Last weekend I had the pleasure of seeing and speaking to Dan Clayman. Dan is a glass artist who has a significant installation at Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, New Jersey. I strongly recommend both the Grounds and Dan’s installation.
While speaking about his works, Dan mentioned the three most influential men in his life: his father, the head of the glass program when he attended RISD, and his high school wrestling coach. When I got to speak to Dan alone, we talked about our mutually shared wrestling experiences. (I wrestled in college.)
Wrestling is a great team sport that isolates each individual’s contribution in much the same way as cross-country running. Each wrestler has his own
match. The individual effort stands alone but contributes to the overall team performance. As Dan recalled, an individual’s slip-up didn’t get lost in the efforts of the other ten teammates. And yet, there’s a team behind you -- a perfect blend of individual accountability and the support of others.
As Dan and I shared wrestling for a few moments, the influence of that experience became more and more apparent to me, as did the importance of the coach who pushed us to do things beyond what we thought achievable, and who was there when things didn’t work out…and my teammates -- each a coach is his own way.