Do Something You’ve Never Done Before

By Kat McDaniel, Principal at MEDiAHEAD

Doing something that you have never done before can be scary or intimidating. However, when you do something you’ve never done before, it can be healthy and expansive for you.

John and I recently got out of our comfort zone by attending Format Fest – a three-day music festival with large installations of art and hundreds of bands.

Artist Nick Cave and his Soundsuits

I really wanted to go because one of my favorite artists, Nick Cave, was going to be there with people dancing in his sculptures called Soundsuits.

Cave’s best-known work is the Soundsuits series, costumes that completely cover the individual’s body. They camouflage the wearer’s shape, enveloping and creating a second skin that hides gender, race, and class, thus compelling the audience to watch without judgment. He created his first Soundsuit in 1992 as a response to the beating of Rodney King in Los Angeles.

The installations were so incredible, as were the Nick Cave dancers, but I learned that I am in no condition to stand up until 2:00 in the morning watching bands after being out in the hot sun all day.

By Day 2, I posted “This can’t be the same body that used to go to 3-day music festivals!” Of course that was in the late 1980’s.

Often, doing something new is the best way to engage in self-discovery, and I have discovered that I will not attend another rock fest unless I can bring a chair!

I did get some incredible pictures though.