Courage and the imagination
‘Every good work of art has courage in it somewhere,’ writes Jerry Saltz in his How To Be An Artist (Hachette, 2022). He also claims that ‘Courage is a desperate gamble that will place you in the arms of the angels.’ (p. 81)
Is the concept of courage relevant when we’re thinking about making art? In a world where we’re being sabotaged daily with messages telling us not to, telling us to consume instead, in a world where the manipulators of marketing know precisely how to best sow the seeds of self-doubt in order to sell more of their clients’ products, yes: relying on our own resources to see what sort of art we can make does take courage.
Jerry Saltz was a long distance truck driver who never wrote a word until he was nearly forty. Einstein famously told us that ‘imagination is more important than knowledge.’ Saltz writes, ‘Creativity is what you do with your imagination.’ He advises us to ‘write down your flights of fancy, your moments of wonder and fear, your dreams and delusions of grandeur. Then put them to work.
‘Make the imagination your compass star.’ (p. 5)
Recently I bought two books at Canberra’s wonderful Portrait gallery shop, The Curatoreum https://www.thecuratoreum.com/ Jerry Katz’s one above and English poet Kae Tempest’s On Connection (Faber, 2022). They’re both slim little books filled with riches for the heart and intellect. I mention one of my favourite Tempest poems in this blog: https://tinyurl.com/penhanleywordpress17jan
Landing in the present tense
Tempest observes that vast canyons have opened up between people (with the internet, with polarising forces of social media and politics, plus the Covid experience didn’t help) but that creativity and empathy will free us from this alienated space. She defines creativity as seeing and responding to the wondrous things in our life.
I know from my own mental health history that the opposite of alienation is connection. She states that connection is ‘the feeling of landing in the present tense. Fully immersed in whatever occupies you. Empathy is remembering that everyone has a story.’
Both Tempest and Saltz have a firm belief in working at your craft. Saltz believes that the fear of working is really the fear of failure. He quotes painter, Stanley Whitney:
‘A bad day is a good day, because a bad day is when you’re trying to take it to a different level.’
Saltz reminds us that ‘Nothing happens if you’re not working. But anything can happen when you are.’ Tempest believes: ‘The difference between an artist and someone who dreams of becoming an artist is finished work.’
A persistent neurosis
I began buying how-to books on painting and collage in 2005 with some of the book-buying allowance that came with my PhD scholarship. I had the idea that I would not only describe the art work of my historical novel’s fictional character but actually do it as well. I kept buying such how-to books even though during the PhD I was far too busy writing the creative component, the theoretical component and a commissioned book on the side, as well as dealing with more back-to-back crises than I’ve ever had to deal with in a life that has had more than my fair share of them. Afterwards I emerged, with a PhD and another substantial publication on my CV, so enough writing job opportunities came along to keep me too busy for painting and collage. But I kept being seduced into buying those books!
The joy of making art and Life’s 2% Solution
Finally, gloriously, I now have the time and also with a shelf of beautiful books for inspiration I work on painting and collage a few days a week. Plus I write one piece a week on a designated topic to read aloud at a ‘literary lunch’ organised by some of my former ‘Kickstart Your Creativity’ students. I’m still doing some radio programs on Braidwood FM 
https://braidwoodradio.com.au
and continuing the Argentine tango, continuing to resubmit a novel MS, and also meeting a group of creative people in music, writing or art once a fortnight to discuss Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way.
I like her attitude and I like Jerry Katz’s statement:
‘Art is a container you pour yourself into.’
That’s what it feels like. You forget about yourself while you’re doing it but at the same time, somehow along the way, you find yourself.
Pouring ourselves into whatever art we choose feels good, once we get over the fear that we’re not good enough. Making art is not about measuring ourselves against someone else’s standards. It’s about self expression and joy, about connection and peace of mind.
When I was working full time I couldn’t paint – but actually all you need to pursue your art is to devote thirty minutes a day to it. This is what Marcia Hughes claims in Life’s 2% Solution: Simple steps to achieve happiness and balance (Nicholas Brealey Publishing, 2006). Like Julia Cameron (The Artist’s Way) Marcia Hughes is influenced by the Alcoholics Anonymous 12-step program. She shows, with specific steps and exercises, how to achieve a state of ‘passionate equilibrium’. Passion and balance work best when they’re brought together, in the right proportion. Her book reveals how.
A graceful and exciting life
On re-reading it, I found it too management-oriented and a little dated in parts but still a well written book with some valuable advice for everyone in our time-poor society. For instance she outlines Vilfredo Pareto’s famous 80/20 rule that 20% of actions produce 80% of the beneficial effects. How not to keep wasting 80% of our time is timeless advice! Plus her leadership information is just as relevant as when Hughes wrote it nearly 20 years ago.
A huge number of Churchill Fellows I interviewed for the book I wrote on the Trust (Inspiring Australians, ASP, 2015) mentioned the crucial importance of good leadership. It’s rare and it makes a massive positive difference. One Fellow whose later career focuses on this vital issue is Kirstin Ferguson who was awarded a member of the Order of Australia this year for her contributions to business and gender equality.
https://www.kirstinferguson.com
Marcia Hughes sums up how just thirty minutes a day or in clusters during the week is transformative, with a ‘balance of zest and rest …. Mastering this balance over time is what yields a graceful and exciting life.’ (p. 239)
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