"Call and response: Kelly Warren"

The Call: 

I’m working on a series called "Call and Response". It’s about dialogue. I would appreciate it if you would participate. Just send 2-4 pieces of evidence. It could be images of your work, work you like, things you find interesting.

The Response:

Thanks for inviting me to be a part of the conversation.  Here are some things that I am interested in currently (they are always changing!):

1.  Using reclaimed materials to create something: 

This video is one I have probably shared with you...I just love it and Dan Phillips makes it sound so easy! 

*My aunt is an artist out of Phoenix, AZ who creates beautiful works of art from "junk".  She is the person who finds treasure in your trash.  It has amazed me for as long as I can remember, and I've always loved and appreciated the idea of "mixed-media" creations.  Recently, I have invested some time into starting to make my own (and first) dining table out of reclaimed barn wood from a barn that was torn down here in Washington, NC.  I have no idea how it will turn out, but I am so excited to go through all of the steps of preparation and creation.  There is a plan in place but I predict that it will change as things progress.  To me there is something so rewarding, beautiful and thoughtful about using reclaimed/recycled materials to create anything!

2.  Embellishments

*I see embellishments everywhere...clothes, cars, billboards, TV, etc.  They are flashy and catch you eye but can be so void of any meaning/utility.  I also hear embellishments constantly throughout the day...in stories, news broadcasts, from students, from neighbors, etc. Now I've been known to embellish a story from time to time, which can be a creative outlet. However, the embellishments that are used for personal gain (i.e.-politician platforms) have really become very troubling to me. I want stripped down, honest, and simple...the embellishments have become just too much these days. What ever happened to simplicity?

3.  Diversity  (this one is a little jumbled!)

*I've always been drawn to things that were different--people who thought and looked differently from me.  As a young girl, I wanted to learn about what made people different--their backgrounds, experiences, upbringing, etc.  I wanted to understand them so that it would help me relate and find common ground.  I did this before the word "diversity" became such a buzz word.  I did this out of an innate curiosity to learn about others.  The word "diversity" comes up a lot over here at ECU.  There are plans to increase diversity, programs to support underrepresented groups of people, and governing powers telling institutions that they need to have faculty that reflect the diversity of the student body, which also needs to be more diverse. I also know that our world would be quite boring without diversity in thoughts, art, music, religions, styles, languages, etc.  But I struggle to find a balance when it comes to focusing so much on diversity it becomes divisive and we get pushed further apart, rather than being brought together to appreciate our similarities and celebrate our differences.  Someone always seems to be left out.  I'm not sure if this makes sense.  I wonder if the artists struggles with this concept of diversity...you want to create a brand or a certain look/style, but you want to create something new and different with each new piece, too. 

Okay, so I am not sure if those make sense or fit what you are looking for, so if you need additional information please let me know :)

Have a great weekend,

Kelly

 1.  "I have no idea how it will turn out, but I am so excited to go through all of the steps of preparation and creation." Here at empathinc. we call that process. Actually we call it good livin'.

2.  "What ever happened to simplicity?" We don't have an answer for that one, Kelly. Tell you what - we'll google on our smart phone and then text you and post on our Twitter account to insure redundancies.

3.  "I'm not sure if this makes sense." empathinc. holds that anything related to an individual is already imbued with meaning. And that just makes good sense to us. Understanding is overrated.

Empathinc. Photo Response Credits:

1.  Shamelessly lifted from the World Wide Web (WWW).

2.  Willoree Ford (grandaughter) with my friends Almetto and James Alexander.

3.  Shameless promotion of son Isaac Schulz' new project: Shibuya Wildcats.

Kelly's blogs: 

This is where I met Kelly. Click here for a great article.

And here: "I love music and I love to write…so there ya have it!  I hope you enjoy my blog about the music that invades my life and plays a major role in my evolution."

Thanks for being part of the conversation, Kelly!

Have a great life,

Tom 

 

While comprehending both the conveniences and pitfalls of a Cause and Effect existence, 

here at empathinc. we prefer to live in a Call and Response Universe. 

This series is an exploration of that space. 

"Call and Response - Beyond Understanding"

“Rabbit's clever," said Pooh thoughtfully.
"Yes," said Piglet, "Rabbit's clever."
"And he has Brain."
"Yes," said Piglet, "Rabbit has Brain."
There was a long silence.
"I suppose," said Pooh, "that that's why he never understands anything.”

A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh 

While comprehending both the conveniences and pitfalls of a Cause and Effect existence, 

here at empathinc. we prefer to live in a Call and Response Universe. 

This series is an exploration of that space. 

Video by Daniel de Wit 2012

"Call and Response - Empathy in Corporation"

"You employ stone, wood, and concrete, and with these materials you build houses and palaces: that is construction. Ingenuity is at work. But suddenly you touch my heart, you do me good. I am happy and I say: 'This is beautiful.'" 

Le Corbusier (see more here)

My years of working with the root concepts of empathy have lead me time and time again to issues of place. I'll spare you the inchoate details and cut to the chase.

If I attend to empathy as empathy has come to be enacted, then I walk a mile in your shoes and manage to think as you think.I have come to understand that concept as being way off the mark. To even assume that I understand your feelings (as you experience your feelings) is a kind of emotional colonialism. I can't occupy your emotions without impressing my life experiences on yours.

How could that even work?

What I can do is hold a space sacred so that perhaps you can experience your circumstances in safety. Why, that's a veritable cathedral of circumstance. The question du jour of the day becomes: do we make a space sacred? Is a space always already sacred and we find ourselves slow dancing in an empathic exchange? Is a space made sacred through our recognition of each other? Our recognition of the space as being intrinsically sacred?

I think about these things.

And the thought envelopes you. 
And it embraces me.

And this is beautiful.

"Consider this: Let’s say that the space you occupy is a Jello mold and that you and your circle of family and friends – your reality team – are banana slices suspended in lemon lime goodness. Now what transpires within each banana slice is implicitly akin to the Jello, and jiggles about as the Jello jiggles. And there is a certain simplicity about this."

Le Grandtoureau (video link here)

"From the dawn of man's imagination, place has enshrined the spirit; as soon as man stopped wandering and stood still and looked about him, he found a god in that place; and from then on, that was where the god abided and spoke from if ever he spoke."

Eudora Welty (complete text here)

 

While comprehending both the conveniences and pitfalls of a Cause and Effect existence, 

here at empathinc. we prefer to live in a Call and Response Universe. 

This series is an exploration of that space.