Re: Cohousing for Artists [was Cohousing for Senior Artists - Request from CNN
From: Emilie Parker (emilie.v.parkergmail.com)
Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2017 16:47:58 -0700 (PDT)
Anyone in cohousing can be overly busy and short on funds.  Cohousing
communities in general value art -- music, dance.  Cohousers don't have to
work two jobs, have children and be poor or be married to a lawyer to be an
artist.

I'll keep this in mind though Sharon, because maybe I have a lesson to
learn about cohousing.



-----------------
Emilie Parker
emilie.v.parker [at] gmail.com
303-317-4558 main
240-350-8533 cell
My website: www.emilieparker.com
Bohn Farm Cohousing Community of Art and Farming: www.bfcc.me
Artists Cohousing website: www.artistscohousing.com
Art Cohousing Meetup:  www.meetup.com/artists-housing-community

There is a saying in Sanskrit that goes something like: most people desire
greed and ego as motivation, but the person who is motivated by what greed
and ego themselves desire (e.g., art, humor, beauty, rhythm, harmony,
generosity, intelligence, wisdom, truth) rules the world.

Renay Oshop <https://www.facebook.com/renay.oshop?fref=nf>

February 6 at 2:18pm
<https://www.facebook.com/renay.oshop/posts/10211978415916917> ·

Powerful YOU, my friends.






On Wed, Mar 15, 2017 at 3:17 PM, Sharon Villines <sharon [at] 
sharonvillines.com>
wrote:

>
>
> > On Mar 12, 2017, at 9:14 PM, Emilie Parker <emilie.v.parker [at] gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> >
> > A lot of these stories seem to highlight unfair and naive negative
> generalizations upon which to discriminate against art cohousers.
>
> I knew that would be the case — that people would think I was making
> negative generalizations, but “negative” is a judgement. Reality can be
> reality or it can feel negative. To have a passion that is greater than
> yard work, stoking the furnace, or cooking meals would not be negative to
> an artist.
>
> I’m basing this on my experience. I am an artist and have worked with
> artists for 60 years. 25 years teaching at the college level, much of it in
> Soho and Greenwich Village. Plus I was exhibiting, judging shows, running
> workshops for artists, etc. Often commuting 3-4 hours a day.
>
> The negativity comes from putting the realities of the artist's life
> together with the realities of cohousing. Two hard roads that are good
> roads don’t make one easy road.
>
> Obviously I’m making generalizations, but generalizations are what is in
> play when you are casting your net to the general   population. You need to
> know what the general population is likely to produce. When you are
> building a cohousing community it is pretty easy at times to feel negative
> about the people who won’t join you and about why they won’t join.
>
> Artists are a small fraction of the general population. The percentage of
> any population who will be interested in cohousing is a fraction. So we are
> now down to fractions of fractions.
>
> Then look at the lifestyle of artists — low income, working two jobs. With
> children. These are not the people who can even afford cohousing. And they
> are more interested in their work than anything else. Of course, this
> depends on your definition of artist. I’m thinking about artists who are
> working toward be full-time professional exhibiting, usually teaching, and
> selling their work.
>
> The generalization of artists being free-spirited, forward thinking
> socially radical, peace-loving, and naturally collaborative people is as
> true of artists as it is of everyone else. And of cohousers.
>
> That’s why we have to think twice about how wonderful it would be to have
> a cohousing community of artists. It would take as much support as
> affordable or low-income cohousing for people who work two jobs, have
> children, and a primary interest that for visual artists is by its nature
> not social. Dance and music require many hours a day of practice, just to
> keep the physical skills honed. Those hours are put in after paying work.
>
> The traditional forms of cohousing, with self-management, home ownership,
> and workshare don’t work for everyone.
>
> Sharon
> ----
> Sharon Villines
> Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
> http://www.takomavillage.org
>
>
>
>
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