composition must remain fixed throughout the performance
even though it is affected instantly by the response

of the audience. The audience have the pleasure of
sharing in the exhilaration of the performance and if
they should later venture back stage they may also share
in the artist's stages of let down which are a result

of the performance. At this point the artist may be
asked to respond verbally to his work. The performance
is over, it may have lasted for just a few minutes. The
people will see the piece only once, they may not return
for further understanding and enjoyment, but must rely
on the total experience of past performance.

The public does not get the chance to live through
some of the high and low moments which the potter had
experienced during his months of performance. And when
they question him he has had an opportunity to step back
and assess his work before having to answer. If they do
question him it can be with the work before them both.
The public may return several days later and gain further
insight to the idea.

Though the experiences of exhibiting the finished
work in these two arts differ, each artist learns how
to benefit from the response of the public to his per-
formance. He is able to gain greater insight into his
work by placing his ideas in the open where they may be
judged by both himself and others. He may not agree
with the judgment of others but that is his prerogative.
But one misses a great deal in his creative life if he
avoids the magic of the public performance, and it is
this experience which I believe makes exhibits--be they
in the theatre, between the covers of a book, or ina
gallery--so necessary to the life of an artist.

Jean Marie Weakland