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| Creative Process | |
MacArthur award winning choreographer Liz Lerman of the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange was in residency at the ATLAS building in Boulder last week. She and colleagues did two presentations. The first was a panel discussion about the making of Ferocious Beauty: Genome – a large scale multimedia performance integrating scientific concepts with sound, dance and video. The second was a mini-workshop in Critical Response Process – a prescribed method for eliciting constructive feedback about any creative endeavor (from choreography to cake!) I attended both. As an artist, I think it’s important to develop the ability to judge one’s own work – at least somewhat. Unfortunately the self-assessment process is a sloooowwww one. I’m not always able to “see” my work right after I make it. It can take days, weeks, sometimes even months before strengths and weaknesses are clear to me. Outside feedback is a gift when I can get it. Alas, finding it is a hit or miss experience. Liz Lerman has spent a lot of time thinking about how to talk about works in progress, judge them and give good feedback. She acknowledges it’s uncomfortable to both give & receive critical feedback and came up with the Critical Response Process to make things easier. (Aren’t you glad someone’s working on this!?!) Here are a few impressions from the workshop: • Feedback exists on a spectrum from nurturing to rigorous. We need to honor both ends of the spectrum to have balance. • It can be hard for artists to hear feedback unless it’s unqualified praise. • What makes something good? • When defensiveness starts, learning stops. • It’s helpful to ask neutral questions where opinion isn’t embedded in the question. (This takes practice.) • No detail is too small to notice. • Personal reflections are OK. • It’s important for the artist to have some control over the feedback session. • Liz Lerman on competition – “When I see great art I’m ecstatic! To want that for a colleague is fantastic.” I could go on, but a better way to find out more is to get your hands on a copy of Critical Response Process and try it with your friends. In the meantime I’m curious to hear your thoughts about creative feedback. What’s worked for you & what hasn’t? How do you self-assess? | |
