agenda
BIG IDEA
Hi, Neighbor! SVETLA MORRISON Occupation: Hometown: Home Now: Contact:
Photographer/creator/educator A small town in Bulgaria Cuyahoga Falls svetlamorrison.com
WHAT’S YOUR BIG IDEA? Hi, Neighbor! is a project that aims to look beyond (and despite) the facts we could find
the communication between Akron’s neighborhoods.
wish to be treated," "Be considerate of other people's needs," "Everyone is somebody's friend, family, teacher---be careful what your
about each other online, inviting you to extend your knowledge for the people who inhabit the same living area as you to a closer, more personal level, more so as humans rather than
Since this issue is centered around self-portraits, we thought it would be fun to ask Svetla to participate in her own project. Here are her responses.
attitude charge their worlds with."
titles and facts. NAME: Svetla Ganeva-Morrison The project portraits the “soul” of Akron by featuring a diverse group of participants from
HOW DO YOU PERCEIVE YOURSELF?
every Akron neighborhood.
A professional observer, passionate explorer of all things humane, tripoholic, adventurer, believer.
I take a photo of each participant in their comfortable environment. Each photo is featured along with four questions I have asked every participant to answer: name; how they perceive themselves (beyond social acknowledgement and titles); and two pieces of advice: one which they’d been given that means a lot to them, and another they wish they’d been given.
ADVICE YOU'VE BEEN GIVEN THAT STICKS OUT TO YOU: I have been fortunate to have my childhood and adolescent years full of wise people who were caring enough for my well being to share their life experience with me. But what sticks out the most from all the amazing advice I was showered with could sum up "It's all about the attitude."
following months working together, my admiration for his skills to balance dreams Of course all these words sound great and most with reality and stay away from perfection of us identify with their importance. Others may discouraging and overwhelming him only disregard them with apathy, but either way, if you attempt to live up to their meaning, you quickly discover it's not as easy as it sounds.
grew bigger. Because indeed, ‘Done’ is better than ‘Perfect.’ And so I slowly realized, launching a perfected
ADVICE YOU WISH YOU WERE GIVEN: I really wish somebody along the way had pulled me aside and asked me, "Hey, has it
version of an idea is an oxymoron, because perfection is not a constant. It's not a final, and definitely not the first phase of a creation, but
occurred to you that ‘Done’ is better than ‘Perfect’?"
rather is the very fabric of our evolving vision influenced by the things we encounter on daily basis. We are never the same, and so can't be our state of perfection. And the thought of this was so liberating. But it took me awhile to see it.
I've struggled for years, ending up not landing tons of ideas, because they were not perfected.
Both my mom and my grandma used to often say to me, "No one shoots an arrow towards
When I moved to the States (almost 8 years ago), I saw great examples of this much more realistic approach in the face of quite a few great women I met through my first working place, The International Institute of Akron. Dylanna Jackson, Rebecca Jenkins and Natalya Mutareva just to name a few.
community ultimately translating to The Wisdom of Akron.
a smiling face." And this great advice kept reoccurring in their various lessons: "Be nice to
However, probably the most distinct example
I also hope that this project will benefit
people, it doesn't cost you anything," "Treat others with the same respect with which you
of this idea I had the opportunity to observe closely through Chris Horne venturing the job
By asking the participants to share their advice (one of the most altruistic ways of communication), I aim to capture the spirit of understanding, acceptance and compassionate
of a publisher of The Devil Strip magazine. I joined helping Chris from the very beginning of the magazine in print, and through the
// Photo of Svetla Morrison by Svetla Morrison.
You can follow Svetla Morrison's
Hi, Neighbor! project on her facebook and instagram pages /@svetla_morrison_fotografy and also check it on her website,
svetlamorrison.com
United Way of Summit County
VOLUNTEERS PLAY A VITAL ROLE IN UNITED WAY’S WORK TO MAKE OUR COMMUNITY STRONGER. we are hosting a variety of community engagement events in 2016, uniting volunteers to make a difference for our neighbors. the projects can accept large groups, and offer teambuilding and networking opportunities.
WhAT ThIS PLACE NEEDS.
GET INVOLVED @ UWSUMMIT.ORG/VOLUNTEER great things happen when we LIVE UNITED! United Way of Summit County UWSUMMIT.ORG
AKRON MUSIC, ART & CULTURE
JULY 2016 • VOL 2 • ISSUE #7 /
THE Devil Strip |
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