Recently I had a negative interaction going with another AFI member. I don't know why this person took such a dislike to me from my first postings on the this website to the last one had with him a few minutes ago. I've chosen to stop discussing anything with ths fellow.
As the old saying goes, "You can't please all the people all the time."
But my message to you is that there is power in words.
PLEASE, watch this and think before you write.
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Linda, sorry that you have run into a few tough members. I think most of our members are very friendly and easy to get along with. You are doing the right thing to just steer clear of them. Hopefully, everyone else you encounter here will be nice.
Jacki B
Someone posted this on FB the other day, and I believe it may be relevant in this discussion:
Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference. ~Author unknown, attributed to Mark Twain
I have followed this discussion with great interest. I got into it in the middle, but when asked to view it, I did. I was moved by it and sent it out on my FB page as an Easter message. I had a LOT of good feedback from it. These people saw it as I did... A time-out to realize that Words can be overlooked, minimalized, ignored, mistreated, and misread.
I think that whether it is designed to be a commercial message or not is not really significant if the majority of viewers were moved by it....The fact is, it worked. We weren't scrutinizing the quality of the video, unless as Jim did, one couldn't avoid seeing the elements of advertising as a professional presentation.
I was stopped by the simplicity of the message and even by the uneveness of the production. Not realistic, maybe, but truly how people DO react to the expected and 'status quo'. I had hesitated to look at it...simply because my audio is not working at the moment, but decided to because of the subject in the opening frame. I was glad that I did. I viewed it as a silent film. In silence. Much like painting up close to your work and taking a slow, long walk away with your back turned to it before assessing it. As artists we should be open to 'seeing' that there are those who 'cannot see' and those who 'choose not' to see but if we can capture the attention of those who pass us by we are much more apt to do so with a positive approach....be it by the words we write and speak or the message our art delivers.
Kathleen,
By the words in your last sentence, I see you understand the link between the video and our art,
KUDOS!
I am overwhelmed by the depth of wisdom in your message. It touches me almost as much as the video!
Hugs,
Linda
I really do believe our art gets 'better' when we interact with a world outside our own. Otherwise we become stale and less moved by the things that our buyers and viewers are interested in. We ask viewers to 'come to the fair' and expect them to like our work and buy it - it works a whole lot better when we offer them things that fit into their world as it is, or as they want it to be.
I thank YOU, Linda for bringing this to our attention and I also appreciate the comments and thoughts of others who have pointed out that 'how' we say what we have to say may make a difference as to whether we are taken seriously, too.
Jim,
If you were the ad agency that brought such a sweet vinette to virtual space, I wouldn't begrudge you the clients.
I have a first edition Uncle Tom's Cabin by Houghton Miblin(??)(I'm too cozy to go down and look) and I don't care a hoot how much money they made from the sale of the book.
I understand your point though.
Here's a video that is very inspirational -- you may like this one too.
When you Fall, Come Back Stronger, Faster, Better...
Thanks for that video, Jim. I've bookmarked it for future reference. The message is fabulous - great for those of us facing rejections in the art fair world.
But I think it might be a little trickier to use with my first graders. They may have a hard time focusing on the real message and fixate on the race. We always tell them it's not a race. The children always want to be the first one done, even if it means going back to correct their mistakes.
Yes, that's a good one too! Inspirational! Thanks Jim.
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