The Vulnerability of The Vulnerability Project

Finally! I’m writing from the airport in Seattle, about to board the plane for Frankfurt, where I will catch a train to Vienna. Aaannd some thoughts:

Being in an airport alone makes me feel at once strong and vulnerable. Perhaps there is a kind of strength in disconnection? Or maybe an illusion of strength in reaction to the loneliness. Hm.

Anyway, this made me think about being vulnerable, and about how truly vulnerable The Vulnerability Project really is.

Here we are, two girls fresh from the beginnings of college in California, exploring Vienna, Austria. At least for me, I will be exploring a whole new culture, country, and language. Maybe the feeling of being out of place is stronger for me, Kristen, than for Patty, but it’s definitely a factor. Even more, we aren’t simply exploring the place, but we are also planning on making connections with the people who live there. We want to talk to people about the feeling of vulnerability, and the process of that is so vulnerable in itself!

It will be an interesting experience to say the least - exploring the idea of vulnerability, while experiencing so much of it in our day to day lives. More on this later :).

Kristen

Reasons to Support

Well howdy-do. It's Kristen.

I'm guessing whoever is reading this (you!) does not know much about our project. After all, we're still in the preparatory phases. SO you're probably either someone who donated to our Kickstarter (thank you thank you thank you!!!) or someone who is thinking about it. In which case, I am giving you a reasons-at-a-glance list right here right now for you to refer to, or even print out and give to your friends!

Just kidding. But still, I'm sure you're curious.

1. We want to be your friend!!!!

2. You get stuff :) - check out the kickstarter supporter prizes! On the right hand-side of the page if you scroll down: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/440962610/the-vulnerability-project-film-and-photo-exploring. I personally recommend the $25 if you don't wanna empty your pockets ;) I get to take and send to you a personalized polaroid from Europe! That's pretty special.

3. The final project will be awesome :) and on display at Stanford University in the fall.

4. We're legit! In addition to exhibiting our work in the fall, Patty is also working more long-term with a team of researchers who call themselves The Stanford Closeness Project (closeness.stanford.edu). Their work in the U.S. is strikingly similar to the social ideas we will explore in Europe. We hope to work more closely (ha. ha.) with them in the future.

5. You like our video :) cheers to Patty the producer.

6. You like us? Maybe? <3

7. But actually, this is what's most important. You should support us because no matter what, we'd love to be connected not only with people in Europe but also with people closer to home like YOU! No matter what kind of support you give, you have access to our blog, mailing list, etc. We would love for you to support us, engage with our thoughts and updates on the blog, and we want to hear any suggestions/feedback/response of any kind you may have. That way, we can improve the project, and get to know you (if you want to be known). Friends are fun :). That's what we're all about, after all. Thanks for the love.

-K Stip

The Beginning

Hello (:

Welcome to the Vulnerability Project. This the blog that I (this is Patty speaking) have created to keep everyone who is supporting us in the loop about what is going on with our research and art project.

You see, I, my friends, am travelling to Vienna on July 15th with a good friend of mine, Kristen! We're currently raising funds through Kickstarter, but have hit some bumps along the road, and so are putting our fundraising video up on youtube. If you are interested in possibly funding us, and would like to make a pledge, please send us an e-mail at thevulnerabilityproject@gmail.com. We can use any and all support!



Basically, Kristen and I are fascinated by the fact that humans appear to have an innate desire to connect with one another. Using our different mediums of artistic interest (mine being film, and hers being photography), we want to interview people and explore how vulnerability and connection impact their lives and relationships. By the end of three (maybe four?) weeks, we will have enough footage to create a short film of interviews on vulnerability and photo collection on connection.

We chose Vienna because we wanted to see the far-reaching effects of vulnerability outside of the United States. Vienna is a city of music and art and culture, and since I speak German, it was a naturally place to want to explore and get to know. If we receive enough funding, Kristen and I will look for a second location that will be interesting to juxtapose with the environment of Vienna (our thoughts so far are a small town in Ireland, because we want to see the difference between a big city and a small town). Vienna is also home to the "Kaffee-Kultur", or Coffee-culture: a culture revolving around the concept of meeting people for hours and sipping a cup of coffee with a good book or more commonly, a good friend. Seeing as these coffee-hour friendships run deep, we want to explore how this particular culture approaches the ideas of 'vulnerability' and 'connection'.

So far, we're funding out own tickets to Germany (where my parents live) as well as providing the equipment we both need. Kristen got her camera from school and my camera is actually one that belongs to Kristen's dad. Using our summer earnings (I'm a research assistant with the Stanford Closeness Project and Kristen is a photography teacher), we're paying for various other pieces of equipment and whatever we cannot get covered by our fundraising.

It's so exciting to be exploring this topic and seeing how people around the world interact with one another, and how on some level, all human beings are the same in their desire for connection and need for vulnerability. Both of us will be blogging here and updating all summer! We are so excited for this adventure and so see where we end up!

Check it out and subscribe for updates!

Lots of love,

Patty