Mind the gap...

I had included this quote on my first blog post for this summer 6190 class. It was from the Facebook page of a musician friend and it sums up how so many of us who have been blessed with the opportunity to live as working artists feel about what we do in the grand scheme.

I come into this program with a considerable amount of creative equity and experience with creating for a living. While this helps eliminate performance gaps in many areas we cover in our courses, I never take a true learning experience for granted. I feel that I have always maintained a healthy curiosity for what I don't know, and it has always served me. I almost never look at any situation in terms of what I already know. There is really no reason (almost) to ever have to. I guess I have the luxury to look at it that way. By the Gladwell metric, I have put in the hours and mastered a number of skills, all of which mean nothing to me if they are not in the context of continuing to learn.

I see all of life is a learning experience. Sometimes a re-learning experience. There is always a performance gap to be found. New perspectives, new applications. I guess that's why I find the ongoing learning experience so compelling. Teaching, which is something I get to do every day, has of course been the ultimate learning experience.

I look forward to the learning experiences that await us in this class. A few of our classmates come in with valuable design skills and experience. I look forward to seeing what everyone is working on... in the meantime... everything is cool... I'll be over here, working on my chops...