I think to most of us the idea of everything shutting down and being forced to stay in with very few outside expectations or distractions would have sounded pretty ideal at one time. And maybe for a lot of you it kind of is.
But I find myself nearly unable to work on anything.
It's not for lack of ideas of or of projects needing attending to. I don't know what it is, but despite this time seeming like the perfect opportunity to be churning out all kinds of great stuff, I'm simply unable.
Then today I read this. (Please forgive me for so often quoting Nick Cave's Red Hand Files, but I just find that he so often is speaking to exactly what I'm dealing with) He was thinking how his usual response to crisis its to bury himself in work, to make art. But this time, it's different.
I sort of get this, though I don't pretend to be on his level, butI also I feel very reflective. I also feel like I should be using this time "better" but I'm wondering now what that even means.Why is this the time to get creative?
Together we have stepped into history and are now living inside an event unprecedented in our lifetime. Every day the news provides us with dizzying information that a few weeks before would have been unthinkable. What deranged and divided us a month ago seems, at best, an embarrassment from an idle and privileged time. We have become eyewitnesses to a catastrophe that we are seeing unfold from the inside out. We are forced to isolate — to be vigilant, to be quiet, to watch and contemplate the possible implosion of our civilisation in real time. When we eventually step clear of this moment we will have discovered things about our leaders, our societal systems, our friends, our enemies and most of all, ourselves. We will know something of our resilience, our capacity for forgiveness, and our mutual vulnerability. Perhaps, it is a time to pay attention, to be mindful, to be observant.
As an artist, it feels inapt to miss this extraordinary moment. Suddenly, the acts of writing a novel, or a screenplay or a series of songs seem like indulgences from a bygone era. For me, this is not a time to be buried in the business of creating. It is a time to take a backseat and use this opportunity to reflect on exactly what our function is — what we, as artists, are for. -Nick Cave
And to his question, "what are artists for?" , I would add "What is art for?"
I'm wondering how the rest of you are feeling about this. Are you working on anything? Do you find this time stimulating or inspiring? Or is it affecting you differently as an artist, as a creative person?
Have you reflected on any of this?
Because I'm wondering if when this is all over, will this experience change how we approach our work? And how might it/ could it change the kind of Tarot art we may see?
