Protesting Greatness

If you can imagine, the Sydney Oprah House will host 1,500 performances this year. More than 1.2 million people will attend these performances and it’s difficult to begin to fathom how many visitors will flock to the Sydney Oprah House to appreciate, photograph, or experience the modern architectural marvel that has become the hallmark of the New South Wales harbor skyline. 

While the powerfully positive impact of this iconic building seems to be irrefutable, consider that when
construction began in 1959 it’s design was met with protests in the streets from citizens rejecting the plan. What seemed to some in 1959 as a confusing, visual folly, and undesirable addition to the Sydney landscape is now regarded, nearly unanimously, as one of the most remarkable architectural works of the modern era.

As a result, I can’t help but be reinvigorated by the obvious irrelevance of mass appeal. To some, DEUCE Gym and its previous iteration, FFOTB, are unwelcome eyesores to the community, as well. It seems that in many cases, the likelihood of a remarkable expression fitting in nicely with the current times is few and far between.

What, then, is a better question than, “Is my work accepted?” I’d like to invite you to ask rather, “Is this my best work?” The present audience is rarely equipped to recognize greatness when they see it anyway.

 

Logan Gelbrich

@functionalcoach