Breakdown/Breakthrough: A Sobering/Uplifting Consideration of What’s Next
While waiting in anticipation for last week's TEDxKC, organized by VML and hosted by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, I was overwhelmed with excitement and curiosity – and suddenly noticed a fantastically designed tent tucked behind the main screen. From that moment forward, I knew I was in for quite the evening.
So, what’s TED all about? TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design and is an annual event where some of the world’s leading thinkers and doers share what they are most passionate about. In the spirit of “Ideas Worth Spreading,” TEDx (x=independently organized TED event) was created to deliver local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. In other words, TED events and related presentations offer new ways to understand and think about the world. It’s very exciting that Kansas City is taking part in TED’s global community.
TEDxKC included four dynamic presentations. John Gerzema, author of The Brand Bubble, jump-started the evening with his presentation titled, “The Great Unwind.” Encapsulating today’s consumer climate, Gerzema candidly spoke about the rise of mindful spending – thrifty is now in-style; consumers are looking more towards quality rather than quantity. Attentiveness to local products and corporate transparency were also highlighted as upcoming trends within our current economic climate. So, What’s Next about Gerzema’s presentation? I chose a question posed at the beginning of his talk: “Has the consumer moved from a state of anxiety to action?” You decide.
Following Gerzema’s talk, the Atkins’ stage was swiftly transformed into an avant-garde installation - reminiscent of an illustration from Dr. Seuss or a childhood fantasy (that’s when they pulled out the tent I mentioned earlier). Mark Southerland and the Urban Noise Camp created a beautiful multi-sensory installation/performance. It was truly an amazing experience watching art, design, music and technology rhythmically combine and unfold on stage. Click here to view pictures on Facebook and video shorts from the performance. I found the What’s Next factor evident in the performers’ ability to reinterpret and reinvent the division between musician and artist; designer and performer.
As the avant-garde fantasy was tucked away, Adam Johnson, Head of Interpretive Media and Resources at the Nelson-Atkins, took the stage to discuss how museums reconcile potentially conflicting missions of exhibiting a work of art vs. physically protecting the piece for future generations. He used the Nelson-Atkins masterwork, Guanyin of the Southern Sea to exemplify this point. Johnson eloquently reminded us how the meaning of art objects, like the Guanyin, transform over time. Moreover, art objects engender different stories as museums adopt diverse interpretive methods. For example, Johnson highlighted an upcoming web interactive that considers the Guanyin both as a spiritual object and as an art museum object. The What’s Next factor? Using modern technology as a lens into discovering the past lives of art objects; this understanding will inform interpretation for future generations.
Lastly, activist and TEDtalk veteran, Majora Carter discussed in her presentation titled, “No More Single Purpose Anything,” solutions to environmental justice and detailed connections between ecological, economic and social change (view a past TEDtalk by Carter here). I particularly enjoyed her memories specific to Kansas City – how she loves the area, people, and sense of community. In Carter’s powerful talk, I found the What’s Next component evident in her discussion about the interrelationship between social equality and environmental sustainability.
The energy, confidence and visionary tales of What’s Next imbued by each presentation made the evening a force of change. Click here to see a TEDxKC flickr photostream. Keep in touch with TEDxKC fans and related TEDxKC events on Facebook here.