Kindness, Community, and Collaboration
When Kymm from LullCo Design Studio contacted me to ask if I wanted to be part of the Art Activity Zone at the Ann Arbor Art Fair, I didn’t hesitate for a second. This event is the largest juried art fair in the country and is attended by nearly half a million people every year. The thought of being a part of it made me giddy. Kymm shared a few details and told me to let my imagination run wild. The Art Activity Zone is an area for hands-on art, geared mostly for children but open to everyone. I decided to go big, and shared my idea with Kymm. Kymm’s idea was to go huge… and that’s just what we did.
With the help of my buddy Tonya, I created a canvas measuring eight feet by four feet and consisting of 75 individual “canvases.” I added designs to most of the small canvases but left a few blank for folks to let their own imaginations run wild. That proved to be an excellent decision.
Over the course of three days I met hundreds of people and heard so many wonderful stories. I taught children as young as three to poke-poke-poke and watched their faces light up as they saw their pictures come to life. I met families who spoke little English and they were kind enough to teach me some words in their languages. I learned Hello and Friend and My Name Is and Beautiful and I’m Proud of You and Great Job in Japanese, Hindi, Danish, Chinese, German, and Farsi.
The languages weren’t a barrier because the art was the universal tongue. We laughed and stabbed and shared stories and created something beautiful together. A precious woman took the earrings right of her ears and gifted them to me, simply because I complimented them. The sweetest family from the south of India invited me to visit their home in Kerala and showed me photo after photo of their gorgeous state. A fellow artist threw a big arm around me and gestured toward the canvas and the newly minted needle felters with his other arm and declared, “This. This is what it’s all about. This is community. This will save us.” I could not agree more.
The canvas didn’t get finished by the close of the art fair, but do you want to hear the coolest thing? Kymm found the grooviest jukebox for LullCo and is hosting a listening party… and at that party the art fair canvas will be up for folks to work on and I’ll be there to teach those who are new to needle felting. More community, more art, great music, and new friends. Does it get better than that? I’ll let you know when the date gets nailed down.
I say it all the time but it just continues to be true: I am the luckiest.