In this bright and delightful presentation, Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses – and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person “being” a genius, all of us “have” a genius. It’s a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.
Note: Weekly peace images are displayed (as a unit) under the “52 Weeks of Peace” tab above, where there is also a more detailed description of the series.
Note: Weekly peace images are displayed (as a unit) under the “52 Weeks of Peace” tab above, where there is also a more detailed description of the series.
Some say that bookstores are on the path to extinction. Like ditto sheets and cassette tapes, and tv’s with rabbit ears. In fact, there was a column in the Boston Globe recently about a school that’s planning to discard its entire library and become solely digital.
That’s right, no books at all. (Gasp!) I could hardy believe it. I felt incensed – how dare they take the young away from real live books, the texture of the paper, turning of the pages, the holding and carrying and the lining of shelves with them.
Okay, so a textbook might not be so lovingly treated, and in some ways I might even (dare I?) agree with digitalizing some of that to alleviate not only costs but the cumbersome qualities. But surely that’s not all they teach from. What about novels and short stories and poetry?
I’m no wimp when it comes to the digital world. I adore my Macs. I’ve used them professionally since they were first introduced. They’ve made a massive difference – without the slightest doubt, for the better – in the production aspect of my work. I have enormous appreciation for the wonders of the computer. And I’m definitely on the high end when it comes to time spent and knowing one’s way around the computer. They’re essential – and I love them! I even name them for crying out loud.
But no books? That’s taking it too far.
Yesterday I was signing books at The Town Book Store in Westfield, NJ, and I have to say, it’s a really lovely shop. It’s a small, independent bookstore, but not so tiny that you can’t move around comfortably. Owner Anne Laird has done a beautiful job. It’s well lit, well designed, and truly a pleasure to walk into.
The word delicious comes to mind – the very deliciousness of its books. The Town Book Store is a yummy place with plenty for the eyes to feast upon, and like a box of chocolates, you want to try them all and have a hard time deciding which to taste first. You gaze at the colorful wrappings, you want to pick them up, touch them. You gingerly open first pages with wonder and anticipation of what new acquaintance you’ll meet inside, what new thoughts, journeys, revelations or scrumptious tidbits you’ll discover.
And being in that shop reminded me of that article I’d read about about New England’s Cushing Academy abandoning its library.
How can ebooks ever replace the marvelous textural sensation of bound and printed works? To think they even could! There’s so much more to a book than the printed word … there is the presentation, the feel, the weight, the scent. There’s the deliciousness.
Their passing would be an atrociously sad day.
PS: My daughter also made a fantastic, practical, far less romantic point: “You know, computers crash – books can’t!” …Wise words from a teen.
Week 2: September 7 . 2009
Note: Weekly peace images are also displayed (as a unit) under the “52 Weeks of Peace” tab above, where there is also a more detailed description of the series.
September 1 . 2009
Today is my birthday and I’m making my wishes. Lots of them! But among them is a wish that I’m going to explore and illustrate all year long in the form of a personal project, which I’m calling “52 Weeks of Peace”.
Now when I use the word peace, I mean it in a broad, sweeping way .. from the kind of peace that permeates an individual’s soul with a sense of well-being, with love and with joy – to the kind that can move whole groups of humanity into harmony.
Peace is generally considered a quiet thing, like a particularly beautiful sunset – but it can also be loud, like a chorus that lets go and sings boldly to high heaven. Peace can be a meditative, sit-on-the-mountaintop feeling, or the heady, centering adrenaline rush that comes after good, hard athletics. Peace can be a sleeping cat, curled up in a sunny spot, the picture of complete contentment. Peace can be the joyful peels of a child’s laughter. Peace can be a bubbling creek, a cup of tea, the mending of a friendship – or the letting go. It can be found in a kind word, a job well done, a stranger’s smile. Peace graces a spring garden, and kicks up its heels in a snowstorm or a boisterous, pounding waterfall.
Peace doesn’t fight; it calms and exhilarates. Peace is freedom from pain, worry and doubt. Peace reaches over and takes your hand; it delights your heart. Peace feels right from our head to our toes.
And my wish is not just for me, but for you – and for all of us – to see more and experience more of whatever brings more peace, more often, into our lives. (This is one instance where less is not more!)
I’m also going to have a little fun with the designs I’ll be sharing over the next year, and I’ll hope some of that rubs off on whoever may be checking in. And in the end there should be a wide range of feeling and unexpected expression represented.
Some of you may be familiar with my pencil point series. For those of you who aren’t, the pencil point is my logo, and over several years I’ve celebrated that wonderful, marvelous little tool by creating nearly 100 design variations. If you’ve not seen them, and if you’re interested, you can see some of them here: saxtonstudio.com.
I’ll be taking a similar approach with this venture – except there will be a lot more pieces in a much shorter time period. And instead of a pencil point, I’ll be using the universal peace symbol. Each week I’ll post a new creation.
So, without further ado, here is the first – in honor of the first day of September and the first week of “52 Weeks of Peace”. (After this first one, I’ll post them under the “peace” tab above.)
Peace to all – enjoy!
I recently got on my high horse during a conversation about the craft of writing: the debate basically being whether writing and reading are alive or dead, whether we’re becoming/nurturing a breed of illiterates who can only function in 140 characters or less, a world of tweeters and soundbites. Let’s just say the topic sparked my interest.
It’s certainly becoming obvious that peoples’ attention spans in general seem to be shrinking into tiny little boxes, needing – or only able – to hear just what’s essential in as few syllables (and often as few individual letters) as possible … and while this may be due in part to information age overload and everyone’s time being filled up the wazoo, it can still be cause for concern. Are we losing our readers and writers?
I think not (and surely hope not). Those who love to write, write – they can’t NOT write. And those who love to read, read. I don’t believe that’s gone, nor will it be in the near future. The method through which they read and write may evolve, but the art will not die. It might be something as ancient as humanity: an inner sense or desire for storytelling. Soundbites just won’t cut it in that realm; they’ll never be as satisfying as a full story.
All my life I’ve been one of those who feels a compulsion to write. But I learned early on that not everyone shares that interest, skill or passion for writing, and have personally come to terms with that being “the way it is”.
Consider this: well before the advent of tweets and twits, brief emails, or the computer itself, writing was often preempted by a phone call. Before telephones, maybe there were the full-blown multi-page letter-writers, and the postcard-sending types. So it might just be that there have always been “pockets” of those who are simply more inclined toward the written word.
Newspapers and magazines may be going out of business, the publishing world may be in flux, but there’s still a thirst for the written word across all age groups. And what’s more, I think there’s room for both tweeting and writing …as long as they don’t confuse one as the other!
In 100 BC, Latin writer Pubilius Syrus is quoted as saying “You Should Go To A Pear Tree For Pears, Not To An Elm.”
I’ve always thought that made perfect, logical sense.
In a similar vein, if you want an apple, you’d go to an apple tree, and to an orange tree for an orange, right? Or would you ask the apple to behave like an orange, because you’re really hungry for both…
Lately I’ve become increasingly aware of this very kind of attitude (wanting an apple to behave like an orange) infiltrating the professional design field. It’s the idea that creative excellence resides side by side with mathematical expertise and technological wizardry.
It’s not exactly a right brain/left brain comparison, as there are many creatives who are very technologically adept, who can and do operate with both sides of the brain. It’s more the apparent expectation of both aspects to excel with equal brilliance within one individual. And it’s demanding that individuals be not only jacks-of-all-trades, but masters-of-all. (Oh, and by the way, for bottom dollar – an unfortunate side effect that’s been showing up across many professions in the current economic climate.)
It’s a disturbing trend. Because, generally speaking, in the end the expectations don’t seem sustainable, with results that may be less than desirable unless overall quality is of little consequence.
Some may think this expectation just a natural adaptation to changing times, as in fact designers have typically worn many hats. Conceptualist, craftsman, communicator, consultant, coordinator, business negotiator, marketer, developer and keeper of budgets, manager, director, teacher; some of us have multi-medium talents – and we know how to use the tools to make it all happen.
And it’s also true that every profession faces unique challenges almost continually as life, technology and opportunity rapidly evolve. So we all must grow, learn and evolve right along, perhaps even re-invent, which might frustrate some and invigorate others, but is true, nonetheless.
Yet I still feel there is a point of departure in the orchard.
Ask most programmers how they stack up beside designers and vice-versa. They know enough about each other to work effectively together, but aren’t necessarily sufficiently skilled in both to be considered masters of each realm. It’s apples and oranges all over again. Both nutritious fruits, but not derived from the same seed.
If you want an apple, the apple tree is your best bet.
A recurring theme has been emerging in my world quite a lot lately. In talks over the past several months with colleagues, in twitter posts directed to Seth Godin’s blog, and most recently in a conversation over lunch this week with Milton Glaser who has unarguably seen and done it all, combining art and business with unparalleled success.
The theme? It’s all about relationships. Here’s my quick take on it, with regard to the graphic design business (or any business, for that matter):
………………………….
In this day and age of computer savvy, a glutton of designers and a climate of economic strife, it’s no wonder many artist’s and agencies are having a hard go of it lately. It could be there’s too much talent and not enough demand, as everyone – from individuals to families to small businesses and large corporations – is holding tight to their purse strings.
But in any business climate – whether it’s booming or equilaterally depressed – three key elements always reign supreme: creativity, quality, and relationship.
An unfortunate side effect of a distressed economic environment such as the one we’re experiencing now, is that some media-buying decision-makers may opt for mediocrity, somehow aligning their efforts with the mood of the times – the sense of “lack” or “needing to do without” – by shopping around for the lowest price, regardless of creativity, quality or relationship. It’s easy enough to do nowadays; just google graphic design and hundreds upon hundreds will come up.
What can also happen in this kind of situation though, is that while it’s still possible to find creativity, and still possible to find certain levels of quality, relationship may well be left out of the equation. And that particular absence can kill a project, or make people wish it did.
Despite all the wonders of online connecting, the enormous choices and competitive pricing available, if you don’t like the people you work with, it can be a miserable experience. It boils down to the old adage of being a pleasure to work with.
You can be as creative as DaVinci, with the quality and craftsmanship of a Frank Lloyd Wright; and likewise, you can be a brilliant business mind with a world-changing product. But regardless of whether wallets are open or whether they’re closed, at some point human nature always plays its card – and wins.
Some Artist’s Say “No Thanks.”
Who doesn’t love Google? It’s friendly, fast, smart, practical and has established itself as an indispensable tool. It’s the undisputed King of search engines. But in June, word spread about a Google offer that many top illustrators felt they could refuse.
Exploitation? Good business? A dishonorable trend? Welcome exposure? … What do you think?
Read about it here in the NY Times.
