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From the Editor
Artists Among Us!
The fall can be a time of dramatic internal shifts for some of us. In the outer world, the seasons change from summer to winter. The inner world can respond just as miraculously and mysteriously, wanting its own time of repose and regeneration, and of near inertia even, like the winter itself.
The painters and artists in our midst can respond like barometers to the promptings of the seasons. Just like they do to the spills and aggitations of our complicated society. It’s no secret that for some people, the artists, life is an ongoing barrage of perception and response. Often the artist cannot but succumb to one wave of sensitivity after another, and there lies the life of an artist. And it cannot be spoken of enough. The artist is often a person whose hypersensitivity determines their functionality in the world: at worst demanding unusual amounts of solitude, riddled with inner turmoil which is only stilled for moments at a time by a satisfying creative expression (or various evasive addictions); at best the ability to condense and interpret in powerful ways, the realities of the world around and within. The spiritual and emotional condition of society is articulated in vital ways by the persons who often are besieged and frozen by these realities.
Artists don’t speak or think like the mainstream. The machinery of society barrels along like a hungry creature, and the artist, if ignored, misses the chance to fundamentally comment on and productively clarify society’s direction. In this instance, the society begins to suffer – the deafening sound and blur of the machine consumes all consciousness and energy, like the guzzling of gasoline.
Environment is fundamental to an artist. In communities where the artist is allowed to flourish, there can occur more balance and harmony than in regions where the artists’ voices are stifled in some way. In places where artistic expression is de-prioritized, deliberately rarefied, or over-commercialized, there can exist a disturbing disassociation from one's immediate environment - a process characterized then perpetuated by materialism, extreme individualism and social 'dis-intigration'. Cancers are on the rise despite decades of expensive research and technology, and in our cities, drug addiction and its related problems are ever on the rise despite billions of dollars in ongoing anti-drug 'education', policing and legislation. Depression, obesity, child poverty, excessive television-watching. Clearly, technology, fast food, and car addictions are legitimate rallying points in regards to the world's current social condition and are at the heart of daily life in the West. Also, by no small association, other parts of the world contend with ongoing political upheaval, societal instability, and the realities of war and terror on a day-to-day basis.
Our cities, while harboring some aspects of more progressive thinking (due to diversity and sheer numbers) are perhaps ironically, more prone to this critical disassociation from environment. Technologies help facilitate the wolf of isolation and disassociation in the sheep's clothing of speed, access, convenience and "freedom".
The energy now needed to sustain our Western lifestyles, our cars, and our level of consuming encouraged by corporate advertising, is rapidly depleting the very resources we are dependent upon. There is no end to the scientific evidence. Dr. David Suzuki of The David Suzuki Foundation says that we would need the resources of no less than four of our planets in order to achieve the Western standard of living in every country -the standard that is implied by Western-imposed development and, particularly, US foreign policy. Somebody is definitely not on the level.
Our energy consumption also can leave little space for the fostering of creativity and artistry. The artists in our midst are further marginalized, even demonized as their comments become more subversive and desperate. The sensitive become more sensitive. The artist becomes more stereotypically ‘mad’, addicted and lost as the environment becomes more and more compromised.
...But that’s just the bad stuff... Suggestion: why not spend some time with your favorite artist, take a closer look at the creative work of your friends, your children, your fellows – see the magic, the vitality and yearning for life and truth and love, desperate for the cause of beauty to reign supreme. Listen to the comments of your artists. And try not to be too sidetracked by the corporate sterilization, over-promotion and idolizing of selected fad-oriented ‘artists’. Often, what is truer and more elevating can be the song strummed by a girl in a café, the sculpture taking form in the dusty studio of your neighbor, the stringing together of words by the old woman who sits in the corner of the park. Youth culture’s artists are not to be overlooked, but again, listen closely, past the hype, past the anger and inexperience demanding attention and validation, because that too will be tempered with time to emerge as wisdom and experience. Artists may be hyper-sensitive to the horrors and distasteful aspects of their world (and moved by creative spirit, they can often speak in that same language) but any artist worth their salt is equally enraptured and perceptive of the elegance of nature and the mystery of processes. Polarity and prophecy are, in many cases, the artist-percieved unity and reality. This, by the ones who dare mention it, to make it known, that which is. Stop. Look. Listen. We are all richer for it.
Please keep in touch with Cream and Millennium Art Gallery – we are artist-driven and free-spirited, and there’s no time like the present. Pass it on!
