Status Update: Disconnecting…See You In A Few Days
Reflections on the 2009 Visual Arts Leadership Institute
Connecting with people has never been easier than it is today. Thanks to technology and social networking, we are literally able to get up-to-the-second updates about the comings and goings of hundreds of “friends” near and far. This is powerful and exciting. Yet it seems as visual arts administrators, we’ve got so much to do and so little time to do it that we are rarely able to meaningfully connect with each other. This summer, however, I had the chance to “disconnect” from status updates and text messages and connect with an impressive group of arts professionals at the 2009 NAMAC Leadership Institute for Visual Arts Organizations.
When I got the news that I’d been accepted to the retreat, I was honored and delighted, but had no idea what to expect. I was admittedly worried about not only losing contact with my office and the people in my life, but making it through five days without cell phone reception and internet access. When explaining my impending inaccessibility to my colleagues, one said, “Enjoy the gulag.” Another warned me “not to get converted.” The remoteness, along with our what-to-bring list--rain gear, plenty of layers, hiking boots, water bottle--made me feel more like I was leaving for summer camp, not a professional institute for like-minded colleagues.
Less than a month before the retreat, I’d been hired to be the next executive director of the Hyde Park Art Center, a position I will assume in January, 2010, when our current director steps down. While my impending new position often feels charmed—taking over an institution with a long history of success and innovation, working with a smart and supportive board, being in a new facility among a growing community of artists, students, and participants, and finding a deep connection with Chicago’s thriving, if underestimated, visual arts scene—it also feels daunting.
I will be succeeding Chuck Thurow, an exceptionally smart and creative Director who many associate singularly with the Hyde Park Art Center. I will be taking over an institution with a $1.5M budget, staff of nine, and 32,000 square foot facility (and the costs associated with it) directly following the worst economic recession since you-know-when. And I’ll be moving swiftly from my comfortable perch behind the scenes, working side-by-side with our staff, into a new leadership role. Finally, when Chuck leaves, he will leave a great legacy, but take with him an enormous amount of experience and wisdom. The term I often use to describe my trepidation is “appropriately terrified.” With this new adventure ahead, the workshop came at a perfect moment for me. I knew I had a lot to learn, and giving up my iPhone for a few days seemed a reasonable price to pay.
Within moments of arriving at the conference site in the woods outside Portland, Oregon, I found myself sitting around a circle, a la summer camp, formally introducing myself, and yes, enjoying the “ice breakers.” After these introductions, but before I knew how much fun and hilarity I’d have (roasting marshmallows and drinking Oregon wine around a bonfire; enjoying breakfast in the woods; guerilla dance parties complete with DJ booth and strobe lights; and lots of laughter), I knew I was in good company.
The group of 20 campers assembled didn’t just have outstanding credentials: they were enormously interesting, representing a diverse and innovative constellation of visual arts organizations from around the country. There were executive directors who had built their organizations from the ground up decades ago who were thinking about succession planning; successful artists who had moved into administrative roles and were completely rethinking what the role of an arts institution in a community could be; new executive directors who were galvanizing their staffs and boards to embrace new ways of thinking and leading; and other talented leaders who were contemplating how to continue to grow, contribute, and be creative at their institutions.
Without exception, everyone was passionate about the work they did, and their energy was contagious. And although I hadn’t realized it before the retreat, what I gained from this group of people was what I’d been missing, and what I needed to navigate successfully into my new role.
Over the next four days, which flew by amazingly quickly, we were given frameworks in which to situate our own challenges and think differently about them. We spent a lot of time around that circle and talking one-on-one, in small groups and collectively about our particular situations and ideas. We were a group of inquisitive question-askers, genuinely interested colleagues, brainstormers, advisors, and even therapists. Our fearless leaders -- Paula, Sonya, and Dewey “Puffin’ Stuff” Schott -- provided just the right amount of structure and guidance, allowing us space to learn from each other. We internalized concepts like “the five dimensions of leadership,” “core values,” and “the five dysfunctions of a team.” (I scare myself when these terms fly out of my mouth)! But mostly, we tapped into each other’s wisdom and ideas. We made connections, and we learned.
What I found most striking was how the issues we were each facing were emblematic of the broader issues the visual arts field is facing today: changing technologies and its impact on art and artists; the impending retirement of the baby boomers; cultural and generational differences on staffs and boards; the need, as a field, for political advocacy; and how to meet the challenges of doing more with less. While these issues are potentially daunting, I left the institute feeling optimistic and equipped with new tools. Connecting with smart and creative individuals, and learning how they are tackling these issues not by just adapting, but thriving and creating new models and paradigms, meant I’d be returning to the Hyde Park Art Center with new energy and ideas.
I went into this retreat knowing I had a lot to learn, but not sure what it was. I left with confidence and optimism. Now, after several months have passed, I also have a new and liberated perspective about “leadership in the arts” and what that means for all of us, especially today when too many conversations in the field are centered around uncertainty – the economic crash, the disappearance of traditional news media as we know it, and the loss of government support for the arts. We are lucky in that we are part of a community and an industry that embraces experimentation, innovation, and evolution and where the process of getting the right answer is as important as the answer itself. This “crisis” has opened us up to unexplored territory. It is up to us to blaze a new trail. As leaders, we get to imagine and create a new model for how artists, administrators, educators, and audience interact and function. Not having all the answers is not only okay, but can be a strength that leaves us open to possibilities.
I came away from the institute with a new network of peers. I learned a great deal about their endeavors, and discovered how my own art center fits into a national ecology of visual arts institutions. We all left with a desire to continue to learn from each other and resolved to find a way to visit each other’s institutions, see them up close, participate, and maintain the connections we were so fortunate to have made.
Putting the connections of my daily life on hold for a few days gave me the opportunity to make a different kind of connection with this group of amazing leaders from around the country. This was invaluable to me, and good for the entire visual arts field. The relationships we have formed with each other will have real implications for our institutions, artists, programs, and communities. Most importantly for me in my day-to-day work, I feel even more confident moving forward with the Hyde Park Art Center knowing that I’m not alone.
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Kate Lorenz is the Associate Director at the Hyde Park Art Center and will assume the role of Executive Director in January 2010.
