not alone in trying to succeed at doing what they love.

Many of them itch to pay it forward, knowing that what they’ve received is valuable not just to them but to so many others around them, wanting to give back by volunteering at an event, teaching a workshop, or contributing a blog article. Every time I get one of these emails a smile spreads across my face like a proud parent. This is what we set out to do. We are making a difference.

When you become a contributing member of a community, it’s easy to get caught up in the logistics, the organization, or the stress that can build up around putting something like this out there into the world. The DIY culture unwittingly fosters a certain amount of martyrdom that can shroud your ability to see the forest for the trees.

But if you take the opportunity to step back and look outside, to pay attention to the people you are serving, you’ll start to notice gratitude being channeled back at you. There is nothing quite like that feeling in the world—it feeds the soul.

Read the full article on Isaac’s new blog, The Ambidextrous Brain.

Connecting to Your Community: Part Four

Isaac — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 16:00:58 +0000

This is Part Four in a series on Connecting to Your Community, inspired by the Salon Discussion on the subject last March. Below is an excerpt. For the whole article, follow the link at the end.

Previously in this series: Learn to Share: A Primer | Part One: Setting the Stage | Part Two: Identifying Your Motives | Part Three: Becoming a Catalyst

Developing Synergy

HYPOTHESIS
The best way to balance our commodity-driven culture is to contribute to the community through the open exchange of knowledge, ideas and information.

Two or more people working well together become more valuable than each person individually. This state is a form of synergy, and is more commonplace than you might think. Musical ensembles bring works to harmonic life in a way that each instrument alone cannot achieve, politicians campaigning together can drum up more votes than either of them can individually gather, and a group of individuals rallying for a united cause can achieve more than one person spending an equivalent amount of time working toward that cause on their own.

Put Yourself in the Right Place at the Right Time

As you proceed through identifying your motives and becoming a catalyst, you must pay attention to your surroundings. Keep your eyes peeled for opportunities to join a community and give of yourself for its greater good. Kirsten, one of the I Heart Art: Portland council members, recently wrote about putting herself in the right place at the right time, and I agree.

The next time you are drawn to someone, just go up to them and say hello, and see what happens. I happened to be at a talk with Matt Stichcomb from Etsy, and I just happened to run into some friends there, and I just happened to find myself in a meeting with Matt and about a dozen people at eight o’clock in the morning… I went because I was drawn to an opportunity. I had no idea where it would lead me, but I knew that it was important.
—Kirsten Moore

I disagree with the notion of pure chance, luck or karma. Kirsten talks about having a sense for situations and people that might lead to her next opportunity. She doesn’t aggressively pursue people or groups—rather, she recognizes when someone or something fits within her needs as an artist and contributor and puts herself out there to explore the possibilities.

Likewise, my own involvement with the I Heart Art: Portland project began with a casual meet-up at a local bar. Members of the Portland Etsy Team were invited to have a drink with some of Etsy’s visiting administration. I had not really met anyone locally as far as community was concerned, so I knew that this was a great place to start.

One thing led to another, and I ended up spending a large part of the evening chatting with Shannon, the administrator of the Portland Etsy Team, about how to get more involved. A few weeks later, a message went up on the team forum (that she had encouraged me to join) about an open call for interest in a collaborative project between Etsy, Pacific Northwest College of Art and the Museum of Contemporary Craft. And I Heart Art was born.

Once you find these places to be and these people to talk to, start initiating conversations. You don’t need to be incredibly extroverted (we established in the last chapter that I’m not), you just need to say hello, let your passions guide you and see where you end up after 30 minutes or an hour.

One day over lunch, my friend Diane introduced the concept of 30,000 foot-level conversations. She and I had been deep in discussion about the meaning of “free” and her recent investigation into the benefits of giving yourself away. I enjoyed that conversation so much that I started a weekly-ish coffee or lunch rendezvous with someone from my sphere of Twitter followers, and dubbed them Twitterdates. Each week I find someone new to meet up with and we have conversations that often reach outside my comfort zone and help build my own community in the process. This simple little method of meeting new people and putting myself out there has opened doorways to extremely interesting conversations, new opportunities and much more.

Read the full article on Isaac’s new blog, The Ambidextrous Brain.

Etsy’s Almost Internet Famous Event

holdentees — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 01:22:31 +0000

As small business owners we know that social media is one of those tools in our tool belt that can boost our bottom line, build our brand and help us show a little personality. But, being clever and creative in 140 characters can be daunting. Some brands ratchet up “likes” and “followers” like rain in a bucket in Portland. For others, it’s just crickets.

Interested in learning more about how to translate your voice into effective social media campaigns with measured success?

Then check out Etsy’s free Almost Internet Famous event.

Held in the Etsy Labs Brooklyn and streamed via Online Labs for free, for those of us that can’t make it in person.

Gain insight from Eugene Mirman, a hilarious indie comedian with almost 150,000 Twitter followers, who has used social media (including Kickstarter) in innovative ways. Followed by a panel discussion with Elizabeth Weil (@Elizabeth) from Twitter along with Jen Rubio of WarbyParker (@WarbyParker)and Amy Turn Sharp of littlealouette (@littlealouette), an Etsy seller with a great following on social media.

WHEN: Thursday, October 27, 4:00 – 6:30 p.m. PT

RSVP to attend online via Livestream

Creative Mornings: Kate Bingaman-Burt Kicks Off Monthly Breakfast Lecture series

Isaac — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 15:30:46 +0000

Creative Mornings started up a couple years ago in New York by Tina Roth Eisenberg, aka SwissMiss, and quickly gained popularity among the creative community, expanding to cities across the globe.

Now Creative Mornings is coming to Portland, organized by the fabulous Tsilli Pines!

Each month, Creative Mornings hosts a free breakfast with a 20 minute lecture from a local creative mind and 20 minutes of discussion afterward on the speaker’s subject. The whole thing starts at 8:30 in the morning and is done by 10:00, so if you need to run off to work, you can!

The first edition in Portland of this popular series is this Friday, October 28, featuring our beloved Kate Bingaman-Burt. The lecture is hosted by Ziba, in their cool auditorium, and breakfast is sponsored by Scout Books and Museum of Contemporary Craft.

Tickets are free, but seating is limited. From what I’ve heard, they’ll go “on sale” today, so keep your eyes peeled or follow @Portland_CM on Twitter for announcements of open registration. Prepare to be inspired!

Things to Do: Portland Open Studios

Isaac — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 04:39:25 +0000

Portland Open Studios offers a unique and inspiring form of experiential education: interacting with local artists at work within the context of their studios. All around metro Portland in an annual tour of studios, art lovers of all ages and walks of life can discover new materials, learn about ancient techniques, and share the wonders of creativity with friends and family. Have you always been curious about what moves an artist to work in the way that they do? Let the artists of Portland Open Studios indulge your curiosity.

The juried studios are open this weekend and next weekend (October 8/9 and 15/16) and the Tour Guide (including map and tickets for two adults) is available at New Seasons, Art Media, and many other retailers for $15. Kids are free, too!

Hello Etsy PDX in Photos

Isaac — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:06:50 +0000

Hello Etsy PDX, a set on Flickr.

The photos are in and there’s no dispute—Hello Etsy PDX was all kinds of amazing! Check out the best photos from our wonderful PNCA student photographers, Matthew Miller and Micah Fischer. View the whole set on Flickr.

Review and Planning for 2012

Isaac — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 16:00:05 +0000

As the bulk of our 2011 program draws to a close, the Leadership Council gathered this past Sunday at McMenamin’s Kennedy School, hunkered down in the library and held an all-day planning retreat. We scribbled on easel pads and took copious notes (10 pages!) as we recapped this year’s successes, mapped out what we’d like to see in next year’s program, and discussed different ways that we can continue to provide high quality, meaningful programs while maintaining a sustainable program.

But even with eight heads put together, we know we can’t plan it out without the help of our community. Next Monday evening, October 3, we will gather at PNCA (Room 201) to host a Community Feedback and Planning Discussion.

Did you attend a workshop, salon discussion, Mixer Match or the Hello Etsy conference? Would you like to offer some input into how next year’s line-up of workshops and salon discussions shapes up? Are there topics you’d like to see us cover? Do you have brilliant ideas about sustainable funding and community partnerships that could help us establish a healthy program?

Please join us for a look at the future of our program and contribute to the conversation.

Community Feedback and Planning Discussion

October 3, 7–9 pm
Pacific Northwest College of Art
1241 NW Johnson Street
No RSVP necessary; light refreshments will be provided

Supportland is Hiring!

Isaac — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 16:00:51 +0000

Hopefully if you attended Hello Etsy PDX, you had a chance to stop by the Supportland table and meet Katrina and Rachel and learn more about their program. Well it turns out they’re hiring!

Supportland is looking for sales people and a PHP programmer to help spread the local love and work on their back end systems. See the image below for details, and how to apply. They’re suggesting that résumés be submitted by the end of the day September 25.

Paperless Networking Night: Leave Your Business Cards at Home

Isaac — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 20:00:56 +0000

What is networking, really? Networking for networking’s sake will help you build a business card collection, but will it propel your creative business? Yes, it certainly can!

Forget the business cards—come out for an evening with just yourself and your passion. Building networks is about building mutually beneficial relationships for the sake of support, education and connected referrals. Think outside the box in how you connect to your community of makers, shakers and creators. You just might be surprised!

I Heart Art: Portland is sponsoring a free Paperless Networking Night hosted by Andrea Mansfield of Brand and Bloom. Make your way into the center of Ladd’s Addition at Pailo Dessert House for an evening of business card-less personal connections.

No need to RSVP–please show up for sweets and networking!

Paperless Networking Night

hosted by Brand and Bloom

Wednesday, September 28, 7–9 pm
Palio Dessert House
Ladd’s Addition

Non-Automated Jeansmiths

Isaac — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 21:00:00 +0000

Raleigh Denim has quickly established itself as the highest quality artisinal denim production in the United States, and above anything I think they embody the “intentional growth” concept that our keynote discussion addressed at Hello Etsy PDX.

Each of their six sewers makes five pairs of jeans per day, resulting in a small-batch operation of only 100–150 pairs of jeans each week. I’m sure they could expand into a larger operation, but I get the feeling they like keeping it small and in control.

I just came across the video below, so check it out! If anyone is interested, Victor Lytvinenko and Sarah Yarborough, founders of Raleigh Denim, will be speaking Wednesday night, September 21, for an MFA in Applied Craft and Design lecture. The lecture is free and open to the public and starts at 6:30 pm in The Bison Building, 421 NE 10th Avenue.

Learn more about the lecture.