these texts are an archive of my life in the San Francisco Bay Area from march 2007 - march 2015. it stands as a record of close to a decade of my life, charting the struggles i faced as an artist, daughter, and lover. messy and chaotic at times, eloquent and poetic at others, these texts are an index i am proud of. it was here in this electric box that i learned how to be honest about my experiences and the person i needed to become. it was here that i first learned the truism that words make the world and how to trust such a beautiful, rife, hard fact.

thank you for meeting me here in such tall grass.


my artist website is here.

Jun 24, 2009

bare with me, it's a biggun! shoes, facebook, and the art biz...

oh man. OH MAN! these shoes are WONDERFUL! AH! what a difference! now i know why the guy at the shoe store cringed so hard when i told him that i'd been running in an old pair of beat up converse. ha! i mean, it's a completely different experience! i can run farther EASIER. it's unbelievable! and i don't breathe as hard either. i'm truly amazed how having the correct tool for the job impacts the job itself- something i've sorta always known but hadn't applied to the jogging thing honestly because (1) i've been a cheap ass and (2) hung up on the cuteness factor. stupid! lesson learned! and the brand is: saucony! take my recommendation, guys and girls, these shoes are IT! accept no substitute! this is the shoe for you! :)

and now back on to art talk-

so... facebook is just another social networking site right? well, not quite. if you make "friends" with the right people, it's actually a pretty nice tool to have in your bag. i've made sure to make "friends" with every art institution, gallery, whatever that i can think of that i admire and would love to work with one day. i get regular updates about openings and it really does help to know WHEN stuff happens if you'd like to be a part of it. also, i'm currently enmeshed in a wonderful (sometimes enraging) conversation about the role of the audience in an artist's process or approach to art-making. it's all i can think about for the last three days since this conversation started. hearing how other people interpret this issue has been both shocking and insightful and has given me tons of new ideas to consider. TONS! i haven't really gotten to have conversations about things like this since art-school. it's so much fun! so here we go...

the audience.

this is a topic that applies to artists who want to show their work in public. and i'm still learning the ropes on this one too so bare with me and please chime in if you've got something to say. :)

in my opinion, it's not really up to an artist WHO gets to be in their audience. it's not something you have much control over. if people like your work (or are even intrigued by it), they're in your audience. and what they have to say about your work is information that can only help you. at least, that's been the case with me. example: if i painted a picture of a cow and 99 out of 100 people said it was a painting of a duck... that's good information to have. it's information i can USE! now, to me, it'll probably always be a painting of a cow, but the truth is that i inadvertently learned how to paint a duck. i might not have succeeded in satisfying my original intention, but i've learned something... i've gained a skill that i didn't bet on. it's not a bad thing and it's not a negative critique either, it's INSIGHT in to HOW people SEE your work. and once you've made the leap to showing your work in a public venue, you need to realize that you've opened the door to having discourse. you can't shout out statements and then slam the door, refusing to let others respond. art is a form of conversation. it creates a space for discussion and sometimes the discussion heads in a direction that the artist would never have even dreamed of. that's part of the fun. and it's valuable to know how the majority of people see your work. very valuable. that kind of information is just what you need to know how to tweak your work in such a way that mistaking your intentions will happen with increasingly less regularity. and i do not mean that you compromise the work at all- it's about tightening up your skills and not thinking that you're smarter than the audience and that they're just there to be told what to do and how to think. because the cold, hard truth of the matter is that the vast majority of people on the planet DO NOT CARE ABOUT ART. evidence: the fact that art programs are always the first thing on the chopping block... even in times of economic health and stability and growth. more evidence: the common adage "starving artist". most people believe that there's absolutely no money to be made in art and that a person who decides to follow this road is resigning themselves to a life of poverty and toil. definitely not the truth but it's the common outlook and one we've all heard. and here in america (consumerist nation!), involving yourself in an enterprise of poverty is stupid. so yes, most people think art is stupid. it's sad but it's the case. it's what we contend with. most people do not spend their free time going to art galleries. they just don't. that being said, people who DO go to art galleries (the minority) are people that artists should want to have conversations with. if they care about art, they're in your audience regardless of what your work looks like or what your motivations are.

and on the topic of LOOKS and how it relates to the audience...

the small amount of control an artist has in relation to the audience is getting your work in the correct venue. example: if you make paintings, you wouldn't expect to show in a photography gallery, right? and more specifically, if you paint portraits, you wouldn't (or shouldn't) approach a landscape gallery for a show. that's NOT what that gallery is KNOWN for. and getting your portraits in a venue that caters to PORTRAITURE is the quickest, smartest way an artist can get their work in front of an audience that LIKES that kind of work. and that has absolutely NOTHING to do with compromise or anything along those lines. nothing.

just like the hard lesson i learned about running shoes and having the correct tool for the job, choosing the correct venue in which to show your work makes all the difference. it's a tool. and the experience of working with a good gallery is amazing. a good gallery will never tell you to start doing different work or to change your style or anything like that. ever. you've already considered your audience by doing the research to find out what kind of gallery suits your work. you'll run farther EASIER!

considering your audience has nothing at all to do will dumbing down your work or making things easy or spelling out every last detail. not one thing to do with it. it's about getting the stuff you've worked so hard on in front of people who will respect and appreciate it... because not everyone will. i know for a fact that my work isn't for everybody and that's okay. it's the way it should be.

who knows- as the conversation on facebook progresses, i may end up eating my words on this. and as i get further in my career, my outlook may change. but i'm going to leave the door open on gaining insight from other people which is the entire point of this post. i made a decision a long time ago to leave the door open to having a change of heart and it has proved to be a very good decision.

4 comments:

Heather Jerdee said...

I think surrendering our ego's is sometimes an incredibly hard thing to do in art and in life but it is so utterly important for making our art meaningful, our a lives meaningful and our relationships meaningful. And it is something to keep on learning cause I think it's worth it in ways we don't see but eventually will. Like with what you were saying about our audiences, we have no control over who enjoys or is attracted to our art.
I really like how your describing art and conversation a whole lot that is one of the most exciting things about being an artist is to see how other people view what you've made. Sometimes it's almost a relief when the interpretation is different than your original intention it can take some of the emotional rawness out of the equation and you can view your own intention from a different angle which you also can learn so much from. Anytime time there is a different angle added to look at things I find that fascinating. It doesn't take much for me :), I'm pretty curious. It does amaze me when people do understand and empathy and emotion can be shared. Pretty cool. Oh and I don't think there's anything to feel sheepish about on your own blog. :)
Yay for new running shoes and comfortable feet! Although converse are wonderful, I follow another blogger who loves her converse too ~

angela simione said...

heather, i couldn't agree with you more! you said it perfectly! i especially like what you said about different interpretations of the work sometimes being a relief- it's so true! especially when you're dealing with pretty heavy subject matter. :) and what you said first about letting go of ego... YES! i think artists need to trust the audience a bit more than they do sometimes. there's some pretty smart individuals in the audience who can really shed some light on the work and who add a new dimension to it. yay for the audience!

i'm so glad you read this big ol' post! and i'm glad that every now and then i say something that rings (at least somewhat) true. :) that's for letting me know i'm on the right track. i'll try to swallow my sheepishness and be brave, i promise. :)

Hannah Stephenson said...

I agree with you, Angela, and Heather! Being aware of who you are engaging as a viewer/listener is one of the most basic principles of effective communication (and art). These are tools, Angela, and it is a missed opportunity for artists who create in complete isolation, without thinking of who might be on the other end.

I've read a lot of blogs recently on the concept of "accessibility" in poetry--a blogger was making the point that we shouldn't praise this quality in poetry (he wondered why we praise it in poetry if we wouldn't praise it in a painting or a sculpture). But to me, accessibility is indeed a great thing--it means that your messages are reaching your audience!

I enjoyed this post.

angela simione said...

storialist! yay!

yeah, the accessibility thing came up in the facebook discussion too and it didn't go over so well there either. why people translate that word to mean "selling out" is beyond me and honestly seems to erupt from a place of fear and guilt and jealouy. why wouldn't you want to touch as many lives as possible with what you do? and it doesn't mean sacrificing your process or changing your style or anything like that- it's about creating multiple points of entry and having enough generousity of spirit to make room for new and different interpretations of the work. telling a veiwer (or listener) that there's only ONE WAY to experience a peice of art seems to be in stark contrast to what art is generally used for: broadening perspectives, challenging thought, enriching lives and creating spaces for understanding. to say there is only ONE right answer is really limiting and i think it's sad that artists confine themselves this way.

besides, making work that's "accessible" isn't the same thing as copping out or taking the easy road or blah, blah, blah. i'm with you on this, for sure! all i know is, the more people that get invited to the party, the better. we shouldn't slam doors in people's faces and we shouldn't establish a "cool kids" table. do your best work and gain insight wherever, however you can.

i'm so glad you liked the post and thank you so much for adding to the conversation! you've brought up a really important issue and i thank you for it. :)

word.