Communal Acts.
Photo Editor - Kate Kuo
—As a creative, It’s extremely important to have a community of support. Peers, mentors, mentees. Anyone who might be helpful towards your personal quest to strive for knowledge as well as the accountability it takes to reach certain goals you might have in mind for yourself. Each person in your peer group has varied skill sets and insight. Some of which might be helpful to you.
Not to mention the moral support that can be offered. Often times the pursuit of a career within the creative field can feel daunting. There’s often an overwhelming sense of endless tasks. Having a supportive space to lean on during those times can offer much-needed encouragement that can surely aid confidence during those times.
Photographer - Ryan Schude.
I know for me that’s often been the case. So many times as an artist, I’ve felt as if I were alone on an island of thought. Still do! Hence I made it a point to begin to reach out. Not so much in the sense of needing help or needing an ear. — More so in the sense of simply wanting to be around those in like-minded pursuits. Perhaps I was in search of a sense of inspiration. I know for years I’ve been wanting to look for new ways to capitalize and build upon my own creativity and the people you surround yourself push you to do that.
Writer - Justin Lebanowski.
Very often past the point of schooling or mentorship, you find that there seems to be less meetings of minds on the road. I find it’s not intentional. Maybe more a matter of happenstance. Not many allude to the fight it takes to become a working professional artist. More often than not, each of us are pent into our own corners of the room attacking the various tasks that lead to success.
Photographer/Director - Chris Cuffaro.
Photographer - Hanan Ali.
Yet you might quickly find yourself spinning in circles. In patterns of mundane ways of thinking and being. Losing out on the greater things you’re seeking as a creative. Things like exposure, knowledge, and opportunities.
Photographer - Phylicia J.L. Munn.
Within my journey, I’ve been fortunate enough to have met and worked with some of the most exceptional creatives in a wide array of artistic genres. I guess it’s a good idea to remind myself to continue those acts. Don’t be so marred by the pursuit of success or more importantly, yet very little talked about ego. Take the time and create the circumstances for the community to happen. Building it, fostering it. So it intern can serve you.