I feel that my podcast/slideshow conveys a lot of what's most important to Danny. As a former roommate and longtime best friend, I know quite a few of Danny's eccentricities and can understand a bit about what drives him. His background in music was a mystery to me, however, until I had the chance to talk with him about it for this assignment (all the writers I wanted to talk with never responded, so I took a more accessible route, and it was really rewarding). I think Danny's passion for music comes across well throughout our discussion, as do some of his quirks. If you can't understand him at times, don't worry, only 2% of the world is fluent in Danny's unique dialect; my wife still can't understand him half the time.
It turns out I recorded over 40 minutes of discussion and music during our exchange! It was just really interesting and we had tons to talk about and we recorded lots of snippets of songs. I'd say another strength of my project is the wide range of material I had to work with, and the scope of the resulting podcast is pretty good, in my opinion.
Weakness-wise, there is a lot of information I would have liked to include, but I tried my best to stick to the 5-minute maximum. I have a 10+ minute cut that I think does a much better job, but I figured there was no way I wouldn't get docked for that, so I posted my shorter version. So I think we don't get as good a view of Danny and his love for both the Gospel and music as we could have.
-What did you learn about yourself as an artist while creating this assignment?
I found that I really enjoyed the interaction that this assignment encouraged. Of course I talk and hang out with Danny frequently, but this assignment gave me the chance to have a focused, driven conversation with him about something that mattered a great deal to him, and we connected even more because of it. I have always enjoyed the communal aspects of art, the passing-around-your-latest-drawing-to-see-what-everyone-thinks sort of mentality. I learned that I connect my art with other people more than I previously thought; art is often meant to be enjoyed, and that enjoyment is best shared with other people. There's gotta be a famous saying out there about the worth of an artist without an audience...
As a media artist, I discovered even further that my work almost always involves other people as subjects or actors, and my interactions with them shape the production in very sizable ways.
-What does it mean to you to be a Mormon artist?
I identify with many of the things Danny mentioned; I feel it is my responsibility as a Mormon artist to create media that has a positive message or can contribute some understanding to my audience. I don't think my art needs to be focused entirely--or even very much at all--on religious material for it to still impart worthwhile messages. Every good thing comes from God, and leads back to Him, and this list can be very long. I also feel that as a Mormon artist, I have a responsibility to stand up for my values and for the Church whenever I can, though this support need not always be a shouting match with an angry viewer or an angry repudiation on Facebook. I think media leaves us Mormon artists with so many possible avenues to convey our ideals, and we have a responsibility to use them well.
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