Intermission
I’ve been working long days in the studio, preparing the groundwork for a new artist book I plan on crowdfunding. This particular work requires such intense and hypnotic focus I’ve been incapable of focusing on anything else. So today, instead of the usual kind of post, I’m sharing a few sneak peeks of the work in progress.
This is also an opportunity for me to ask for your thoughts on creativity. Note I’m not using the word “art”, which has rather lost its meaning and isn’t really useful unless we start by defining what we mean by it, which is in itself a whole can of worms. But I think we all understand what creativity refers to, although the process itself remains mysterious and undeniably, satisfyingly, completely human. From the reactions to my article on Zafimaniry geometry, I can tell quite a few of you are creators, or appreciate creativity, and have your own thoughts and experiences on the matter. I’m really interested in hearing from you. I feel nowadays creatives are gaslit and forcefully reeducated by an “art world” that can’t handle creativity unless it’s been standardised for the sake of monetisation. Those who don’t conform are left on the fringe where we continue with our work feeling subpar, or like a voice in the wilderness. But as I mentioned in that post, creativity is a living force that doesn’t give a hoot about any gatekeeping structures that may be in place, and it will come out through whoever embraces it for its own sake. If you’re one of these people, tell me about your process! How is it for you? How do you feel about the above, and how do you deal with it?
And here are the sneak peeks. I haven’t yet explained the project anywhere, so they’re not captioned, but it has to do with the Arabic alphabet. I’ll be able to launch and reveal it fairly soon at this pace.
Wow, just wow! I am simply in awe of your work and Hope to be able to contribute to your crowd fund for the book. I really enjoy watching the videos of you working but do worry that you remember to breathe. Good Luck
"I feel nowadays creatives are gaslit and forcefully reeducated by an “art world” that can’t handle creativity unless it’s been standardised for the sake of monetisation." You're speaking my language!
It's only recently that I abandoned all my plans for gatekeepers wholesale: us literati have a harder time letting go of the traditional system that once enabled so many great things. (Though visual artists are dependent on academy training, I hear, or they will be "naive:" at least in the Western tradition) And when I get around to finishing my first play, I still don't know what I'll do since I can't even get the local theater troupe in my hometown to perform it unless an agent shoves it under their nose. But my approach (and my upcoming self-publication press will represent this ethos) is to embrace the Wilderness wholesale, as a pioneer would in the actual wilderness. The divisions are so clear-cut that be it traditional non-Western arts, forgotten and/or ignored Western arts or new trends outside the mainstream, it's the only way forward.
But by that I don't, of course, mean creative anarchy in the art itself. The institution likes that kind of thing because that way, it can form jargon opinions about red squares and then make fun of anybody who questions it because "you're just not as sophisticated as we are." It's part of how they control the arts. But the Wilderness metaphor still applies. You'll find all kinds of animals in the jungle but those animals themselves are fully formed, complete as they are. A tiger is a tiger, not a deconstructed tigerism.
I just came back from a book-shopping expedition and - suffice to say - spent a pretty penny. When it comes to my creativity, I'll do what it takes to keep it afloat. Without betraying my faith or my loved ones, of course. As big of a fan as I am of modernism, I think they were mistaken to ignore the creative inspiration to be found in those sources. Even after Huysmans and many others proved otherwise with faith, while Bohumil Hrabal would later prove otherwise with marriage. I read as much as I can from all around the world: my book load recently included, among other gems, an anthology of tales about Nasruddin the trickster, an anthology of Kazakh poetry and a long out-of-print collection of Filipino epic poems. Unfortunately, some jackass bought a book on Aboriginal myths in Australia first before I could buy it. Next time, though! :-)
I actually have a question for you (if you're at that stage yet): how have your experiences been with crowdfunding so far? I've never tried it.