The Joy of Art Life
Yes, there IS joy in the life of an artist. There’s also a lot of suffering. Maybe not the suffering that former well-known artists have known, but yes we do suffer for our art.
Art is part of us. There is a need to express ourselves - and if we deny this need we run the risk of damaging not only our mental and physical self - but our souls!
Artists are creators and maybe our creations don’t always turn out the way we hoped, but still we create and create and create.
Social media has helped and hurt artists. We follow other artists and get inspired. We also fall under the spell of social media and feel the pressure of needing to post, needing to create, needing to make videos, etc. We also fall under the deception of social media and buy into the “this is my first painting” or “this is the first time I…..” and see an amazing, perfect creation.
Successes also hurt us. We see other artists with large followings, other artists selling their work, other artists getting the “love”. It can damage our psyche as sensitives, empaths and creators.
BUT - I have taken to observing deeper. There is a price to pay for all this “success”. You have to learn to manipulate the algorithms, manipulate the perspective, and manipulate people. If you play the game - success can be yours, but at what price?
I often think of Van Gogh. Dare I say I feel a kindred spirit? What if he had played the game? What if he “sucked up” to the right people? What if he painted what other people painted and in the same style because “it sold”? The world would be less colourful, less creative, less inspired if he had chosen to do so. I’m glad that I have chosen to stay on my own path. I have chosen to be honest and not try to manipulate anyone or anything. I will create what I create and how I create because that is what is in me, that is what my life calls me to do. Maybe, like Van Gogh, only my family and friends will buy my work, maybe I won’t be a “success” as social media and the world would see it. But I will be a success in being honest to myself, my creations and my Creator.
