Thursday, July 29, 2010

Economic Recovery

I recently read the book Plenitude by Juliet Schor, and it really got my mind rolling.   Many of the things she said were ideas I already had tumbling around in my head, but she articulated them much better than I ever could.  She had a lot of research and analysis to clarify her points, which really helps.  Some of these facts are rather shocking and sobering.  She talks about shifting away from the business-as-usual mentality and work toward a future of stability and sustainability.  It is not easy work, but necessary is rarely easy.  I highly recommend this book, what she says is a real wake up call for all us. 

Then I came across the blog of creative person Amanda Palmer, her blog entry about the relationship to art and income was of particular interest to me.  What she says, echoes some of what I read in  Lewis Hyde's book The Gift, which talks about the role of the artist as a necessary contributor to the health and well-being of society.   Hyde talks about the struggle within the arts when turning something necessary to the culture into a commodity. Amanda Palmer discusses in her blog that financial support is necessary and should not be tied in with feelings of guilt.   I have been working for the last three years to shift my income to one that revolves around my creativity. I too have struggled with the feelings of guilt and the strangeness of turning art into a commodity.  As a result I have turned toward looking at how my creativity, which as been with me from when I was a small child, is a valid contribution to society.  This has opened me up to exploring different ways to make a living.

I have been working on painting, sculpture and my writing as a way to diversify my income.  I am careful now about the kind of jobs I choose, to make sure they support in some way my creative work, rather than just take time away from it.  I do some freelance web and editing work that is flexible with my art-making schedule and I teach.  Right now, it is tight.  I live precariously, but I am frugal and careful.  This is not how I would like to keep living, nor is it healthy to do so.  Right now, I'm afraid, too many people live like this...and far too many of them that do are creative people.

As we try to recover from the "financial crisis" (that politicians like to call it), returning to the status quo is not the answer.  This is our opportunity to fix what didn't work and create a new system.  For me, it is building a living around my creative work.  And a way to do that is to keep my work as close to me as possible. I am avoiding the middle-person to sell or distribute my work, so that I can keep my work priced reasonable and, more importantly to me, maintain relationships with the people who enjoy my work.  When so much of my time is spent alone as I work on my art, it is crucial that I maintain some contact with the people that appreciate and enjoy my work.

But, in order to be able to sustain a living, I need support.  And it isn't just me.  There are so many wonderfully creative people out there doing wonderful work without big contracts with record companies, publishers or galleries.  We need to support these people.  If we listen to their music, we need to buy their music or attend their concerts or invite them to house concerts.  If we need greeting cards, artwork, sculptures, gifts for others or ourselves, we need to buy them from those independent artists.  If we cannot purchase their work because our own money is tight, then we can help promote them by telling others, we can give the artist supplies to do their work, we can donate in-kind materials, we can make them some dinner, and so on.  Supporting an artist so they can make a living, isn't only  financial.  There are many ways to help. This is part of the new financial model that we need to build.

I believe this kind of purchase power and support will help tremendously with the economic recovery. By supporting independent artists we help allow work get made, we support the local community, and we play an active role in the kind of work that gets made.  We don't need big companies to choose for us what work gets made. We don't need to pay the higher costs of products to cover the big company leaders salaries.  We don't need to support big businesses shady practices that come back to hurt the consumer.  We can support the artists we know and whose work we enjoy.  As Amanda Palmer puts it so well:

it’s about empowerment and it’s about SIMPLICITY: fan loves art, artist needs money, fan gives artist money, artist says thank you.


I ask you, please, the next time you go buy a CD, a greeting card, a print, a painting, a book, a gift or home item, consider supporting an independent artist or writer.  They are making good work and it deserves to be noticed and supported!  As an artist, who works hard at what I do, I say, THANK YOU!!!

DoAn
Help in the creation of art, please consider donating! Just click on the link below:
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DoAn Art is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of DoAn Art may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
 
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Thursday, July 01, 2010

Teachings in Small Packages

 I have been busy working on making many different kinds of animal sculptures for upcoming shows, but the one animal that I keep coming back to is the hummingbird.   Admittedly, I am fascinated by the real tiny birds, but I thought it was interesting that unlike other animals I create sculptures of, making one hummingbird is just not enough. 

I have read many interesting facts about hummingbirds as a way to create better, more life-like sculptures, but I realized I hadn't explored their spiritual natures.

As a spirit animal, I discovered that hummingbirds represent qualities such as openness, stamina, beauty, renewal and playfulness, among others. 

It is interesting to me how often my art does a better job of telling me where I am in my life than my own mind.  Some might argue that my art is really a reflection of my mind, but those who know me well, know that that is not always true for me.  My mind is often really good at getting in the way.  My art, when I am really connecting, is a reflection of my spirit. My art tells me where I am at the moment.  My mind often muddles that connection.  So, reviewing the fact that I have been nearly obsessed with creating hummingbirds and after reading about the spiritual qualities they represent, I suddenly have gained a deeper insight into where I am in my life. 

As I work on the painting of Etain, representing the notions of rebirth and renewal, I am not surprised to find a connection to the hummingbird.  The hummingbird, on cold nights, goes into a state called torpor, where its heart and breathing all but stop.  It is as close to dead as a thing could be.  Then, with the warming of the sun's rays, it miraculously comes alive once more. It is reborn and renewed to greet another day.  The goddess painting of Etain is dealing with this on a more personal level, for we all go through moments of renewal and rebirth throughout our lives.  I cannot begin to count the number of times I have experienced this myself.

But the hummingbird also represents the opening of the heart, allowing love and healing to enter.  This has been a hard issue for me.  The past carries many wounds, scars linger, and it can often feel more wise to keep one's heart kept hidden away.  It is the way I have learned to move around in the world.  I guard my independence fiercely, but the hummingbird is teaching me that to be open is the way to healing.  I believe that with all the work I have been doing with my art, this lesson is the one I have been avoiding for too long.

The hummingbird also teaches about play.  The hummingbird is actually a rather pugnacious bird.  I have watched them get into some very intense aerial battles around the feeder.  It is amazing to see them whirl and dive at each other.  They never harm each other; it is all just posturing and play.  In my great serious pursuit in making a living from my art, I sometimes forget about the importance of good serious play.   Hummingbirds spend 80% of their time perching.  I have mistaken glimpses of their speed and high energy as  model for living daily life.  Not even a hummingbird can flit around without rest.  In fact, it rests quite a bit. 

So, I am taking the lessons that my art is teaching me and I am taking a short break.  July 10th will be my first in a series of summer shows.  It will do me no good to stretch myself so thin that I have no energy to present my sculptures.  I am going to work on opening my heart to those who truly appreciate me for who I am, and thus allow healing to take place.  I will rest and practice the art of good healthy playing!

What might you learn from the tiny teacher, the hummingbird?

Happy Holiday to All!

DoAn
Help in the creation of art, please consider donating! Just click on the link below:
Donate now!  
DoAn Art is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of DoAn Art may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
 
Subscribe in a reader
All artwork, photos and text © Copyright 2005-2010 DoAn Art (Antony Galbraith) unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Antony Galbraith.

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