Being an artist is often likened to being on a journey, one filled with various ups and downs and twists and turns. At times it feels rather thankless, and at other times the gateway into incredible experiences and people. I often think about the track my life would have taken had I not become an … More The unexpected benefits of being an artist
Creatives, you have value beyond the success of your career. This post is going to be pretty honest, because I think I am not the only creative dealing with this issue right now, and I want to start a conversation. This is not about “success” or “failure,” but about the idea of value. Specifically, when … More How do you know your value?
Painting is slow. It requires time, and attention, and engagement. Painting is without algorithm or artificial intelligence; rather, it is the most human of intelligence. It is the oldest intelligence, begat from the hands of ancient peoples, tens of thousands of years ago, on cave walls. There is something pure about paint on a surface, … More Analog (in a digital world)
The public shaming– and defense– of actor Geoffrey Owens, the Cosby Show cast member who was recently “caught” working as a cashier at a Trader Joe’s in New Jersey by various news outlets, struck me. I think it hit the nerve of every creative person, as many of us collectively jumped to his defense. Maybe … More Creatives sometimes have to get day jobs. We aren’t failures. Deal with it.
Sitting in Trine Bumiller’s light-filled, Park Hill studio, we talked of memory and landscape, the meaning of trees, the color blue, our lives as working artists. Our conversation ran the gamut but always circled back to her luminescent, awe-inspiring work. Encountering Bumiller’s work is like finding a snapshot of a moment in time. Her abstract … More Artists I Know: Trine Bumiller
In 2009 I shifted from my academic teaching career to working as a full-time artist. What I did not realize when I did this was that I was embarking on a journey as a creative entrepreneur. It has been quite the road I have walked; I made a lot of mistakes, but I succeeded a … More artboss: a workshop for creative entrepreneurs
“But the artist… speaks to our capacity for delight and wonder, to the sense of mystery surrounding our lives; to our sense of pity, and beauty, and pain; to the latent feeling of fellowship with all creation — and to the subtle but invincible conviction of solidarity that knits together the loneliness of innumerable hearts, … More The Role of the Artist in Society (if there is one)
When I asked Jeffrey Keith, my friend, mentor and former professor, if I could interview him for my “Artists I Know” series, he acquiesced, on the condition that I keep my boring interview questions to myself. Instead, he had a special request: Write the story of that time we had dinner with the reknowned artist … More Artists I Know: Jeffrey Keith (and our dinner with Robert Ryman)
Parenting is no joke. I know a lot of people liken it to a really hard job, but I don’t see it that way. Parenting is more like a spiritual practice for me. The fortitude, patience and faith it requires are more akin to one seeking enlightenment than a job you go to every day. … More In which I veer off topic and talk about parenting.
Today I had a realization. I was sitting at my acupuncture appointment, with my four month old baby on my lap,. He’s cooing and kicking and wiggling and laughing, while I’ve got needles stuck in me in an attempt to clear out a nasty headache that had set in with the heat wave this week. … More The List of Undone Things
The Lovely View 