popularity is never the goal. not because i shun what is popular, not directly at least, but because the easiest path toward achieving popularity is to strip away every element that could offend. this done to any measure will create bland art that affects no one outside of the most shallow forms. since bland art holds no appeal to me, i find myself rejecting popular things. of course, an art piece with the goal of un-popularity can become so universally offensive, it becomes similarly numbing.
when lisa and i were asked to do the church picnic games, i wanted to create a set of games that would engage with every individual, while pushing them into new interactions. oddly enough, the activities came easily. the difficulty was in getting every individual to participate, even though we called out specific persons and gave them a personal invitation to join in the fun. i felt like i needed oprah there to tell everyone to say yes to life.
so after the participants congratulated us on a great set of games, the secret of creating a challenge with mass appeal still eludes us.