Everyone is six degrees of separation away. On this campus (& space), it’s more like two or three. I want to leverage this for community building.
This is inspired by Friend of A Friend, “a yearly gathering that brings together a group of individuals, all connected by mutual friends but who do not know each other yet. These individuals, artists and writers, spend 5 days sharing their practice, leading workshops for the group, and living and cooking together.”
I really appreciate thinking about this idea: “A friend of a friend is a stranger you’ve never met, but they are not a total stranger either. We share a friend who we know and trust. We are curious what this condition will bring to the temporal space we gather at”
However, instead of living together, we will intentionally be together and co-create in weird, wacky ways. The fruits of our labor will coalesce into a magical, whimsy event that we will all collectively organize.
I find this compelling for plenty of reasons. Firstly, having someone in a space that you trust (a friend) makes you more receptive to share and be open. But, inter-mingling is of utmost importance.
This is also an opportunity to strengthen attendee’s interpersonal bonds with their existing friends. In an effort to make this as handcrafted as possible, I will give each interested attendee and fun gift/invitation to then present to a friend that they’d think would be interested.
Plan of action
- Create a wacky, whimsy, internet-arty, interactive website that intrigues people (repo here)
- Handcrafted cards/gifts for friends
- Find a way to make this as inclusive as possible
- Curate vibes for first gathering
Inclusivity on the “way in”
- EVERYONE is welcome. Curating a “no-clique” culture. We are all friends who want to help each other grow and create.
Inclusivity on the “way out”
- No comparison culture - proud about doing the work you intended to do
- A wellness practice that makes people want to come back
This is a space for self-directed creative projects. We’re bringing back the freedom of play. Explore with us, YOU KNOW YOU WANNA!