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“Being an artist is not just about what happens
when you are in the studio.
The way you live, the people you choose to love
and the way you love them, the way you vote,
the words that come out of your mouth…
will also become the raw material
for the art you make.” — Teresita Fernandez.
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A friend passed along a terrific interview with a sculptor whose name I didn’t recognize, Teresita Fernandez. It turns out that she currently has a show at nearby Mass Moca (see video at bottom), so I’m hoping to experience it. (Road trip, anyone?) Credit for the interview goes to Maria Popova at Brain Pickings; just follow the link, like Dorothy’s yellow brick road, and you’ll get there to read it in full: a wise and thoughtful piece.
At the conclusion of the article, Teresita offers a brief list of practical tips for a young artists. I think the general wisdom — and moreso, the warm humanity expressed here — makes it worth reading for absolutely anybody. I love that she does not separate her art from her life, or from any life. It is of a piece, a life’s work entire.
Here’s some examples of Teresita’s truly awesome work, sprinkled throughout.
1) Art requires time — there’s a reason it’s called a studiopractice. Contrary to popular belief, moving to Bushwick, Brooklyn, this summer does not make you an artist. If in order to do this you have to share a space with five roommates and wait on tables, you will probably not make much art. What worked for me was spending five years building a body of work in a city where it was cheapest for me to live, and that allowed me the precious time and space I needed after grad school.
2) Learn to write well and get into the habit of systematically applying for every grant you can find. If you don’t get it, keep applying. I lived from grant money for four years when I first graduated.
3) Nobody reads artist’s statements. Learn to tell an interesting story about your work that people can relate to on a personal level.
4) Not every project will survive. Purge regularly, destroying is intimately connected to creating. This will save you time.
5) Edit privately. As much as I believe in stumbling, I also think nobody else needs to watch you do it.
6) When people say your work is good do two things. First, don’t believe them. Second, ask them, “Why”? If they can convince you of why they think your work is good, accept the compliment. If they can’t convince you (and most people can’t) dismiss it as superficial and recognize that most bad consensus is made by people simply repeating that they “like” something.
7) Don’t ever feel like you have to give anything up in order to be an artist. I had babies and made art and traveled and still have a million things I’d like to do.
8) You don’t need a lot of friends or curators or patrons or a huge following, just a few that really believe in you.
9) Remind yourself to be gracious to everyone, whether they can help you or not. It will draw people to you over and over again and help build trust in professional relationships.
10) And lastly, when other things in life get tough, when you’re going through family troubles, when you’re heartbroken, when you’re frustrated with money problems, focus on your work. It has saved me through every single difficult thing I have ever had to do, like a scaffolding that goes far beyond any traditional notions of a career.
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How much sleep would you forgo for the sake of productivity? Brain Pickings blogger Maria Popova and illustrator Wendy MacNaughton partnered together to design the “
Brain Pickings writer Maria Popova has created the
About two weeks ago, my son and husband sat in the living room listening intently to a novel I was reading to them. I kept asking them if they'd had enough. But they didn't. They always wanted more. Over the course of the day, I must have read to them for a total of 4 hours (with a break in between for eating). We'd never done that before. It was pretty cool.
Then the other day, we were driving to visit my parents (an 8 hour car ride) so I picked up a book beforehand. I spent about half the trip reading aloud to them again.
My son has always loved stories, and he reads on his own alot, but I had never read whole novels to him in one sitting. This is new. But I like how it brings our family together, in a quiet, shared, and dare I say, gadget-free experience. Kinda refreshing. I wonder if these experiences changed them as you suggest...
Hey, Michele! Listening together as a family to well-phrased stories - books - whatever - is like being members of a secret club. My son, the Hub, and I have "wink wink" moments where one of us refers to something in a long ago read-aloud and right away the others know! The stories we listened to on long rides are patches in our family quilt. I'm glad you and Lo and the Boy have formed a "Secret Listening Club" of your own.