What's the Purpose of All This?
Sometimes I sit around and ask myself, “What’s the purpose of all this? Why do I spend my time making art? Why did I even pick this path? Is this the journey I really want to take? Aren’t there easier ways to make money? Aren’t there things that people understand more? Art is such an easy target to make fun of, or laugh it.
I mean, it’s also incredibly difficult. I’m working on an 18x24 inch painting right now that I’ve literally spent 7 months off and on working on for a client. I’ll say that again. I’ve been working for 7 months painting a single 1.5 by 2 foot piece of cloth!
I’ve sat down to work on this thing so many times, I stopped counting. I’ve probably mixed 1,000’s of swatches of paint for this painting. It’s physically tiring too. My back is hurting today from all the hours I spent hunched over staring at this single canvas. My hand hurts from tightly gripping a tiny little brush for hours, my elbow hurts from the angle I had it bent for hours straight. And this is all for what?… A tiny little canvas I’ve meticulously concentrated and agonized over. I must be crazy, stupid, or both.
It’s times like these where I sit back and reflect on it. Why am I doing this? This is all my own choice. No one is forcing me to do this. I mean, some people have even encouraged me not to… And rightly so. There’s things that are easier. There’s things that more people understand. There’s things that take less focus, less energy, have less stress, and make money faster, right?
The answer is yes. There’s lots of things that’re easier, more mindless, and potentially could make money faster.
I guess the conclusion I’ve come to is this… love. As much as art frustrates, and drives me crazy, I genuinely love it. Love is not a number, or a figure. It’s not something you choose simply because it’s easy, or convenient. Love is something you do, BECAUSE it’s a struggle, and no matter how illogical it is, in some twisted way it all makes sense. It’s not about logic. It’s about passion. It’s struggle. That to me, is art.
“There is a sense of the work that we do (as creatives). It’s fulfilling to our souls somehow, even when it’s difficult. Even when it doesn’t work out the way we want it done.”
- Tom Hanks
Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iekxojt3vyw