I recently finished reading Henry Miller's Big Sur and the Oranges of Hieronymous Bosch. Parts of the book were great, parts were a slog. I definitely left with a few concepts stuck in my head, specifically ideas about being an artist and living the life of an artist. One in particular has my wheels turning as I map out the year ahead:
To those who protest that they are not understood, not appreciated, not accepted -- how many of us ever are? -- all I can say is: "Clarify your position!"
Clarify your position -- it sounds so easy! But how do you do it when you are pounding the pavement of the art fair world? Make better stuff? Make more attractive product? Cut costs to cut prices? Raise prices to make product seem luxurious? Or...?
In order to clarify your position in the art fair space, there may be a need to ask what the art fair industry represents and/or is looking to achieve. Miller, a writer, is speaking to a more classic sense of being an artist -- ideas and aesthetics and the human condition reign supreme! -- and this classic sense existed long before Miller. So if the art fair world existed long before my work, what do I need to know about the "classic sense" of the art fair world in order to function within it and properly clarify my position?
As I apply to shows this year, the process feels a lot more transactional than it has in the past. As an artist, I have to fight the feeling that I am simply a customer hoping to buy a product (if you get accepted to the show, of course). Pushing new ideas, aesthetics and concepts tackling the human condition seems like a nonstarter.
Any other creatives out there have thoughts on this matter? Am I being too cynical? Bueller?
Best,
Ty