The Power of Visual Communication in Organizing

Prompts for Arts Organizers, Artists, and Arts Educators

Hello Community,

Last month, I shared that this project was nearing the end of Phase One: Settling, Defining, and the Embodied Self. During this period of development, a lot was sewn. What has grown from that is still something I am currently excitedly and patiently observing as it falls into place. One of the things I have been most surprised by is the ways illustration has been essential to this process. If you ask anybody I know, they will tell you that at some point they have experienced me sketching while we were talking.

As someone who is neurodiverse, this has always been an aid for processing in real time. Many of my sketches capture unspoken aspects, like elements in the environment, the texture and tone of conversations, sketches of the people I am speaking to, and portraits of myself in the moment. Through this process of building, illustration has embedded itself as a visual language that complements written language. This process primarily came up in spaces of visioning throughout projects where I felt stuck, where words failed to give me the context or language to bridge ideas.

It also brings the practice of speculative fiction and world-building into my organizing practice. To envision what is beyond Exodus, programming, and resources that create small exits, is challenging. It's hard sometimes to imagine yourself outside of a system in which you are so entrenched. In many ways, what illustration and design communicate back to me are new possibilities.

Unintentionally moving from one illustration to the next, I’ve started envisioning a fictional world that embodies my dreams of what we are exiting towards. Last month, when I realized the importance of this role, I knew I needed to honor it. With that, I updated the Exodus logo, carrying aspects of where the vision lay in Phase One to what it has developed into now.

A small piece of the puzzle that is helping this project find its ground.

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Prompts for Arts Organizers, Artists, and Arts Educators:

Throughout this newsletter, I have shared illustrations from projects I have released and some that are still developing. As Phase One continues to come to a close, I am excited to start releasing more. This month, I want to invite you to explore visual communication as an organizing tool while developing any idea. Consider the following prompts:

• Start a visioning process with creative expression before jumping into writing.

• When you feel stuck, pull out your sketchbook and sketch with a sense of meditation and intuition.

• Create milestones within your development and use those as markers to express your progress.

I’d love to see any responses to these prompts. Share and tag us on Instagram or TikTok.

Thank you for joining me on this journey. Wherever you are, I hope you are finding time to sew play, love, and joy into practice.