How to be an artist (13 good quotes)
+ more things
Going through some old docs, I found some quotes I jotted down from “How To Be An Artist” by Jerry Saltz.
He’s probably best known as the art critic for New York Magazine, but he’s also written a few books and is kind of a frustrated artist himself.
This is a review of a show by the artist Henry Taylor at the Whitney. My wife went with a friend, and I need to check it out.
Yes, it’s one of those semi-inspirational books, but I like reading those sometimes to give me a new perspective and a kick in the pants as far as writing/art goes.
I also don’t mind it as much when a practitioner/critic writes a book like this — it’s not like a self-help writer who only knows about writing self-help.
Anyway, maybe these will be helpful and/or inspiring. I think many of them will resonate no matter what kind of art/writing you practice.
Quotes from Jerry Saltz
“There’s no single road to glory. Everyone takes a different path.”
“Many artists make work that is as important, spiritually, as breathing or eating”
“Artists must reckon with the uncanny feeling that by the time we’ve finished a new work, we’ve often ended up creating something different from what we set out to do.”
“Don’t worry about whether your art ‘makes sense.’ The faster your work makes sense, the faster people will lose interest. Let go of being ‘good.’ Start thinking about creating.”
“Creativity is what you do with your imagination. Write down your flights of fancy, your moments of wonder and fear, your dreams and delusions of grandeur. Then put them to work.”
“It will never be perfect. Perfect doesn’t exist.”
“Art is a verb” = for most of its history, art has been active, drawing people in1
“Variety, flexibility experimentation, diversity — all these are essential in your work. This doesn’t mean that every new thing you make should be totally different from what you’ve done before. That’s a sign that you’re scared, lazy, or some kind of performative blowhard. The real value of inconsistency is that it can bring about what Milan Kundera called “sudden densities” — moments when something appears in your work that gives you an opening, some oddity or mutation that sets you off in a new direction. Variability allows your work to breathe; it helps you to steer clear of tyrannies and find charm in the unfamiliar.”2
“You are an artist of modern life. that personal, specific urgency is what fuels every successful work of art.”
“Human beings are hardwired to crave change.”
“No matter how introverted or shy you are, try as often as you can to spend prolonged time with other artists around your age. Artists must commune with their own kind in order to survive.”
“The best definition of success is time — the time to do your work.”
What’s your favorite? Any of those resonate with you?
More Things:
(Re-)Started Drifts by Kate Zambreno. Writers in New York! She has a nice pace to her writing. I bought it back in the summer when we were on our New York exploratory moving trip.
Checked out The Flamethrowers by Rachel Kushner and The Misfit’s Manifesto by Lidia Yuknavitch but I haven’t started either yet.
Difference between habits, routines, and rituals. At Ness Labs.
Five. Hundred. Million. Dollars. by Biz Stone. At Medium.
I like behind-the-scenes business stories like this and Biz is an entertaining writer. He’s one of the founders of Twitter and this is when they went to visit Mark Zuckerberg in the early years.
The Killer on Netflix. A new David Fincher movie! To be honest, I’m only half-way through at the moment, but I really like it.
One-Time Advantage All Writers Have. by Me. At Medium.
Last Things
One more Jerry Saltz quote! (that makes 13)
“Courage is a desperate gamble that will place you in the arms of the creative angels. — Jerry Saltz
Keep going,
-Josh Spilker
PS: Here’s a quick note-taking cheat sheet (free) and my Notion Writer Starter Pack (paid) if you’re interested.
(Italics are my notes/summaries)
Bold is mine