Good Monday morning/evening wherever you are...Monday, Blue Monday... what's in a day. Here I am swigging ultra strong bulletproof coffee, doing a load of laundry, and trying to decide what sort of art to create this week. I have been working hard on a few things this past week, but I can't show you, because the things I made were commissioned as gifts, so I can't post pictures, because the recipients might see them. I will post pictures of some new work that I can show as soon as I get it finished, and they will be available for sale.
I will also be making a couple more shuttles this week, on requests, but I probably won't be making many more shuttles beyond these, right now, though because I have plenty available if anyone wants one. LOOK HERE FOR AVAILABLE WEAVING SHUTTLES
Moving on...Being an artist isn't the romantic thing people think it is. It's really hard to be 'creative' and produce quality work 24/7/365. I seriously want to move away from making things just because I need to pay a bill. When I do that my art suffers. My creativity suffers. I suffer.
Creativity isn't like a light switch that can just be flipped on. Being an artist isn't like accounting or pool cleaning or even being a doctor. Inspiration is not something that can be forced or put on a schedule. You can't coerce inspiration to flow when it isn't there, just because you are broke and need to buy some food, or pay a bill. It takes relaxation and concentration to use your creativity to it's fullest potential..
Patronage...
To create art, all artists need to be free to create the things that move them. To do this an artist needs a supportive base to work from. Artists can't have the freedom to create, unless they have a support system - Patrons of the arts that either buy their work for a fair price on a regular basis, or offer a steady stream of support, so the artist can work without the restraints inflicted by poverty.
This is how it has always been. No great artist ever survived to create without patrons, whether it was their family who supported them, wealthy friends who bought their work or even gave them a place to live and work so that they could be free to create without worrying if they would have a roof over their heads, government or church patronage through commissions, grants, fellowships, etc.
For example, the Sistine Chapel wasn't painted for free or by one man - it was a highly paid commissioned work and Michelangelo had apprentices who did a lot of the work freeing him up to do the creative thinking and design work on his own schedule and also to work on other highly paid commissions at the same time which in turn freed him up to create whatever he wanted whenever he wanted to. He did not have to beg for money or donations because his talent was recognized early on, encouraged and rewarded and he did not ever have to set his talents aside for decades to be a homemaker or work at a menial job to support his family so he could make art. He never had to choose between making a living and making art. He had all the time in the world to create what he wanted without pressure or restriction and became so wealthy that he could eventually work for free creating some of his greatest masterpieces.
To create art, all artists need to be free to create the things that move them. To do this an artist needs a supportive base to work from. Artists can't have the freedom to create, unless they have a support system - Patrons of the arts that either buy their work for a fair price on a regular basis, or offer a steady stream of support, so the artist can work without the restraints inflicted by poverty.
This is how it has always been. No great artist ever survived to create without patrons, whether it was their family who supported them, wealthy friends who bought their work or even gave them a place to live and work so that they could be free to create without worrying if they would have a roof over their heads, government or church patronage through commissions, grants, fellowships, etc.
For example, the Sistine Chapel wasn't painted for free or by one man - it was a highly paid commissioned work and Michelangelo had apprentices who did a lot of the work freeing him up to do the creative thinking and design work on his own schedule and also to work on other highly paid commissions at the same time which in turn freed him up to create whatever he wanted whenever he wanted to. He did not have to beg for money or donations because his talent was recognized early on, encouraged and rewarded and he did not ever have to set his talents aside for decades to be a homemaker or work at a menial job to support his family so he could make art. He never had to choose between making a living and making art. He had all the time in the world to create what he wanted without pressure or restriction and became so wealthy that he could eventually work for free creating some of his greatest masterpieces.
For painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, he was paid 3000 ducats, which would amount to approximately 78 000 dollars in today’s terms, which at the time was a stellar amount of money. For the tomb of Pope Julius II, he was reportedly paid 10 000 ducats, an astronomical sum.
And so the problem of being paid for making art...(from The Vintage News HERE)
If you like what I do please consider helping me to continue to do it by buying my work, sharing my work with others, or just giving me a little encouragement and support by buying me a 'coffee' at https://ko-fi.com/ghosthorsestudios (they do charge me a fee) or just send support directly to me through PayPal to ghosthorsestudios@hotmail.com
In Closing...
I want to give a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has done anything to help me in the past, mentally, physically or financially, and let you know that it means literally the world to me and it is only because of your generosity that I am still here now making art. I really do appreciate your kindness and everything you have done for me whether it was buying some of my work, sharing it with your friends, sending me a gift or just being kind and helping me get through the rough patches I have been through these last several years.Now I need to get back to work making some art...
