My wife and I had two weddings on back-to-back weekends this August fulfilling our cultural duties on both sides of the family. It made for a busy but very exciting August. The first wedding was a semi-modernized Hmong wedding (we condensed it from a 3-day event to a single day) and the second day was an American wedding in Bloomington, MN.
On a humid and sticky Friday evening, I roamed away from my commercially hipster Uptown neighborhood that borders two nationally renowned art museums to witness what was perhaps one of the best independent exhibitions I’ve come across. The “Impermanent Public” exhibit in North East Minneapolis examined a new evolution of street art through the work of local, national and international artists.
While some street art communicates messages through destructive means, this exhibit focused on artists using organic materials and non-destructive methods to relate with the public and our shared spaces.
If you’ve ever seen a pink “X” on a tree or a vibrantly painted pothole, you might want to think twice on whether these markings are art, public services or maybe a combination of both. Minneapolis-based artist Nathanial, was shocked to discover how fast the city reacted to his glowing dots on potholes, sidewalk cracks and loose screws on sign poles. Some of Nathaniel’s collection displayed before and after photos of fixed problems in the city’s urban landscape as a result of his tagging system.
Phil Jones's Light Post Ads
Other artists at the exhibition included Andrew Casey, Lee Walton, Light The Underground and Phil Jones. Whether you love or fear advertising, Phil Jones, a day practitioner in the field exercises his talents through bolder public expressions that bring smiles to South Minneapolis communities. He sometimes posts OFF switches on lamp posts and his work at the exhibition included paper advertisements on light posts that would make anyone chuckle.
Austin O'Brion and Mai Chao Vang at Impermanent Public
I’m not a qualified art critic or writer on the topic, but as a pedestrian and civic-minded person, am thankful for what the “Impermanent Public” brought to our community on Friday evening and hope to see more similar exhibitions in the future.
"Psychologists have established that to most people, the prototypical leader reduces uncertainty and promotes stability, emphasizing shared goals and group identity to preserve the status quo. The stereotypes of creative people are at odds with that definition; the very act of advocating unproven solutions can be seen as rocking the boat."Matt Palmquist
This research caught my attention because of its stark contrast to recent trends pushing leaders to spearhead innovation within their companies. While I think this quote refers more to senior managers than it does senior leaders, the corresponding article brings some interesting points to the surface that warns creative thinkers to proceed with caution when climbing the corporate ladder. The very nature of creativity is born from demand for positive change and it is often the case for any change to be challenged by the steady beat of the status quo. Click here to read the full article text.
Minneapolis techies and Foursquare-philes were swarming the @clockwork_tweet‘s Springtime Jam 2011!: Paella Party last night celebrating the company’s recent growth and impressive collection of work with delicious treats and beer. As friends of Clockworkers, my fiancée and I headed over to the interactive firm’s offices on East Hennepin Avenue in Minneapolis, MN.
In addition to the Clockworkers and their tech maven CEO, Nancy Lyons, were nerds and wanna-be-nerds from other MN agencies and tech companies. A few attendees that were great to see were Kyle Meyer, Product Designer for Big Cartel and Director of Interactive Design for AIGA MN, Production Ninja, Kevin O’Brien and recent grad from my alma mater, Jake Nelsen.
I’ve watched Clockwork Active Media Systems grow over the past years and have continually been impressed with the company’s talent, culture and best-in-class interactive development. While the company’s work is impressive to say the least, it is worth checking out Clockwork’s Active Media Suite (AMM), a scalable platform that offers robust content management, secure e-commerce engine, survey tools, blogging and many other useful features. Version 3.4 of the suite is now available with 24/7 support in addition to a comprehensive knowledge base.
While some sources dispute the exact ratio of Internet creators, contributors and lurkers, you’ll generally find that there is a surprising agreement among researchers that only 1% of web’s population produces the majority of the content we see. I decided to help change this statistic after suffocating from countless bit.ly retweets on my iPhone while tinkering in a Minneapolis café. My lifestream & articles blog was born.
I’ve worked with dozens of organizations and individuals to solve business challenges while embracing emerging technology. For the past five years, I’ve been so involved with the execution and strategy of it all, that I had little time to share my knowledge and experience in online forums. Upon reflecting on these trials and tribulations, I’ve decided to join the knowledge community as a contributor and facilitator of fresh ideas.
Please stay tuned in to read articles and daily chatter straight from me.
Austin O'Brion