THESE ARE A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE THINGS...

Black Mountain College (1933-1957) was CREATIVE. It valued INNOVATION. It fostered a community of artists, thinkers, and scholars who broke free from convention to explore the boundless possibilities of human expression.

These are a few of our favorite things at this very moment.

We'll add more.

Because...the list is long.

And even 25 years later, after we began studying BMC...it keeps growing.

Black Mountain College: A Hub of Creativity

HUBS or homebases or neighbors are important. A place to gather is key for creating a building community. A school like Black Mountain College was experimental and hands-on for all involved. Its by-our-bootstraps way of being immersed EVERYONE in all the doings of the College. It also valued ART over everything else ~ and these things together, along with the exceptional staff of European artists and thinkers ~ changed education and art in America. This school was a HUB.

QUESTION: WHAT AND WHERE IS YOUR HUB?

FULL CIRCLE

The logo of BLACK MOUNTAIN COLLEGE is the full circle. It is also the logo of our film FULLY AWAKE. The circle is one of the most sacred symbols, and is a powerful portal to connect us. It is a roadmap of creation. The Medicine Wheel and most sacred traditions use CIRCLES as the symbol for life itself.

QUESTION: WHAT HAS COME FULL CIRCLE FOR YOU LATELY?

Living Fully Awake

To be "fully awake" means to be aware of yourself and the world around you. Robert Frost once said, “I am not a teacher, but an awakener.” And Josef Albers said he came to BLACK MOUNTAIN COLLEGE TO OPEN EYES.

QUESTION: WHAT IS CLEAR TO YOU? WHAT IS FULLY AWAKE IN YOU?

EDUCATING HEAD, HAND AND HEART

Black Mountain College focused on educating students in three ways: head, hand, and heart. This means:

• Head (Mental Realm): Learning ideas and theories, discussion and participation

• Hand (Physical Realm): Creating art, hands-on projects like BMC's work program, and embodiment

• Heart (Spiritual/Emotional Realms): Understanding emotions and values like compassion, trust, love, community, co-creation

  
  

CHANCE OPERATIONS

Merce Cunningham and John Cage created most of their artwork ~ performance mainly ~ using chance operations. They used the iChing, an ancient book of wisdom that is a powerful tool to expand in consciousness. Gratefully we have incorporated this text in our practices, and it has been a great blessing.

QUESTION: HOW DO YOU WORK WITH CHANCE OPERATIONS?

Black Mountain College teaches so many FAVORITE THINGS ~ most of all, it teaches us to live fully awake to better create, learn, and connect with the world around us. Stay tuned for more FAVORITE THINGS....

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE THINGS ABOUT BLACK MOUNTAIN COLLEGE?