Synergy of the Studio

When I was an undergrad, I spent much of my free time in a craft studio in the basement of the student center. There they offered quarter-credit classes in weaving, ceramics, metals, book arts, and assorted other areas. It was a primary part of my time there and I loved both the people and the space. My mentor there, Jeanne Steiner, recently wrote to solicit student comments about how the Arts and Crafts department served us during our time there. The paragraph below is from my response to her. I'm speaking about that studio, but I think the sentiment holds up across similar spaces.

There is a beautiful synergy that can happen when people are working together and building community. We observe those who are more technically skilled. We compare tools and materials. We meet those whom, in our ordinary lives, we would never see. We enter into a space that is Other, in which we are permitted to set down classes, work, finances, and relationships in order to make. Where else might we learn to seek this stillness-of-focus and community? Some people find it in sports, and many Colorado College students seem to look for it in the mountains, but that's not for everyone. I needed this department every single year of my college experience. Each year it provided for me a different kind of support and opportunity. Now I hope to share my experience and technical know-how with my students, to help them find the profound balance of craft in the storm of the instant and shallow.

Per usual, I talk a better talk than I walk. How can I teach anyone about carving out stillness-of-focus through craft when I struggle to do that for myself? By blogging about it, natch.