My hair like Jesus wore it
Hallelujah I adore it
Hallelujah Mary loved her son
Why don’t my mother love me?
These lyrics from the eponymous song of the musical Hair has always struck me as a great expression of the conflict an artist faces.
On one hand, you have to dress and appear professionally enough that you gain the confidence of potential employers, donors and granters.
On the other hand, you have to possess enough of an artistic aura, either in dress or behavior, that people will believe you are an artist. Appear too conventional and you cast doubt on your artistic abilities.
Working on a university campus, I been feeling a little tug of this conflict. It wasn’t a big problem in Hawaii where even bank presidents wear aloha shirts, albeit tasteful $200 silk aloha shirts.
But now I look out across campus seeing administrators running around in dresses, suit jackets and ties (not simultaneously) and I am reminded of these cultural expectations.
Because at the same time, I am out walking down the street every day to get lunch and how I dress as the director of the performing arts center contributes to the perception of what sort of people are welcome as audience members.
Probably nothing to be done to relieve folks in the arts world of this Goldilocks requirement of avoiding extremes.
So don’t neglect to wave those golden locks!
http://youtu.be/7dyl0j3WU6Y
