Remember the word “Pivot”  from early 2020? We pivoted to Zoom and online social interactions. Everything changed over night. In March of 2020, I was working with a team to install art exhibits at NOVA, when we were told to leave the building and go home. We left the art on the wall.  Just like that.

As I head into a new year with the Distinct Studios project, I am grateful for my family, friends and clients but I am also certain about my word for 2023 – “Agility”.

I learned Agile Development while building interactive media in the early 2000’s.

The  agile practice is this:

Have an idea? Design it on paper and then prototype.

Test the prototype, make changes and then repeat until the concept is fully formed.

The goal is to “Fail Fast” but also efficiently and at a lower cost. The same iterative principle can be applied to creating art and small agile businesses.

“Fail Fast” is an entrepreneurial term.  “Learn Fast” is my preferred mantra.

After we went into lockdown in 2020, I was constantly making adjustments. Plans were made and then the pandemic changed those plans. Did you ever have the thought in April of 2020 “We’ll open up again in a few months”? I can’t remember how many times I did.

I was “Learning Fast”.

As we shift away from the pandemic, it appears that we are in a new world.  Art will continue to inspire and lift us but the economic environment is  tougher than it’s been in years.

In the coming year, I will continue my agile practice as I test concepts, revise and build.

Thank you for your support this past year.  I look forward to sharing news of upcoming projects and travels in 2023.

Stay Safe and Well over the Holidays!