Do you ever work? It must be nice working whenever you want. Day off eh? These questions and other innuendos use to drive me nuts! Well they did at least until I understood more about myself and what it is that I do.
I am an Artist and I create Art. Yes, this is a pretty bold statement, that is true but an accurate statement in fact. I expect most will not understand what an artist does and I expect most will not be able to even slightly relate however I will do my best to allow you into my thoughts in order for you to understand what it is like.
I describe an artist as one that is in continuous pursuit to give tangible form to the intangible.
Whoa! Now...don’t panic, let me explain. An artist is constantly trying to better themselves and their abilities in the interpretations of the world in various forms. Society is driven by many facets, one of which is emotion. If we did not have emotion we would aimlessly drift along making only reasonable and knowledgeable decisions. Double Whoa!
Emotions allow us as humans to make the all important decisions that make us feel. Without feeling we would again, aimlessly drift along already knowing the “correct” answer to anything life threw our way. BORING!
We would for all practical purposes be a computer that didn’t care how our decisions impacted people, animals, our environment or even ourselves. We would only base our future thinking upon our past experiences and the success or lack thereof. We would eventually deteriorate as a society and no longer evolve. Without evolution we become stagnant and die.
Emotion is vital to our life as humans and it is purely intuitive. True emotion is not learned, it is not interpreted based on our experiences. True emotion is a deeper feeling. It is similar to asking yourself, “What if I did this or that”. It is not the answer to what would happen if you did something, it is how you feel doing it or simply in most cases how you would feel if you just tried to do it.
An artist job is to ‘portray’ emotions / feelings (no pun intended). As the artist or as the viewer of the art, you will react emotionally to the experience. You will feel how the artist felt doing it or how they would feel if they actually did it. It allows you, the viewer to get an inside the mind “peek” at how the artist feels but more importantly how you feel. Artists can be like storytellers that guide the viewer through their own emotional reactions to the art. Artist steer you through the emotional experience using “learned” techniques.
As an Artist I am continually searching to better myself and my ability to interpret society and the emotions or feelings that come from within it. I do this by way of creating art. My current avenue I use to channel these emotional experiences is through painting, drawing and an occasionally sculpture. I haven’t always believed that the result of my art, what I call my artwork or art experience, has been created tangible enough for many to understand or share in the emotional experience. I do believe that continuous work is needed and is a huge part of how I grow as an artist. Regardless of the stage at which myself as an artist is currently, I will continually pursue creating tangible experiences out of intangible emotions.
For a more detailed look at my art experiences, please follow my facebook page or subscribe to my web site.