I don't remember a time I wasn't an artist, or interested in a creative way of seeing and being. Like Zen or any other applied philosophy or psychology, it is the way. At my ripe old age of 64, I think we are all born with creative drive or interest --whatever that looks like. Only to have it systematically removed by institutions such as public education and society. Public education in my community in California has eradicated the arts in the school system. And yet, divergent thinking is necessary for innovation in other fields of endeavor. I see art as a relationship, a journey with self and sometimes society. I get a kick out of adults taking up the mantle known as artist. Mostly because, as I see it, it is a return to the self.
Fun read! I recently gave myself the descriptor “word artist” because of a lack of better terms. I’m not skilled enough to be a calligrapher, but too focused on craft to be a scribbler, and scribe feels too professional. And generic words like dabbler or designer are way too ambiguous.
I’m not ashamed to claim that the work I do is art, even if it is of cheeky and middle-lowbrow variety. But I hesitate to use capital Artist. Largely because I have no intention of sharing the work beyond the little confines of Substack and IG. If I had ambition, even something as simple as going to a craft fair, I’d be more comfortable adopting the description (as opposed to defaulting to it.
For what it’s worth, I have the same issue with “poem” and “poetry”. The current practice started as “tiny poems” which became “5 word poems” when I started practicing larger text sizes. That was abbreviated to 5WP...and recently I realized I can revise that to “pieces” which I promptly did on my website.
As an Architect, I look askance at folks that try to sidle up to my profession...and o do r want to do the same to professional Artists. So yeah, if there any suggestions for something other than the A word, I’ll definitely consider it.
For me it was around 8 years ago when I was 48. I had a Fine Art degree and had made art all my life but never felt “good enough” to say I was an artist. I don’t always feel good enough even now but at that time I realized that it was just a word and that I deserved the freedom to make the word mean whatever I wanted it to mean. I don’t make a living as an artist. I have sold a few things over the years but I have the privilege of a non-art job that pays the bills so I don’t put the effort required into making my art work more available for sale.
Interesting! My assumption when I asked this question, based on a lot of conversations over the years, was that people with art degrees would feel much more comfortable calling themselves artists than those without. But it's definitely not true across the board.
Thanks so much for sharing this wide range of definitions and experiences! It seems the throughline is that we all feel a need to keep on making our art, despite what we tell ourselves or what other people tell us about whether it is actually art. Such an elusive word.
It's such an interesting question to consider, when did you know you were an artist. I think for me there has been a difference between when I knew inside that I was a writer/artist and when and how I've shared that with the world.
I've been a writer as long as I can remember. And I've been paid full time for writing (of some sort) for almost twenty years. Early on in that, I felt it imperative to say out loud and on resumes: "I am a writer."
And later I didn't want to say that I was a writer at all ... not the least of the reasons for this was that I loathed the exchange: "what do you do?" "I'm a writer." "Oh, what do you write ..." and all that then followed. The trying to describe what I was writing in some succinct way. The people who would then tell me about the thing they wanted to write someday. The "oh you don't write fiction?" bored responses.
And sometimes, in that twenty years, when I was writing more "content" for other people than creative passion projects, I didn't want to call myself a writer because I didn't feel like one. Currently, my response in small talk is usually, "I write ..." but it's clear on my resume/website/etc that I'm a writer professionally and at the core.
I currently have crochet art up in a gallery and the friend who invited me into the show commented, "I didn't even know you had an art practice until a year into our conversations." Because I am so used to navigating my complex feelings about being a writer that I just don't even really think to mention my visual art. About which I actually have much less complex feelings. Funny, us humans are.
I don't remember a time I wasn't an artist, or interested in a creative way of seeing and being. Like Zen or any other applied philosophy or psychology, it is the way. At my ripe old age of 64, I think we are all born with creative drive or interest --whatever that looks like. Only to have it systematically removed by institutions such as public education and society. Public education in my community in California has eradicated the arts in the school system. And yet, divergent thinking is necessary for innovation in other fields of endeavor. I see art as a relationship, a journey with self and sometimes society. I get a kick out of adults taking up the mantle known as artist. Mostly because, as I see it, it is a return to the self.
Love this, thank you!
Fun read! I recently gave myself the descriptor “word artist” because of a lack of better terms. I’m not skilled enough to be a calligrapher, but too focused on craft to be a scribbler, and scribe feels too professional. And generic words like dabbler or designer are way too ambiguous.
I’m not ashamed to claim that the work I do is art, even if it is of cheeky and middle-lowbrow variety. But I hesitate to use capital Artist. Largely because I have no intention of sharing the work beyond the little confines of Substack and IG. If I had ambition, even something as simple as going to a craft fair, I’d be more comfortable adopting the description (as opposed to defaulting to it.
For what it’s worth, I have the same issue with “poem” and “poetry”. The current practice started as “tiny poems” which became “5 word poems” when I started practicing larger text sizes. That was abbreviated to 5WP...and recently I realized I can revise that to “pieces” which I promptly did on my website.
As an Architect, I look askance at folks that try to sidle up to my profession...and o do r want to do the same to professional Artists. So yeah, if there any suggestions for something other than the A word, I’ll definitely consider it.
Hmm I looked artist in a thesaurus and came across “wright”. I like the handwork connotation. And the alliteration. I’ll have to think about it.
I really enjoyed reading this compilation of stories and just wanted to voice that. Thanks for sharing your research!
For me it was around 8 years ago when I was 48. I had a Fine Art degree and had made art all my life but never felt “good enough” to say I was an artist. I don’t always feel good enough even now but at that time I realized that it was just a word and that I deserved the freedom to make the word mean whatever I wanted it to mean. I don’t make a living as an artist. I have sold a few things over the years but I have the privilege of a non-art job that pays the bills so I don’t put the effort required into making my art work more available for sale.
Interesting! My assumption when I asked this question, based on a lot of conversations over the years, was that people with art degrees would feel much more comfortable calling themselves artists than those without. But it's definitely not true across the board.
Thanks so much for sharing this wide range of definitions and experiences! It seems the throughline is that we all feel a need to keep on making our art, despite what we tell ourselves or what other people tell us about whether it is actually art. Such an elusive word.
Thanks Jessica, great observation. We do keep at it : )
Love these stories.
It's such an interesting question to consider, when did you know you were an artist. I think for me there has been a difference between when I knew inside that I was a writer/artist and when and how I've shared that with the world.
I've been a writer as long as I can remember. And I've been paid full time for writing (of some sort) for almost twenty years. Early on in that, I felt it imperative to say out loud and on resumes: "I am a writer."
And later I didn't want to say that I was a writer at all ... not the least of the reasons for this was that I loathed the exchange: "what do you do?" "I'm a writer." "Oh, what do you write ..." and all that then followed. The trying to describe what I was writing in some succinct way. The people who would then tell me about the thing they wanted to write someday. The "oh you don't write fiction?" bored responses.
And sometimes, in that twenty years, when I was writing more "content" for other people than creative passion projects, I didn't want to call myself a writer because I didn't feel like one. Currently, my response in small talk is usually, "I write ..." but it's clear on my resume/website/etc that I'm a writer professionally and at the core.
I currently have crochet art up in a gallery and the friend who invited me into the show commented, "I didn't even know you had an art practice until a year into our conversations." Because I am so used to navigating my complex feelings about being a writer that I just don't even really think to mention my visual art. About which I actually have much less complex feelings. Funny, us humans are.