Introduction to the Visioning Project
Step by Step. That is how goals are achieved. And everyone has a day one...
How do you see yourself? What is your personal vision for yourself? For your art career? One year from now, do you see your art quilts in a gallery, published in a book, speaking at a national symposium, winning public art projects, teaching workshops in another country? Do you see yourself as having moved significantly from where you are today in your development as an artist? SAQA has a plan to help you make your vision become a reality.
The Visioning Project revolves around visualizing goals and dreams - and making them happen. It will be a public commitment of the artist to achieve a specific goal. Of course, what your own goal will be for the year depends on where you are in your artistic and professional development.
Some goals are very specific, and it's easy to know when you've reached them. These examples are significant "firsts":
- Gaining a private commission
- Becoming part of a museum collection
- Getting gallery representation
- Curating/Producing an exhibition or event
- Selling a work
Other goals are more developmental. Knowing when these have been accomplished might not be as clear as more specific goals. Selecting and defining a specific goal will be the first step.
- Building a cohesive body of work
- Developing/Recognizing your personal style
- Developing a good work ethic for your art and producing work regularly
- Actively participating in an art-related network for a specific reason
- Turning your dreams and wishes into goals - defining your long-range goals
- Becoming "known" by participating in national/international juried shows
- Reaching beyond the world of quilted art
- Making the move from small work into large
Whatever your vision is for YOU should drive your goal for the Visioning. It will be interesting to see how the above lists of examples will grow as members' real goals are added to them. And there should be some interesting discussion about how you'll know when you've reached your goal.
If you have any questions about The Visioning Project, please send an email to Mary Mattimoe at visioning@saqa.com.
How the project works
The project is on a private blog at www.saqavp.blogspot.com. Only the 38+ current Visioning Project members can view or comment on the blog.
Each VP member is assigned a page on the blog that lists contact details, biographical information, and links to websites so that the members of the group can get to know each other. It also outlines your VP goals for the year. There is something very powerful about taking the time to clearly identify the steps needed to reach your artistic goals.
Each month, or as often as you want, you post a journal entry about your process, including photos if you wish. This keeps you accountable and enables us to read and comment to support you in your progress. You may wish to ask for help and advice from other VP members via the blog. Also, reading about other VP member’s struggles and triumphs is encouraging.
There are full instructions for editing your page and blogging so you do not have to be an experienced blogger to participate. If you think you might be interested in participating, send an email to visioning@saqa.com. You will be sent an invitation to view the blog. Once the invitation is accepted, you are given two weeks to look over the blog and see if it is a good fit for you.