Blog Archives

Pearls from artists* # 716

At the studio
At the studio

*an ongoing series of quotations – mostly from artists, to artists – that offers wisdom, inspiration, and advice for the sometimes lonely road we are on

… We are in the early stages of what I hope will be a revolution surrounding the way we view creative labor. I optimistically dream of a new model, crafted by the next generation of artists. Hopefully, they will not have to spend too many years chasing the old, late-stage capitalist one, as we did. We must cultivate a sense of our own value. As audiences, we willingly spend money for the experiences of books, plays, and other performances. It is not unusual to drop forty dollars on a mediocre movie and bad popcorn, or hundreds for a concert. Yet, we have tolerated a system where artists are not paid for putting their time, money, and very souls into the creation of inspiring, thought-provoking works. It is time to collectively channel creativity towards new paradigms, to provide us with a living wage, ensure that art history reflects all of us, and change the very status of art in our culture. Armed with the truth, technology, and ingenuity, we can forge a powerful future.

Kate Kretz in Art From Your Core: A Holistic Guide to Visual Voice

Comments are welcome!

Pearls from artists* # 633

The Studio


*an ongoing series of quotations – mostly from artists, to artists – that offers wisdom, inspiration, and advice for the sometimes lonely road we are on.

… as he makes clear repeatedly throughout the text, there can be no such thing as a revolution in art. The “plastic process” as he [Mark Rothko] labels, it – the development of art – is inherently evolutionary. An artist can react against it, but there is no way to be outside it; it is the fabric with which he or she weaves. Technique, ways of seeing, representing, and balancing, are all in a common pool from which the artist draws.

Christopher Rothko in The Artist’s Reality: Philosophies of Art by Mark Rothko

Comments are welcome!

Pearls from artists* # 538

Barbara’s Studio

*an ongoing series of quotations – mostly from artists, to artists – that offers wisdom, inspiration, and advice for the sometimes lonely road we are on.

It’s ok if your work is fun for you, is what I’m saying. It’s also ok if your work is healing for you, or fascinating for you, or redemptive for you, or if it’s maybe just a hobby that keeps you from going crazy. It’s even ok if your work is totally frivolous. That’s allowed. It’s all allowed.

Your own reasons to create are reason enough. Merely by pursuing what you love, you may inadvertently end up helping us plenty. (“There is no love which does not become help,” taught the theologian Paul Tillich). Do whatever brings you to life, then. Follow your own fascinations, obsessions, and compulsions. Trust them. Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart.

The rest of it will take care of itself.

Elizabeth Gilbert in Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

Comments are welcome!