Self-proclaimed starving artists
‘Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up,’ said Pablo Picasso and worded the dilemma every artist faces. The desire to share one’s experience is so deeply embedded in the human psyche that almost everyone has a story to tell, a canvas to paint. From there emerges the artist’s quandary; can the teeming masses appreciate my perception? Or more importantly can a rich patron promote my work? Should I merge into this moving sea of creativity where artists’ fortunes rise and ebb every day? What defines an artist; his/her uniqueness, journey, struggle or character? And from there emerges the proverbial starving artist, that fascinating creature to whom social norms do not apply, material gains do not matter.
Art bears the mantle of looking beyond the humdrum, the predictable, and the societal dictates that put existence in a box. ‘You use a glass mirror to see your face, you see works of art to see your soul,’ observed George Bernard Shaw, lending credibility to artistic aim. The history of art is as ancient as mankind and belongs to a value system that denounced decadence, contrary to the present day self serving ideology. An Indian story of Emperor Akbar and his court singer Tansen encapsulates the difference between art and commerce. Akbar often praised Tansen’s singing who humbled by the adulation confessed, “My singing cannot be compared to that of my teacher’s, Swami Haridas.” “Then I must meet your teacher,” the great Akbar replied. Tansen proceeded to take Akbar in disguise to his teacher’s humble hut in order to listen to his song. Suitably impressed, Akbar requested Tansen to sing the same song for him in his court only to be disappointed. “How is it that the same song sounds different when you sing it?” To which Tansen replied, “You see, I sing for you my emperor, but my teacher sings for God.” It is this philosophy that has driven artists from all parts of the world to sacrifice comforts in order to protect their vision, their voice, and their artistic integrity. Oscar Wilde, Edgar Allen Poe, Franz Schubert, Vincent Van Gogh all suffered impoverishment, but were rewarded with lasting fame. They have inspired a legion of artists to stall themselves from selling out.
In American educator, Jef Richards’s words, ‘To create without strategy is called art; to create with strategy is called advertising.’ The flip side of this sacrosanct ideology is that not everyone can become famous; but the likelihood of being penniless is strong. The modern world has ensured that money is available for everyone who works hard, makes the right choices and follows a formula. Yet, every person who chooses to follow their talent willingly risks their future for its sake. As for being self-proclaimed; is there any other kind of artist? Art can be an unconscious choice; a calling, but starvation (be it a hyperbole in today’s times) is the conscious choice an artist makes.
