I am writing a different kind of post today. I generally try to write practical and helpful posts around the business of art. I love to give tips that might help artists and galleries be just a little more successful. Today though, I want to step back from the business and write a short love note to art itself. I know that sounds a bit cheesy, but I’ve had occasion recently to think a little bit about my relationship to art, and I feel it is important to share a few of my thoughts. Being in the business, I sometimes find myself taking the art itself for granted, thinking of it all in terms of dollars and cents. It’s good to pause now and again to remind myself what it’s all about.
I love art. I could probably equally say, “I live art.” I spend every day of my life thinking about art, working with art, and communicating with artists and art lovers. Other than a brief stint moving furniture as a teenager, I’ve spent every working day of my life in the art industry.
Growing up with an artist father, my earliest memory is not a sight or a sound, it’s a smell – the smell of oil paint. I remember watching my dad hard at work in the studio and seeing landscapes, still-lifes, and florals magically taking shape and form on his easel. I marveled (and still do) at his ability to transform a canvas and paint it into a window of the world.
As a teenager, I went to work at Legacy Gallery, the Scottsdale, AZ gallery where my father was showing his work. There, I started to learn the business. In the beginning, I was working in the background doing the shipping and receiving, cleaning, installing artwork, but what an eye-opening experience it was to see art coming into the gallery and then seeing collectors fall in love with it and buy it.
My true love for art came in my early twenties, however, and I think I can even point to the exact moment when my passion for art began. I was working in the Jackson Hole location of Legacy Gallery when the artist Harry Jackson called. It was a slow day in the gallery, before the summer season had begun, and I happened to pick up the phone. I ended up having an hour-long conversation with Jackson, and it’s a conversation that changed my life.
Jackson was, at the time, a cantankerous old artist creating western sculpture from his studio in Cody, Wyoming. If you don’t know Jackson’s work, that will give you the wrong impression of him. While Jackson was creating Western artwork, he was doing so with the sensibilities of an artist who had come of age with the Abstract Expressionist scene of 1950’s New York. He was friends with De Kooning and Pollock and knew all of the artists that ran in those circles. He studied with Hans Hofmann and Rufino Tamayo.
I wish I could remember the whole conversation (I would kill for a recording of it), but there are a few things I do remember clearly.
Jackson asked me if I had a degree in art history. I told him I had taken art history classes but didn’t have a degree in it.
“Good,” he said, “waste of time.” He went on to tell me I should teach myself about art history (he suggested I start with the Abrams book about Harry Jacskon!).
“I’m a boot-strappin’ sonofabitch” he said, “everything I know about art and art history I learned because I wanted to learn it, not because some professor told me I had to.”
He encouraged me to study it all, from ancient Greek and Roman art, all the way through the abstract expressionists (he didn’t seem to have too high an opinion of pop or postmodern art).
Jackson also explained some of his pieces to me, and even now, one of my favorite works of art of all time is his piece “Cosmos”.
To this day, I’m not sure why he would have spent an hour on the phone with a kid he had never even met (I did get to meet him once a few years later), but I’m grateful he did.
From that day, I became a serious student of art, even though my study has always been autodidactic. I’ve read dozens (hundreds?) of biographies on a wide variety of artists – everyone from Gauguin to Warhol. I’ve spent years studying Ancient Greece and Rome (not only their art, but also their literature and civilization). Once I started knowing the artists, my appetite to see their artwork became almost insatiable. I can’t travel without visiting museums and galleries.
Some of the deepest, most transcendent experiences of my life have occurred as I’ve taken in great works of art. I’ve come to love the technical aspects of the art and the craft involved in creating it. Ever more, though, is my love of an artist’s ability to communicate with me.
I remember wondering, as a child, if other people saw the world the same way I do. Is the red I see the same red you see? Well art has answered that question. Through art I can see that we all experience the world in different ways, and see different things. Art allows me to see and understand the world from another perspective.
I am also amazed by the proximity artwork gives me to human history. I’ll often stand in front of a Greek statue and feel the electricity of knowing an artist, a fellow human, is reaching across time and space to talk to me. I’ll feel that same wonder as I stand in front of a Van Gogh and realize that those brush strokes, mere inches in front of me, were put there by the hand of the great artist. How lucky I am to be able to experience the art!
A Few Things I’ve Learned About my Love for Art
As my love for art has grown, I’ve come to several conclusions about my appreciation for art. First, I’ve decided I don’t have to limit my love for art to one style or period. I can love realism, abstract, pop art and every other style without my love for any one of them diminishing because of the breadth of my interest. I can love Cowboy art and Contemporary and my head won’t explode.
I’ve also learned to enjoy the unexpected. It’s easy, when I’m visiting a museum, to focus only on those artists that I know something about – the big name artists. While I certainly love seeing the famous pieces, I also love visiting museum’s regional art collections, or seeing a show of contemporary work. I also love visiting various shows around the country to discover the art of currently-working artists. Sometimes I’m scouting work for the gallery, but often I try to stroll a show looking through the eyes of an art lover.
I’ve learned to love the transformative power of artwork. It’s a real kick to deliver artwork to a buyer’s home and see how that artwork dramatically changes the atmosphere of that home. It’s equally amazing to see how the home changes the art. There are times when it ends up not working at all, but there are also times when the combination is incredible and you can almost feel everyone’s breath taken away as the artwork finds its home.
I love how artists still have the ability to surprise, delight, and, sometimes, shock. As a civilization, we’ve been creating art for thousands, even tens of thousands, of years. You might think that we’ve seen it all. You’d be wrong. Though art is certainly an evolving on a continuum, the artist’s vision seems never to tire of innovation. Even subjects that have been well-covered over the millennia can appear fresh and new as an artist brings new perspective, insight and technique to bear on them.
Finally, I’ve learned that it’s impossible to separate the artist from the art, and for that reason, I love getting to know the artists. I love reading about the great artists, but, even more, I love meeting living artists and seeing what they are doing. I love talking to them about their lives and work. I like to think that by doing so, I’m seeing art history take shape, and maybe, I even get to be a small part of it.
So, I guess I’m a pretty lucky guy. I get to spend my days surrounded by amazing art, or out discovering it, and I get to rub shoulders with some of the most fascinating people in the world. If I do my job well, I help keep it going and get to be a part of it. Life is amazing!
Now . . . back to work!
What Does Art Mean To You?
How did you fall in love with art? How has art impacted your life? Share your thoughts and feelings about art, and your feedback about this article in the comments below.
Hello Jason,
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and feelings about art.
In reading your piece it stirred my own feelings and I too can say I Love Art.
Art has kept my mind’s imagination alive and excited. I construct assemblages with found objects so I’m always looking at ‘stuff’ with the thought of how I might use it an art piece. At times I feel overwhelmed with all the stuff I’ve accumulated and all the artwork I intend to make and create. My artwork enables me to constantly experiment with new techniques, new materials and different applications.
Several years ago I purchased a page in one of your catalogs, the piece pictured was called Ms Liberty…
My love of Art always keeps me busy with something new to create and for that reason alone I Love Art.
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to express my Love for Art!
David J. Skolsky
SKOL Art
Thank you or the invitation to think about this. I was a very lucky kid in this respect. Although we couldn’t afford many of the luxuries of the other neighborhood kids, somehow we were always going to concerts, museums and theater. I would also spend hours with our beloved 64 color pack of crayolas. Drawing and coloring, but sometimes I would just put the colors next to one another to see how they influenced each other. I loved that. I would also enthusiastically try to convince others to do it, too because it’s a delicious experience. 😊
That’s beautiful. Thank you.
Great article! I am an artist in California, and I all I can say is I was born this way. At an early age I was drawing, muraling with crayolas on the walls, and expressing my feelings. I was influenced by other artists who took the time to develop a scene as opposed to the raw emotion I was expressing. Now, my love of art is a combination of both raw emotion, a cry to save our natural world and the planet, and the skill to paint the messages exploding inside of me. I do not have a degree in art, but rather 70 years of painting from the heart and a lot of experimentation.
I am an artist in Florida. I am a senior citizen. I’ve only been working on my abilities as an artist for 4 months. I have over 200 drawings and paintings that I have been working on. I haven’t displayed any except to a few friends and family who wants to buy a few of them.I started out just drawing my plants before the frost killed them. I do landscapes ,flowers a few animals and now lately I have been doing a lot of abstract art. I have been surprising myself and having a great time creating different pieces. So now I have all this artwork but I need to get out there and sell it.
I loved that article. It still gave us advice on how important it is to tell your story when you are an artist. For me art has always been something I aspired to express. Even in pre school, all the kids are sitting at their desks except me. I’m at the easel in the back of the photo.
Art means exploring new worlds, feeling kinship with the carved hand on a Petroglyph Rock struck by lightning (making it sacred), and discovering new paths in life. I love creating!
I appreciate the time that Jason takes to give us helpful information about the art world and how we can benefit from his efforts. I am only now, at the age of 68, able to pursue doing what I’ve always wanted to do, that of trying to create my ideas of art. My sons are helping put together a website and I’m enjoying learning all the things needed to market myself.
Jason is so thoughtful and kind to offer his services to all of us who are aspiring to be of worth to others.
Thank you for your inspiration and guidance to us wannabes.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts regarding your love of art. You have led an amazing life! You are inspiring and so helpful to all artists who follow your comments and suggestions.
I am an “emerging” acrylic artist, but a “fine arts” person in general. I spent the majority of my formative years studying music. I married very young and spent the majority of my life raising my family, while working full time in the executive administrative field. I love everything that I have experienced and accomplished in my life. I am currently in my mid 70’s.
After I retired, and after my husband of many years passed away, I started taking sketch classes at The Art Institute of Chicago, and palette knife painting classes in our suburban area. This led to more acrylic painting classes, reading art history, and visiting museums and local art galleries whenever possible. Although my in-person painting classes are now on hold, we continue to meet once-a-week on Zoom. This is certainly not the same as in-person classes. I paint every day and continue to improve my painting skills. My instructor of the past five years, who is a wonderful artist in her own right, has helped me tremendously.
I am currently included in a gallery exhibition at Blue Moon Gallery in Grayslake, Illinois and am slowly starting to get my name out in Chicago area. I don’t have to earn a living selling art so I can take my time and enjoy the gallery experiences along the way. Seeing my artwork up on a wall is very gratifying. A compliment goes a long way with me.
Art has saved my retirement years, as my children are grown and living in various parts of the country. During this pandemic, being a painter has saved my sanity while being home 90% of the time. It is something that I look forward to each day.
Hopefully, sometime within the next two years, I will travel to Arizona and New Mexico to visit many wonderful art galleries.
Looking forward to 2021 … when we can all get back to a bit of normal in our lives!
Bravo Jason. I also live art, am largely self-taught, and hope never to climb (or be tossed) out of this lovely rabbit hole. Would be nice to meet in person one of these days and share a cup of… whatever. I bet you have great stories! Maybe you will be a “Jackson” for some up and coming artist/entrepreneur. We carry that torch now, right?
Jason, thank you for a wonderful essay! In my own life, there were moments like you experienced with Jackson, and I’m sure that they have occurred to every artist. On a second-grade field trip to the Albright-Know Art Gallery in Buffalo, I saw fingerprints in a Van Gogh painting and realized that painting with your fingers was a great idea!
As an art student in college, I had a chance to work with the avant-garde composer John Cage. I mentioned to him that I was having difficulty communicating my ideas in my work and he stopped me abruptly. “The purpose of art is NOT to communicate with an audience! The purpose of art is to still and quiet the mind and make it receptive to divine influences.” I spent the rest of my life trying to achieve that.
THAT stirs my heart, thank you!
That stirs my heart too!Thank you for that Douglas!
What a great quote !
I use to think that the sale of my artwork was what defined my success as an artist. I suppose that society had imposed that upon me. I found that the sales were continuingly hollow to me. So now I am using the metric of creating what I want and challenging myself as an artist as my metric for success. The funny thing is I still am able to sell the artwork which now is a nice bi-product of making my artwork as I now don’t care if a piece sells. This Attitude releases a tremendous amount of pressure and stress. I have withdrawn my work from all commercial galleries and only show at a local nonprofit gallery (occasionally) and online. I am sure most artist would find this Paradigm shift impossible but I feel it has made me a better artist
I adore Harry Jackson’s work!! And not only because I live in Wyoming 🙂 I discovered fiber art about 7 years ago when I retired; no formal training in art, but always working in stained glass and other mediums over the years. I just finished a commission piece of a Tennessee Walker; the greatest gift for me as an artist is knowing that my work has touched another person in. My little local gallery is my only sales outlet, which is enough as I continue to learn the magic of creating with fiber. Oils, acrylics, pottery, sculptures…all are inspiration for me.
I love the Buffalo Bill Historic Center! I lived in Cody for two years and spent hours exploring the art and historical displays. I was fortunate enough to meet artist James Bama at one of his shows. He was a phenomenal realist.
I had an art history class in college, but didn’t appreciate the content. I really enjoy you art history blogs….keep them coming.
There is nothing cheesy about this article! You speak from the heart and your contagious passion is evident. You are the first gallery owner I know that actually takes time to acknowledge an artist and genuinely wants to help. The negative responses have been deflating. It is for that reason, I have formed an art group that organizes our own shows here in Calgary, Alberta and now on line.
When we are inspired by someone that changes our course, it is a gift. It’s like the child who never forgets a wonderful teacher.
I have following your blog and critique sessions recently and find an inspiring wealth of information. I thank you for leading the pack with your vision.
Emily Little
Jason, this may be my favorite post from you. You speak from and with an artist’s heart. It’s not surprising that you’re so successful at what you do. Your interest in others shows in everything you do. Thank you for all of it. Sheila Meserschmidt, Aloha Oregon.
Love this post and responses! Thanks Jason
What a beautiful piece, Jason, and how it inspired such thoughtful comments. It’s a gift to hear how you as a gallerist and art lover came to know that you would spend your life in the company of art. It’s also amazing to see what an artist like Harry Jackson can teach us: That you make art from deep inside of your own experience. That substance is more important than style or genre. And that as one of your respondents reminded, practicing and being with art allows us to get in touch with our universal divine selves.
I am an artist and a teacher of watercolors here in Arizona, this pandemic has taken a toll on my creative ability to paint and use this time for myself. I have no classes at this time, and so want to fill this time with making a really good connection with my divine purpose to create more spiritual works of art. I have started to just sit in my studio and wait for the inspired connect. I was sent two little fur beings (cats) that sit with me and make my process more enjoyable. Your post helped me a lot.
Allura, your post resonates with me. Sitting and pondering, and knowing cats were sent to assist, has always been a positive factor in my art life. My website now points to my Amazon Author Profile, but some of my paintings (and some cats!) are visible on my Facebook social page Rlb Hartmann.
Thank you, Jason; you made my day!
You have given us a valuable and precious gift in this essay. In many ways, it’s as courageous as a brush with paint and a canvas. Perhaps it’s even more so.
I now have in your words and text what I kind of expected from the first moments of our connection.
I daresay you live art more deeply than many artists I know and yours is a valuable and accurate measurement.
Thank you.
At one point very early in my art career I was told the same thing about “taking Art History and getting a degree” instead of learning about art history by LOOKING at all kinds of art. I look back now and feel it was the best advice I could have received.
I’m sorry to say I don’t always read your posts all the way through – I’m sure you offer excellent advise that I might use, but I’m moving moving moving until I’m in the studio, then I can be still and no computer there.
But, I read this latest post from you with great interest. I have some deep feelings of gratitude and will express them to you when I have my thoughts fully organized.
Initially, however, thank you very much,
Kim
Over the years of reading your blogs I have read other articles on this theme and have lived them all because you so eloquently put into words the passion I too have felt for art all of my life. Thank you for sharing this.
This was truly uplifting. I’ve wondered if people see art the way that I do, and I believe it doesn’t really matter if they do. It is the art experience we each have that is makes art real. I love red and to me, red uplifts the mood in its surroundings. Your blog so eloquently points out that not everyone sees red the same way. The same with bold, vibrant color. One can even say art history is consumed differently by each individual such as those who want the why, to those who want the how. Or those who don’t really care, but still love art. Amazing, thought provoking blog. Thank you.
Beautiful article Jason and I have always ‘sensed’ you are the embodiment of art
by your saturated interest in and love for it! It’s ‘catching’ too as your own
enthusiasm fires up mine – an interest to see more of ‘all’ artists, not just nose to
the canvas re my own! We all do ‘see’ differently and therefore respond differently
to what we see. I love art. My entire adult life has been involved in it in some way
or other, mostly drawing and painting what I love! Like you, I feel so very, very,
incredibly lucky to ‘live’ in the wonderful world of art. Although it may have its
frustrations sometimes, it is what keeps me happy, healthy, smiling a busy !! Thank
you for reminding me how fortunate I am and that art is to be loved, admired, hated,
adored, laughed at, longed for etc., but in the end it would be a very sorry world without
it !!
~ “Fantastic” – I ‘thank you’ for sharing your wonderful story . . .
Love of art is something that is satisfying and drives artists to constantly learn more. Your blog was spot on. Thanks for your writing and insights.
Hi Jason,
I’m a Mexican living in Southern California.
I love Art, I love Art History. I do pointillism, pencil and metal embossing.
I have learned by my own.
I loved your article, all that you share within, I feel was all your life.
Thank you for sharing, with the way you say it, very simple you can reach us.
Veronica Chavez.
Wonderful post, Jason. So nice to hear why Art touches you and us all.
Profound, vivid and moving and very spiritual essay from your enormous, generous “heart”—well, in truth, from YOU, Jason. Art IS communication, and communication brings individuals alive. Artists ARE a cut above in that they do bring life into this culture, and indeed create the culture. Art IS Life, and you truly live life artfully, with verve. Thank you for all your admiration, and for sharing what you see and experience with so many, many artists and individuals who appreciate art. I would like to share this post (by providing a link) with my artist and art-loving friends. It’s the perfect Christmas present.
Thank you, Jason, for your wonderful, heartfelt post – what an inspiration! Art has always been a part of me, whether I was doing paint by numbers as a kid or a crafts, shell necklace and putting a nail through my finger (no stitches). Growing up and creating art was an important outlet, taking art history courses, doing workshops, teaching, always more to learn and to experiment on my own. During the pandemic, my studio was a great release (part of our house) and helped to preserve my sanity and to appreciate how much joy I derive from painting.
By far my most favorite article of yours Jason dear.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing your story from every corner of yours!
Your generosity, your openness, and and and many more to count.. is unmatched!
Gratefully,
Yildiz
I love everything about this article! Thank you!
Inspiring post. Like spoken language, visual expressions create and give meaning to the world we encounter every day. It’s like the first story in Genesis — where the creator spoke the world — the universe — into being. After each day, the creator said, “it is good — very good.” Art becomes a co-creator with creation, itself. Thanks, Jason.
I am so glad you are around, You have helped and are helping me, now along the way. I have always strived to do as well as my brother and father and have had it pressed into my head that I have no talent by my mother. It has been hard to overcome. You are helping. This week I sold a painting I had consigned to the heap but which I loved, (My word for old paintings that I lost faith in) Not only that, it was a figural painting, This type of painting I believed was beyond my scope now, but I guess that is not so. Keep inspiring because you are helping others.
Bonnie
Thanks for your thoughts, Jason. I agree wholeheartedly – the world of art is boundless. I love being a part of this. Every day offers new possibilities in so many ways. I appreciate getting this personal view of you!
Thank you, Jason.
Museums tend to at least try to show the best of an artist’s output, but artists often learn more from a secondary or even minor work of an artist. Digging out these works can be very useful. And, I bet you might find that interesting, as well. Think of an actor who you love and watch a B or C rated movie they were in. How did that actor work with less than high quality dialog? An artist who is creating the entire piece – one might think – they can go back and fix up anything not up to standard. But, often artists are “working” on something (color, brush mark, variation of texture or brush mark, exploring the limits of composition) and that can be more easily seen in a minor work. Enjoy!!
Kim
A very nice article. My love of art started as far back as I can remember. My father was a draftsman and got me interested in architecture. I was designing houses with floor plans at an early age. After seeing paintings by Rembrandt, Goya, and Renoir, My interest in fine art began. At age 18, I had my first portait commission of a friend’s son. As grew older, my interest in landscapes became more prevalent which is still my main subject. My passion for art prevails!
Greg
Beyond our hours and days,and human necessities, is reality.
In prosaic terms, we have what we call art, music, poetry, that offer some of the keys to the moments when we expand, open, breathe, and live in thoughts of reality.
That is how I feel it; i think we all know.
Jason,
Thank you for sharing your love of Art essay… very uplifting. Your book, Starving to Successful, helped me personally become an abstract painter (now a Senior citizen), who has learned about Art primarily as a self-taught Artist — with the exception of drawing classes and your Art Business Academy course — and I still sell my abstract expressionist and abstract realist paintings online — Thanks for all you’ve done and continue to do to assist fellow Artists in pursuit of their contribution to the World!
Of all your articles, this is my favorite. Truly from your heart. Which you have a big one. And, I think your heart probably Quin Magenta. I’m printing this one out to read it over and over. Thank you, Jason.
Imagine an eight-year-old, very light-skinned, African American, boy, who just transferred into one of the worst schools in Philadelphia. After 3 weeks of torture and bullying, he draws a transformer during art. The main bully yells to the class, “Look! The little white boy can draw!” He and all the other kids proceed to request different characters with amazement in their eyes. That was my first experience with the power of art to change someone’s emotions. It was very self-serving at that moment but I have been striving to provide art that has that type of effect on people ever since.
Once again you stir us all into looking deeper into ourselves and our artistry Jason. Thank YOU!
I too LOVE Art. I get up every morning thinking of Art. Art breathes vitality into my life through my creating Art, the people my artistry brings into my life, the joy of seeing my artistry on my walls and in the homes of my buyers, the thrill, as you say, of experiencing the masters in famous museums or the pleasure of seeing a small treasure in a small gallery.
Art enhance my/our World…and thank you for reminding us of the power of Art and the contribution each of us make to the whole. 😎🇧🇸
Stay Awesome.
Dear Jason,
Thanks for your love of art. I am touched by your soul confession. We need more souls like yours.
As for me, when my soul found wings, my spirit flew to the land of colors. Archetypal colors, colors of light, pigmented, psychological and spiritual. Color, color, color. I love them, I paint them.
As a five year kid when sick mom would give me colorful candy. I could taste them just by touching them. I hoard them away why eat if I could imagine the taste intensely already.
The love of color has followed me all my life. I am now owning the colorful lands my spirit visits. Spring-fresh full of life ready to feed the soul and energize the spirit for more, more, more.
With kindest regards. Nader
Your expression about art & your involvement with it was uplifting. It had me reflecting on my own journey as an artist & the personal satisfaction I derive from it both as viewer & creator. The article conjured in my memory the day I stood in front of a Raoul Duffy seascape at MOMA in NYC. I was mesmerized. From that moment I decided to start painting myself and never looked back. The immediate, cathartic experience of both viewing &/or creating art cannot in my opinion be equalled by any other genre of expression.
Thank you, Jason, for sharing such a beautiful story. Made my day a little brighter. Pat
Thank you for this article Jason. Being in the presence of art is so important to me too. I grew up very poor, but we always had art on our walls. My grandfather was an incredible painter and most of the family friends were artists too. I love looking at art, whether it’s galleries, art walks, art festivals or someone’s home. Even though I don’t always like what I see, finding the gems makes it all worthwhile. & A home without art is just so sterile.
Thank you for that story Jason..it stirred many memories..I took my very first art class when I was fifteen..( but always loved drawing and creating things before that ) the teacher introduced us to watercolor..and I was a gonner..lol..I eventually moved to oils and then acrylics..which I use today..I have never been an out going person..and painting gives me a voice to be me..I love art of all kinds to this day ..I can’t get enough…I am driven to create at this point in my life..as my time grows short..
Thanks for this post, Jason. Sometimes I need a reminder to value myself as an artist.
I agree and disagree with Jackson. On the disagree side…I have a BFA, but I hated art history classes until I took one under Bainbridge Bunting. That man loved art, probably similarly to you, Jason. He went around the world photographing artwork, at a distance and, especially, up close. His slide shows, shown on a wall instead of a screen, were so large that even from the back of the class one could see the brushstrokes of a Rembrandt or the really faint chisel marks on a sculpture.
I had the privilege of growing up as an army brat and we got to be stationed in Europe. I saw paintings up close in multiple museums but never did I see them as clearly as we were able to see them in Professor Bunting’s classes.
On the agree side, the autodidacts are usually quite the experts in their fields. As with the artists (with or without formal training), they are constantly learning, constantly digging, constantly following the paths that open up. On the artist side, how many of us, after being told that the sun is yellow and tree trunks are brown, looked and saw for ourselves that the teachers didn’t know how to see what they were looking at.
(P.S. Professor Bunting, a mild mannered man, became a force of nature in class. The first class was a shocker, though, some fifty odd years ago. He had a blue streak a mile wide in his speech, something one completely never noticed again as what he spoke about whelmed the eyes and mind.)
Thank you, Jason, for making the time to think about the why of Art. As anyone can tell from all of the comments, the response to what art means to us is a very personal and very intimate reaction—that gut feeling response to the world around us. Please keep thinking and posting and keep making us think deeply as well. Thank you.
Art, to me, is the sacred journey of the soul, a relentless dance between shadow and light where resilience and creativity intertwine. It’s not just the act of creating; it’s the profound experience of repeatedly embracing vulnerability, diving deep into the wells of self-doubt, and emerging transformed. Through the fires of rejection and the valleys of despair, I’ve learned that art is not about seeking perfection but about the fearless exploration of the unknown. Each brushstroke, each chisel mark is a testament to the journey of breaking and healing, a cycle of death and rebirth that nourishes my spirit and reconnects me with the divine tapestry of life.
To me, art is an unspoken dialogue with the infinite, a way to whisper my deepest truths into existence and listen to the silent echoes of the universe. In this dance, I am both the creator and the created, navigating the ever-changing tides of inspiration and the quiet voids in between. It is in these moments of surrender to the alchemical wheel of creation that I find my true self, unburdened by the shadows of the past and liberated from the chains of expectation. Art is my way of honoring the infinite cycle of transformation, a sacred ritual that allows me to continuously unfold into the pure, vast, shimmering essence of my being, in service to Love’s limitless expressions.
Thank you for this heartfelt and meaningful essay. Such a treat!
I’m an artist in California. Like several of your respondents, I started drawing and painting as a child. I was very lucky to have German parents who valued art–not for valuation but because they lived and breathed it. We had prints of Kandinsky, Miro, Franz Kline, Braque (when I was a child I told my dad that Braque painted like I did–and that I was an artist too—and dad said, “Of course!”) Children’s perspectives are interesting! We spent many hours in museums and I and my husband do as well. In fact, it’s usually how we plan trips–which museums do we go to, including some that are not well known. I learn so much from seeing all kinds of art close up.
Recently I was fortunate to spend a month at an artists’ residency in France, and could be free of many daily tasks and concentrate on my work–and go to see art of all kinds in the area, including Cezanne’s atelier in Aix en Provence. He opened up a huge space/window to be able to be able to bring large canvases in and out. Also the Bonnard Musee in Le Cannet–including many sketches and preliminary paintings. I’m always interested in artists’ techniques as well as the final works.
Now many years later, after retiring from a tech career, I’m a full time artist–still seeing and learning.
By the way, Jason, I think your father’s work is wonderful!
Art. the curious. the excitement. the tool to escape. the unexplained moments. the appreciation. the discussions. the quiet moments. the vacation away from thoughts. the process of inhaling and exhaling to some extent. the creations born into this world. the love. the existence. the unknown. the ambition. the passion.
Thank you for your inspiration today.
Musings on art
I too love art. Here are some of my thoughts though.
Why do I create art? Is it really self-expression? Is art just my ego trying to improve on creation? Could I really make anything more beautiful than what G-d has already created? Is my art just a cultural appropriation, a plagiarism of what has gone before?
Don’t get me wrong, art fills my soul, grounds me into this reality and takes me out of it at the same time. Art inspires, energizes, calms and supports me. But couldn’t I do just as well embracing the original artist’s work watching a vibrant sunset, a glorious sunrise, the never-to-be-imitated hues and shadows of a Painted Bunting?
These are questions I ask myself as I shoot an up-close early morning blossoming cactus flower, in awe of the authentic art that shows up every day right before my eyes, here in the natural world of the desert southwest. Your comments are most welcome.