Convenings

Past Learning Exchange Reports:
Minneapolis, March 8–10, 2002

Open Space Session: Icebreakers: Working with people who don’t consider themselves artists

How to invite people in?  Different ways to engage a roomful of strangers. 

Ice-breaker exercises are fun and necessary.  They help create a safe space. 

Each exercise can engage people, so that they are more willing to explore.

Validation of each person’s voice. 

Question: “Am I an artist in this particular medium?”—How does that translate to the general public who don’t consider themselves artists at all?  How to adapt these exercises into our own work, with the communities we work with?  Questioned how we could take exercises further and how to adapt them to different situations, and questions addressing issues. 

It’s important for artists who are always giving workshops to have the opportunity to take workshops from other artists, in same and different disciplines.

Some exercises:

The “Yes!” exercise (Diane Aldis, Perpich Center for Arts Education):   One person walks into center of circle, gradually makes eye contact with a person in the circle.  When eye contact is established, the person receiving says “yes” and trades places. This continues.  Perhaps the speed is increased.  Treva pointed out that this exercise is good for non-dancers so they become aware of their bodies in space.  Wendy suggested that non-verbal aspect could be introduced.  Example:  A person goes into circle, passes a gesture and a thought to the next person.

Energia es... (Dora Arreola, artist):  Begin using an object.  What is energy?  Can be colors, objects, anything.  The exercise has three steps:  first is a movement; stop the movement; make contact with another person, then send the object softly to that person, who changes it.  Added on to this:  incorporate vocalizing: “Energy is…” and as you pass the object, you say what energy is (this can be an emotion, a thing, a quality, ANYTHING.  examples:  Energy is the ocean ... Energy is blue ... Energy is your eyes ... Energy is love...)  The exercise is repeated, but without an object (or an invisible object).

What might follow? (Treva Offut, The Kitchen):  Vocalizing could be dropped and go into strictly movement.  This is especially useful for non-dancers who might be going in the direction of creating movement.  Also, it parallels two-person dialogue.  It could be taken into pairs:  listening and moving.   Or, a single word could lead into a writing exercise (Example: “death is…”).

“Who are you?” writing exercise (Regie Cabico, artist):  The prompt question is “who are you?”  Free write.  As you write, you have to incorporate words that the facilitator throws in.  The words start slowly, then get faster and faster.  Then everyone reads his/her writing out loud.  Regie also uses books he brings to help pull words out during the exercise.  Also, can use other prompt sentences like, “Where do you come from?”  “I never told anybody…”  “I remember…” etc.  The inciting sentence could very well be related to the content/issue that the project deals with.

Name Exercise (Bernardo Solano, playwright):  Using your name, write what your name smells, tastes, feels, sounds, looks like.  Then write what your name reminds you of: something from your past, how you got your name, good, bad, whatever.  Then share.  This gives each person ownership of his/her name, identity. 

Cultural Mapping:  A figurative map of the world is created in the space.  Example:  Imagine the space is a map of the world.  Use a direction such as “Go to the place on the map where you were born.”  People scatter; have to talk to each other to find out which areas represent what spaces.  They form small groups.  Each group then works together and comes up with three things they have in common; they report results to the rest of group.  Repeat with many different variations.  Commonality is discovered among a group of people who maybe thought they had nothing in common.