Fast Five: Duncan Menzies: Creatively intersecting the arts, people, experiences with empathy
Meet Duncan Menzies, an eclectic wanderer through creative endeavors.
Generation: Millennial
Career and community involvement: Duncan is a sort of Renaissance performer-of-all-trades, a former “Big Man” of Coeur d’Alene competitor (all in good fun!) as well as programs coordinator and events manager at Art Spirit Gallery.
1. You act, sing, model and more. Which, if any, is your favorite, and why?
That’s a hard question because I get fulfillment from different mediums. Lately in the "more" category I’ve been exploring visual arts through a conceptual art project called "The Bedsheet Chronicles” in which I meet with people, interview them about what they cover in life. They give me a bed sheet and I make lamp art structures with their fabrics.
This project allows me to explore philosophically what we cover in life, or society, or family, or from the "other," or from self. It's this sort of exploring which is my favorite in any medium: to explore identity in modeling, exploring character in plays, or exploring the prolonged emotions we feel through singing. But the root may as well be the same in an effort to understand myself and others, or just have a good time.
But if we are talking just which is my favorite to do for fun, I would say singing, whether it is in the shower, on a stage, or in nature.
2. (a) How and why did you become a performer? (b) Why are the arts important?
The short answer is I've always been an attention fanatic, always snuck myself into photos when a relative was holding a camera, sang at family gatherings, or did weird things like licking ranch off picnic tables in middle school for attention. I consider those all signs I was probably meant to do theater arts. I feel like the phrase "caught the theater bug" seems appropriate.
The "how" is a long story of a plethora of people in my life who believed in me. I am not the product of my own self. I had a family friend pay for voice lessons, I had an encouraging drama and choir teacher who encouraged and motivated me — shout out to Tracey Vaughan and Shelia Wayman! I had groups offer scholarships for college, I had a teacher give me the connections and resources I needed to succeed.
Outside of those things the how is just finding what you love and doing it and the rest seems to fall into place.
2b. Why are the arts important? Wow — this is a dissertation level question, but maybe I'll just say they are important for three reasons.
First, for me the arts are important for communities because they say "I'm not alone," or "my experience is important," or "I understand the world around me a little better," or "Wow! that changes how I perceive (fill in the blank). When I see a moving piece of theater it adds empathy to my life, it reminds me firstly that my experience is like someone else's but also lets me know and appreciate the diversity of experience that is out there.
Second, the arts are important for the artist because they are tools to express, to question, and explore their worldviews, their inner worlds, and worlds around them. It adds meaning and value to our lives and also acts as time stamps for impressions, revelations, or states that we were in when they were created.
And third, the arts are important for the economy and creating a sense of place or a sense of pride. Coeur d'Alene has a vibrant artistic community and culture due to the many artists who share their talents with the community and tourism.
3. Your current position is in visual art, non performance. What draws you to that — are performing and visual arts connected in some way?
Yes. I work at The Art Spirit Gallery, which is a contemporary fine art gallery. And I am the programs coordinator and events manager. And I love the choice of wording with "What draws you to that," because one thing I am launching at the gallery this fall is the intersection of the Performing arts and Fine Arts with "Drawn" Together Arts. We are going to do small staged works and devised cabarets all of which thematically intersect the fine arts. So in this sense they are deeply connected.
Also if there is one thing I learned from 2020, it would be resilience and that we are stronger together. This is true with the arts as well, so finding ways to intersect passion, collaboration, and mediums is my new favorite pastime. Intersecting or exploring a different medium of expression refines or informs my own expression. But also what I love about intersecting the arts is that we can explore concepts or ideas between artists and be speaking the same language even though they are in different mediums.
This is another goal at the gallery — to provide a platform for artists of any medium to meet, network and speak this language with each other. I love working at a place that has connected me with art lovers, artists from all over the region, and coworkers that speak this language. And Blair Williams, the owner, is a major advocate for all the arts in the community and also creative placemaking and how it affects community. It provides space for the arts to flourish, giving myself and others empowerment to offer their very best. It all feeds back into a healthy, economically prosperous, and lively community.
4. What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?
Something surprising about myself is I pass out more frequently than your average joe, sometimes, at the sight of blood. I once had a very kind homeless man show me his frostbite-ridden hand which exposed some bone and blood and my constitution couldn't take it. I passed out face first onto the cement. My nose caught my fall and it broke. So if you look really closely you can see the crook.
5. If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
If I had any power in the world it would be to fly. I always had dreams of flying as a kid — weirdly recurring ones of flying over car dump yards. Anyway, transportation would be easy and you could go anywhere.
