The creative process

The O in Obama, courtesy, NYTimes

One of my most difficult shifts in my transition from print to multi-media/visual storyteller, has been developing a way of seeing.

I have a way of hearing, because I’ve played piano for more than 40 years. I can actually hear melodies and rhythms and execute them. I’m aiming to develop the same type of ability as a photographer/designer/Flash designer. It’s a crucial skill to have because the web has become a visual medium – Derek Powazek, notwithstanding.

Now, I’m real left-brain about this. I look and analyze. Then I look and analyze some more. And I read. So I was thrilled by this interview with Sol Sender, the designer who created the logo for Barack Obama’s campaign.

He blew the McCain/Palin logo out of the water, to the detriment, I’m convinced of the losers. The Obama logo was fresh and inspiring, masterfully reinforcing the candidate’s personality and values. Plus, the use of white space had that Web 2.0 feel; the implication was Obama was the candidate for the digital age.

McCain Palin logo

McCain’s logo, by contrast, reinforced the candidates’ names, but gave no insight into their personalities. There were white letters, but almost no white space and the logo looked darkand tired next to Obama’s.

I loved the interview because Sender explains his process, something my left brain loves to consider.  Now that I’m living the motto, “don’t be envious; be inspired,” I’ll be using Sender’s steps as a template.

Nov. 5: The day Harriet Tubman came to school

Harriet Tubman, photo courtesy of the Library of Congress

First the back story.

In my other life, I am a teaching artist. That means I use music, art, drama and whatever creative expertise I have to teach academic subjects. Although my residencies are short – about 14 lessons -  I’ve returned to one inner-city Cleveland school for four years. That’s long enough to see the fifth-graders I originally taught go upstairs to the eighth-grade floor, and out the door to high school.

I have lots of stories about “my kids.” But this story is about the staff. It’s about what happened on Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2008. The day Harriet Tubman came to school.

I’m in the midst of  teaching the Civil War to fifth- and sixth-graders. They might not know the difference between the North and the South. And they’re not sure whether Canada and Mexico are states or countries. But they know about slavery and they know about Harriet Tubman.  So they were excited, and somewhat skeptical, when I told them she would be coming to visit.

Mrs. Tubman walked in the school at 11:55, just five minutes before her appointment with the first class.

As I signed Mrs. Tubman’s name – she doesn’t really read or write well – I introduced her to the women on the other side of the counter.

One started pumping her fist and chanting “Yes we did! Yes we did!” The other stood up and smiled.

When we walked down the hall, one teacher greeted us. She, too, was wearing an Obama button.

“I want to introduce Mrs. Harriet Tubman,” I answered.

“Well, Mrs. Tubman, you’ve picked a great day to come here,” the teacher replied. “We’re so happy to see you today. “

We’d made it to the stairwell, when we ran into another teacher, hurrying up the steps.

“This is Mrs. Harriett Tubman,” I said.

The woman stopped. “Mrs. Tubman, what a wonderful day for you to be here. And there’s so much history…”

Mrs. Tubman nodded.

“…and look at the weather. The sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day, especially after what happened on Tuesday…”

“You’re going to have us all crying in a minute,” I interrupted.

The teacher smiled. “Thanks so much for coming.” And she went up the steps.

Now, I don’t have to tell you that almost all the teachers were wearing Obama buttons. You probably figured that out.

And I’m not going to tell you who among the staff members were African American, and who were not.

Decide that for yourselves.

The truth about Ohio, and why it’s so hard to call

I’ve lived in Ohio almost 20 years; I moved to the state in 1990.  That means I’ve gone through five presidential elections as a Buckeye, even though I’m not a native. On thing has had me scratching my head. How did Ohio get to be a swing state?

When I look at the state’s 88 counties, I see a red state with blue spots.

The Plain Dealer had a great graphic on its front page. It illustrates my point.

The urban centers, like Cleveland, are predominately African American and Democrat. Those are the blue spots. The rural and suburban areas, especially in the central and southwestern portions of the state, are predominately White and Republican. That’s where the red is concentrated.

In the past, that difference meant that an African American candidate could carry the cities, but not do well in a state-wide election. The most recent example was our own gubernatorial race, where the Republican candidate, Kenneth Blackwell, crashed and burned. Some blamed it on his politics. I blame race; the African Americans who were running at the top of the Democratic ticket lost as well.

That history is why I, an Obama supporter, believed until say three weeks ago, that he would not take Ohio. Now, I believe he might pull it off in a squeaker because the economic collapse has worked in Obama’s favor.

Ohio has never recovered from the 2001 recession. This current economic downturn makes our future look even more bleak.

I’ve been following coverage out of Columbus, where voters tend to be conservative, and I’ve been impressed by Obama’s climb in the polls. That’s why I’ve concluded this: the fact  Ohio is up for grabs shows how successful Obama’s efforts are.

In 2004, Kerry had the cities, but Bush had a tight grip on the rest of the state.

One more point: if Obama does take Ohio, he will have done more than won a red state. He will have, in my opinion, toppled the obstacle to kept African American politicians out of the governor’s office. If, and it’s an if, Obama wins or barely loses Ohio, expect to the state will elect its first African American governor within a few more of years.

Election news

With battles over provisional ballots, dirty databases and expectations of looong lines at the polls, looks like Ohio is going to be the place to watch come Tuesday.

So, starting on Saturday, I’ll be blogging the election.  This is real-time journalism from an independent journalist.

If you want fresh updates from Northeast Ohio in particular, and other parts of Ohio in general, subscribe by email.

A great guide for citizen journalists.

There are so many resources for citizen journalists, independent journalists, freelancers, or whatever you want to call us, it’s hard to keep up with everything.

I love this humorous and informative video from the Citizen Media Law project. I’ve linked the photograph to their Youtube channel, which just went up on October 2nd. The actual website http://www.citmedialaw.org/ has guides for each state.

I’ve referred to their page on Ohio for information on  covering the election.  Our Secretary of State, Jennifer Brunner, has advised election officials to consider  “the credentials of the media representative, and whether the purported media representative is from an accredited media source as opposed to an internet writer.”  (Italics added by citizen media law.)

Thanks much, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner. Looks like my camera and I will be standing on the outside, 100 ft. from the polls and we won’t be shooting inside polling places.

No matter who you are. No matter who you support.