Today, we did not discuss together in class because we went
to the museum, but I wanted to touch-base on how the exercise made me feel, and
also get other opinions on it.
Like meditation, this exercise was very hard for me. It
seemed so simplistic, too—just stare at a work of art for 75 minutes. Though,
15 minutes into it, when I had made my initial impressions on its contrast,
color, meaning, etc. I felt my mind trailing off into other directions. It was
almost like meditation in the way, in that I had to clear my mind to focus solely on this art piece.
After I realized how quickly I was able to lose my attention
to detail, I started to question what other things we are not mindful of because of our lack of patience. Small details, like the way the artist had
correlated societal views on native-Americans within her bigger picture of
people as a whole, would not have been included in my narration of this piece
if I did not take the time to delve into it. In turn, I was faced with a more
critical question to ask myself: what have I been missing from the bigger
picture of things around me, and even more important, how has that changed the
way I reacted to them?
I think in a lot of professions and academic areas we are
taught to answer, or solve, questions and problems quickly. We are told to, and
also naturally, react immediately to environmental cues daily. Not only in our
jobs, but school has taught us to react quickly (through tests, class
discussions, etc.). I believe this trait is very important to have for survival
and to be successful. After doing this exercise, though, I also saw how it could
be a hindrance.
If I just sat in front of my artwork for 5 minutes, I would
not have seen the whole “story” it was showing me. Just like in conflict and
dispute resolution, we would not be able to have a clear picture of the parties
involved, if we made snap assumptions of them, or only spent a small amount of
time listening, and questioning their lives.
This exercise may have been incredibly challenging to focus through,
but taught me, and hopefully you all, that a picture (or a people), have so
much more to offer up than our initial reactions dictate for them.
I agree that by looking at the artwork for a short amount of time did not allow me to capture certain details of the picture I was looking at. There were certain parts of the art I did not notice until the end, not only because I was looking at it longer but also because I changed my point of view. I got closer to the picture and was able to see images in the picture that were too blurry to see from afar. I think this also shows how it is not just how long you are listening in the mediation but also from what perspective and point of view from which you are observing. If you are able to change your point of view as a mediator and/or get the parties to change their perspective, this would allow for a clearer more broader view of the issue. From here there would be more for the mediator and parties to work with in the mediation.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both of you. Katherine you make a really good point about how we don't take enough time to focus on something and as a result, end up with false answers. I think its a really good lesson for all of us to not come to conclusions just based on what we saw or heard within a short period of time. In this field as mediators or facilitators or what ever we do I believe that its going to take a lot of time to analyse and separate what's right and wrong. When I look at media, how they portray conflicts really bother me. A lot of the time I wonder whether they actually know what they are talking about. When media reports something, most of the time people end up believing that what they reported was the truth. We never think about the fact that they probably haven't even spent so much time analysing the conflict before they reported. By doing this museum excercise I was just shocked how difficult it is to be patient and analyse something. After a certain point it was really difficult for me to focus and I kept distracting myself. Again analysing an artwork can not be as exciting as a conflict so if it was a real conflict then I of course will pay more attention and my behavior would be different but I think it was a great exercise for us to get thinking about these issues that we don't really pay much attention to.
ReplyDeleteThere were a lot of details about my painting that I would not have noticed if I have not spent 75 minutes trying to enlighten myself about it. I kind of felt like I was trying too hard to figure out what I needed to figure out that I missed out on actually enjoying the art in front of me. I notice that not taking in what is actually happening is something that occurs a lot these days. People are so focused on what they can get out of something that they forget to appreciate what it is that they are looking at. In the end, I left feeling she indifference towards the painting. If I ever saw it again, I would probably have a very negative reaction to it just because it is now associated with me trying to make it into something it was not. It is so difficult to be patient. Distractions are everywhere.
ReplyDeleteAt first, if I'm honestly speaking, thought that this exercise was pointless. Therefore, I was initially tuned out and basically "pouting". However, when I opened my mind and focused on my painting I found so much beauty within it. Whether I was wrong or right about its exact meaning/significance, I was able to use my imagination and create my own significant meaning. After receiving the assignment, I realized then value of this assignment. Through this painting exercise, I understood why we as "problem solvers" have to attain patience. When solving problems, it is our responsibility to create a neutral, productive environment for issues to be resolve. Patience allots us the opportunity/ies to be thorough when analyzing facts, measuring the
ReplyDeletepros/cons or/and proposing an agreement to settle a dispute. It
showcases our ability to be logical thinkers, effective leaders and
active listeners.
I too, had an initially less than glowing idea regarding looking at a singular painting for over an hour. I evaluated every little inch of my painting at the time, and I thought long and hard about all angles of it. After a while I thought there was nothing more to think about on it. Long story short, however, my initial reactions to the exercise changed and I really appreciate the lessons that having patience (required or otherwise) can teach -- especially later details, imagination of possibilities, enjoying the art in front of me, and not jumping to conclusions too early (as mentioned very astutely in comments above). I'm coming back to post about it today, because I went back and looked at my painting again.
ReplyDeleteI didn't stare at it for over an hour, but I did take a walk around and really look at it. I had all these ideas about the painting when I wrote about it, but I have even more now. In my mind, I was hoping to use the ideas that Professor Colvin mentioned yesterday about debriefing and taking a break from the dispute or conflict immediately in front of me. I wasn't especially conflicted or riled up, but I did appreciate the distance of a couple of weeks and then going back to look at a picture and the learning situation again. This isn't really anything new or profound, but going back to look at your old conflicts and examining what you thought about them at the time can be useful. I really appreciate that I was required to look at a painting for a long time, and think over the value of patience in conflict and dispute resolution. Attempting to be mindful here gave me some time to go back and look at other conflicts that I have had with myself and other people, and to reflect on the situation as a whole and try to apply those lessons of patience, and thinking about patience, in the future.
It is so interesting looking back at this exercise and reading about your thoughts of it, as well as remembering my struggle.
ReplyDeleteThe longer we sat in front of the paintings, the more details we saw, and the more we read into them. I started wondering - even though three people were sitting in front of the same painting, trying to find every little detail - did we catch them all? The next day I talked to Kate and we figured out that we had a lot of similar observations, but some very different thoughts and feelings about it.
Isn't that the biggest issue in conflict? Miscommunication, different perspectives, different observations that lead to conflicting interpretations. We can be having a conversation and leave this conversation with completely different versions of it.
I think that's what's so fascinating looking at conflict (at least when it's not my own). We can see ourselves as treasure-hunters that look for a missing link, for the initial miscommunication, for the common ground.
The greatest thing for me discovering this was that once I started looking at conflicts this way, they suddenly became kind of fun!