Andrew Taylor on the Business of Arts & Culture
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A little whimsy goes a long way
Posted: November 17, 2003
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Despair, Inc., grew out of those nauseating motivational posters that cropped up on office walls and business catalogues a few years back (motivation, leadership, vision). This company makes very dark, highly sarcastic versions, suitable for framing. A few favorites that are particularly relevant to nonprofit arts managers, when they are in their dark place:
Adversity: That which does not kill me postpones the inevitable.
Meetings: None of us is as dumb as all of us.
Consulting: If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem.
Motivation: If a pretty poster and a cute saying are all it takes to motivate you, you probably have a very easy job. The kind robots will be doing soon.
Leaf through their on-line catalog of stock ads, posters, and promotional merchandise, and you feel the same odd amuseument you get from a really clever cultural ad campaign. After all, both the Church Ad Project and the nonprofit arts are trying to sell highly abstract, intrinsic services to a broad audience...and constantly teetering between selling and selling out. Some favorites here:
Free Coffee: Free coffee. Everlasting life. Yes, membership has its privileges.
Dress Casual: It's okay to dress casual for church. Jesus did.
Original Powerbook: It comes with 4000 years of memory, images that are crystal clear, and an everlasting supply of energy. In fact, the Bible is the world's first and favorite laptop. Join us as we study it's lessons this Sunday.