The Water Project => Beauty of Water

The Water Project is now Beauty of Water. Thanks to all who helped select a name. Here are excerpts from two contributors in the selection process:

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Water:
is life
origin of life
is that which shapes the earth and gives it beauty through its geology,
topography, flora and fauna
has a duality: soft and yielding, flowing, controllable, the source of
all
life; hard, powerful, destructive
is universal- scientists think of it as the sine qua non of any kind of
life.

(Some life can live w/o air, directly (like gilled creatures), but no
life can
live w/o direct contact with water...)

thebeautyofwater
waterascreator

Art:
is an act of creation
is universal
effects change, so it can be creatively destructive
is a reflection of ourselves (water reflects)

Art is water, water is art
art of water, water of art...
art and water, water and art
ars, aqua (latin)
Art from water, water from art....

hm... just playing around with these... I like thebeautyofwater too.

from Tse-Sung Wu

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Yes, I like Beauty of Water. I'm trying to think of a name that evokes all the other things about water, in addition to it's beauty, but that's a tall order. And of course "beauty" can mean a lot more than just how something looks. I get that. And it could even be said that "beauty" does evoke all those other things -- things such as power, necessity, life-giving, life-taking, magnitude, Godliness, fearsomeness, gorgeousness, generosity, basic-ness, scarcity, abundance. You know, all that. I guess "Beauty" really can hold all that within it.

from Sarah Behrendt

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Renaming The Water Project

The past few weeks I've been adjusting to the new job at the health club. I work six days a week, and on the seventh I go skiing. Actually last weekend I went to my dad's in Milwaukee to see my sister Sarah perform in a play ~ excellent!

I have a good first draft of the new version of The Water Project concept paper. I will post it here soon. It emphasizes the collaborative, global, and artistic aspects of the project. It may not satisfy the urgings I receive to make it more specific for potential funders. I agree that will be needed. At this time, though, I am doing my best to midwife unfolding qualities that necessarily build on developing momentum. This is happening. It won't be too much longer before we can create financial structure. We're getting out of the embryonic stage.

Meanwhile, my good friend Terry Berger, producer of most of the early photos I posted through this blog, and of several photos in the paper for The Water Project, made a home page mockup. Thank you Terry! It was exciting to see this materialize. He also created a lovely website for the Indian artist, Santhan. I helped a little partway through, but Terry made it happen. Terry's own website is worth looking at, too. He is doing unbelievable work in India.

The title "The Water Project" was always meant to be a working title, to be renamed by people involved in the project at some point in its evolution. Well, that time has come, driven by the need for a domain name. I spoke with the keeper of thewaterproject.org, a pastor named Peter, who has extensive experience in internet marketing. Long story short, we each support each others work ~ take a look at what they are doing, it's great ~ and we hope to create a partnership of some sort in the future. For now, though, I'm prompted to get our "The Water Project" a new name.

Here are the top candidates at the moment.
thebeautyofwater.org
bethetide.org
projectartesia.org
quenchingart.org
liquidexpression.org

Please feel free to send me your opinion! My email address is available in the concept paper.

Oh, and last but not least, I have been connecting a bit with a US American artist who is interested in the project, and is already doing related work in the San Francisco Bay Area. We'll see...

Advisor Report

I heard from Anna Halprin on my request that she serve as an advisor to The Water Project. Here's what her administrative assistant wrote: "Anna and I discussed your email yesterday. She is all for your project and sincerely believes in your vision. At this time, with sincerity, she regretfully must decline the advisory position. We understand the role is very low key and she has considered this – however, her schedule is beyond full this year. Our goal is to manage her time with great sensitivity & respect to her and her husbands aging as well as their brilliance and creativity. This is challenging to do. Please keep us posted on the project as it progresses. With our sincere support, Lisa & Anna" I take this well.

I approached Sam Bower of Green Museum a couple of weeks ago, and he also declined to serve as an advisor, citing that he felt the project was too unclear at this time. Sam spent well over an hour with me on the phone, providing feedback and support, for which I am grateful.

I have mainly received positive, constructive feedback on the concept paper and project. All of the feedback has been fertile.

It is fascinating to encounter others' reactions. For example, to me the project is crystal clear and always has been. But the fact that it seems vague to some people means that the tacit understandings I have inside of me, that to me seem obvious, are in fact not obvious at all. These understandings need to come forth and be made explicit. This is a normal phenomenon. Of course sometimes feedback creates shifts in my own understanding, deepening my sense of what needs to happen, and/or introducing new ideas. And no doubt I don't always understand the feedback. That's life in a human body. All of these points are a part of the thrill of collaboration. There is so much discovery.

I am going to hold off on asking new people to serve as advisors until I've completed the next version of the concept paper, which I aim to do in the next two weeks.

Next Steps

Goodbye for now to beautiful Guatemala. Last days were spent with new friends in the areas of Lake Atitlán and La Antigua.

Back in San Francisco, in Bay Area Fever style, I visited stellar people, danced with a group I initiated in Point Reyes Station, saw the opening of a gorgeous new space at the CircleCenter in Fairfax, experienced a talk and choreography from Anna Halprin, and for a rest, went to see movies.

Anna Halprin's Planetary Dance and other aspects of her life work have influenced me a great deal. I asked her to serve as an advisor for The Water Project, and she agreed to consider it. What a great thing it would be to have her input and blessings!

I have now arrived at the home of my sister and her fun family in Edmonds, Washington, just north of Seattle. My intentions while here are to re-build my foundation, as it's time to replenish the supply of moolah and I have grown tired of moving around so much; and return to physical fitness. It is time to have a home, work, and lifestyle that are more sustainable while being complimentary to The Water Project.

I am dreaming about different possible places to make that happen: England, somewhere quiet near a river in the USA, a return to the Bay Area, extended visit to India, or perhaps somewhere as of yet unconsidered. I'm open to help in creating just the right situation. I'll keep this area posted. Peace to all who visit here.

Status Report

I want to metion how things are going in Guatemala with regards to The Water Project. This is on the personal level, and a week from now, not to mention a month from now, this might seem completely out of date.

I have been staying in Antigua lately, and it is easy to get lost here. An amazing person, who runs a community center that grows leaders who can organize to obtain government funding for projects in their communities, loaned me a CD of children´s art, and I can´t find his place to return it. That may be because he doesn´t put a sign outside of his door, which may be because the good work he is doing could possibly get him killed. So if his center isn´t open it is hard to find.

Lots of shops are like that, not because of subversive activities, rather because of the colonial history and architecture. Closed doors obscure what you thought were landmarks. It makes every day in the same ten square blocks an adventure. And it serves as a metaphor for my process. I wander around, meeting great people, sometimes making excellent connections, and sometimes getting lost.

I have met wonderful people including artists, and friends of artists. I am also helping a lovely Mayan couple get a website started for their work in sacred relationship with the earth and other Mayan messages for the world. I meet a lot of Guatemalans as well as foreigners who think The Water Project is cool.

So far, though the precise path forward is a bit obscured. My guidance tells me all is well. The seeds are planted and will grow in their time. I sit with this and trust the organic nature of the project to bring forth just the right people who are truly in communion with this work. My hunch is that the community is back up north, in El Petén. We will see...

More Good News

A close friend has sent a financial donation toward my work with The Water Project, the first from a non-family member. Thank you, Dear One!!

Another wonderful friend had offered financial support when she saw the initial version of the concept paper in October. I was not ready to receive at that time, but have since learned the answer: "Yes, thank you! Is there anything specific you had in mind for this donation?"

Bit by bit the learning comes, all in support of the project, and my incredible happiness in getting to develop it!

Current Intrigues

I am entering my final week of this Indian trip. I have a lot of plans, including one more visit to see Santhan the scultor, and one more visit to the hills. Kodaikanal is a possibility even though there is a high likelihood of rain. That's just the way it is this season in this part of the world.

There are some things related to the Water Project that I am keeping an eye on. Oxford Brookes University in England has a "social sculpture" program. You can get a good sense of the program by reading about Shelley Sacks, with whom I have been corresponding.

I heard about this school through a listserve from the Community Arts Network, "promoting information exchange, research and critical dialogue within the field of community-based art." This is an amazing resource.

I am also getting to know the Green Museum, run by Sam Bower, whom I had the pleasure of lunching with in California before I came to India. This is an exciting, inspiring environmental art website.

News from Kerala

I returned to the west coast of south India, and am delighted to report that I think I have come upon a sculptor to join The Water Project! He lives in the state of Kerala, is interested in this project, has true dedication to nature, is connected in a loving community and the Periyar Tiger Reserve, and does beautiful work. I will post more soon.

For those who celebrate it, happy Diwali.