yay area: brooklyn edition: " love what you do "

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

" love what you do "

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you have to have a love for what you do. there is nothing more soul-consuming than feeling like you're putting all of your creative energies into something that doesn't forward your expression.

you have to sink you mind's fingers into the brainstorming sack of beans. feel all of the possibilities slipping through your fingers, and how easy it would be to just leave your hand there, without bringing something to the surface upon removal.

it's not enough to care or have a passing interest. you need to have a love. you need to have a passion. you need to have enough doubt in yourself, in the process, in the outcomes, in order to improve upon your work.

the next time someone asks you what you do, take a brief moment and really think about that question. what is it that you actually do? is it your money-making work? is it your hobby? is it your gardening?

i think that people use that inquiry to break the proverbial ice, expecting a bland one-sentence answer of your current job. but challenge yourself in that moment, and let that challenge extend to all facets in your creative life.

love what you do, and what you do, will take care of you. inside and out.

tonight's homework:

ask a friend to sit for you for a five (5) image portrait session. it can be headshots or include their whole bodyspace. make five images which describe five distinct emotions that they felt in the past day. examples could be as base as anger or elation, or as complex as you like. make these images, and send them to me or a fellow artist, and see if they can describe those emotional states.

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