[Note: when I use the word ‘artist’ I refer to musicians, directors, illustrators, writers, and other creatives besides just painters.]
So my wife, an artist, pointed out a shirt by Old Navy that says “YOUNG ASPIRING A̶R̶T̶I̶S̶T̶ ASTRONAUT.”
No, I’m not outraged, though I’m sure some media outlet will declare nationwide outrage and then everyone will jump into the battle on Twitter. Honestly it’s just a dumb shirt. And stores have the right to sell what they want (to a certain point), and it kind of bothers me that individuals tend to jump to the conclusion that this or that store must be punished or they should be ashamed, or that the designers, marketers, CEO and everyone else in the company must have it out for artists. Hey, if the design fails either because of design or content, you pull it.
On behalf of my wife, though, I am slightly offended that the design suggests that aspiring to be an artist is a lesser aspiration to have. It’s true, if you want to be an artist, chances are it’ll be tough to be successful through art alone. Most artists will probably have to supplement their income through another profession, or a spouse I suppose. (No, I’m not saying I’m enabling my wife’s pursuit of art. She’s made more money in her career than I have in mine.) And when my daughter says to me, “Dad I want to be an artist,” (which I know she will), we’ll have a chat about real life.
I can kind of see the point the shirt is trying to make. At least I think I can. It’s either pointing out that there are more important careers than art, or more likely it’s pointing out that girls don’t have to stick with the girly professions, and they’re welcome to aspire to more, like becoming an astronaut or a president, or an astronaut president.
Why not both?
Better yet, both.
Let’s put a / between ‘artist’ and whatever other profession you’re interested in. Not only is it a way to let people continue to pursue their passions, but it will make for better, more creative, more innovative professionals. Artists, I like to believe, have an eye/ear for beauty. Whatever their art and style is, I think artists want to make the world more beautiful. And some of them can do that full time and make a decent living. More of them, I suspect, will either do it on the side or put it into their work. A programmer can be an artist. An engineer can be an artist. A manager can be an artist. A sandwich maker can be an artist.
In fact, let’s cross out the word ‘can’ in that last section and replace it with ‘should.’ We should all be artists.
Artist / ______.
Check me out at collettcreative.com.
