Our show - Our time?
Walk a mile in someone else's shoes. The admonition to walk a mile in someone else's shoes means before judging someone, you must understand his experiences, challenges, thought processes, etc. The full idiom is: Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes. In effect, it is a reminder to practice empathy.
Empathy can expand your horizons and extend your thinking. By understanding an unfamiliar point of view, you can stretch and test new perspectives and ideas—a process key for successful innovation and important to ensuring your thinking doesn't stagnate.
Did you know the average person walks 1-2 miles a day, whereas a nurse walk, 4-5 miles a day?
For me the idea behind this phrase is that we are all occasionally guilty of putting our needs first.
Yes, the past few months have brought upon incredible challenges. From my own personal point of view, there have been many days where I could not see any light and the days seamlessly blend into one. I have had ups and downs as many of us have, however I have always tried to keep the perspective of those that have suffered. Those that have lost loved ones. Those that have lost businesses and entered into a financial abyss.
One of the core strengths of the Applied Imagination course is its ability to bring together different cultures of people and to let collaborations unfold as well as new knowledge. Through Covid-19 and the BLM movement, I have found out so much more about the world. Good and bad; it’s unity, its intolerance, its kindness and endurance. Globally, I have discovered that there are many things still to fix in the world, and perhaps through ignorance I have been a passive bystander to the unjust. To walk in another’s shoes shows solidarity and the need for unity in the situation we are all faced with.
I can see an argument with not having our festival dominated by such themes; it doesn’t need to, however as we stand, I feel we are obliged to.
Intersectionality – Inclusion for all.
There are so many strands for us to develop with this theme.
The past few months have been incredibly difficult for most of us – some more than others.
This festival needs to represent our work and projects but also need to embed the change and development that is currently happening in the world.
All of our personal lives have been affected by what has been happening around us. Some for better, some for worse. This is an incredible opportunity to do something different to what CSM has been able to do before. Rather than seeing it as a negative, let’s focus on making our Festival totally unique and to show our audience that we are breaking new creative ground and making a positive change to the world.
Sub themes:
· Intersectionality
· Growth
· Journey
· Being worn
· Thought processes
· Practice empathy
· Reflection
Being provocative
I think this is a good opportunity for us to show our empathy for others and to project this through our work. It’s time to put others first. Let’s try and blend our individual concepts into something greater and to show others that we are now aware and know what it feels like to walk in someone else’s shoes.
Despite all that is going on – this is our chance to make an unforgettable impact and legacy.
Sponsorship and the wider legacy
We do not need to be so literal with it all, however there are potential link ups to be made with manufacturers.
Take for example, Tottenham's new kits for the 2020-21 season are made entirely out of recycled fabric. The Nike strips, unveiled by the club on Thursday morning, is constructed out of recycled polyester fabric, which is made from recycled bottles.
We may be able to collaborate with manufacturers and send a positive message about creativity, empathy, growth and unity.
Just thoughts really…
We could ask notable figures to contribute, to possible donate. We could have a room full of shoes to represent us?
We could all Physically, do a mile walk and get others to do the same.
How many miles could we accumulate??
What points are we trying to make?
In a world where we are often finding ourselves stuck in the same 4 walls, let us try and reach out through hope and creativity and bring a sense of unification to our festival. Let us be PROVOCATIVE, Controversial, surprising, and creative.
This is an opportunity like no cohort has had before. Let’s go for it!
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