Some Passion a Day to Keep the Blues at Bay

Hello again dear readers. So I've decided to get back to posting on a weekend again seeing as I have more time to play around with thoughts and ideas and it is easier to be a bit more consistent in posting times. So let's get started then!

So something that has been in the back of my mind since an argument had with my significant other was the idea of passion. And how I have tons of it in some ways and really not enough in other ways. And I guess you could say I was startled (to say the least), that it was thought that I throw so much passion into my artwork and very little into anything else. I liked to think that I was passionate about the things that matter to me, and not just art. 

So what is passion exactly?

Urban Dictionary : Passion is when you put more energy into something than is required to do it. It is more than just enthusiasm or excitement, passion is ambition that is materialized into action to put as much heart, mind body and soul into something as is possible.

That's a pretty good definition of it. Putting in a lot more effort than what is "required". So this is actually quite easy to measure with school and university and anything that distinctly measures your level of effort. For example, if 50% is the required mark to pass, but you want to put your all into it and you get 80%, then you technically put in 30% more effort than what is necessary. Now life is not that easy to measure, and no one is giving you that much feedback that is so easy to decipher.

I know that for me, being passionate about my career and art work isn't exactly difficult, it's second nature to me to do the best possible job I can, But I haven't ever put the equivalent amount of effort into anything else, just the thought of putting that much effort in exhausts me. 

But the thing is that great results only come from hard work and passion. Nothing good has ever been achieved without a ton of extra effort and dedication, and ultimately love. I have been trying to apply a passionate and dedicated attitude to my life as a whole rather than just through art. Making time for the people that matter, and making time for the other aspects of life, such as reading, spending time relaxing and also making memories with the people you care about.

I've found, like with anything else really, that making goals is a good way to help be consistently and consciously more passionate in all the areas of your life. For example, making sure you stop your busy work schedule to have tea when your special person gets home from work. Taking the time to say "I love you" like its the only chance you'll have to say it again.

Passion is a consistent job, but the benefits I think will be so worth it.

Until we meet again 

Talia

The Ultimate Aim of an Artist

Today marks the passing of the first week of March. As I'm sure you've noticed dear readers, Time seems quite important to me. And the truth is that it is. Time is the one thing that no human being can escape from, no matter how hard you try. Time can swallow you whole and never let you see the light of day again. But time can also remind you of how precious each and every moment of your life is. Time can be generous.
Time can be deadly.
Time is what you make of it.

That is what I've noticed this year. Even though I've spent each day of this year doing something meaningful to me, whether it's through work or pleasure, it still astounds me how quickly time seems to be going this year.

On Friday afternoon, for our Fine Arts lecture we had Francis McKee lecture us. He is a Scottish curator. I found him to be incredibly bubbly and cheerful considering the depth of the things he was telling us at times. One of the things he said really got to me.

"Immortality is the artist's ultimate aim"

I have never heard it so plainly and profoundly worded. Time is what the artist ultimately aims to defy. Even though we only have a finite amount of time to make work, our main goal is for the art we make to outlive us, to become immortal. Our souls become immortal as artist's because they are entrenched in everything we do. And here I think it applies to so much more than just visual art, it applies to writing, poetry, music, anything that carries a small fragment of us. 

I think these little profound gems that people share are so easily lost among the world, purely because the world doesn't pay enough attention, or take enough time to see it. People ask me how I always find something to write about (whether it's through my blog or in my daily journal), the truth is this. There will be more words than I will ever be able to write, all I have to do is pay attention. There is more inspiration in this world in each and every human being than I will ever be able to make art about. But if I can create one inspiring piece of writing or a work of art that lets people see a tiny bit of the magic in this world, and it becomes immortal, I think I have done my job as an artist.

It's time to start immortalising the important things in the world. 

Until we meet again

Talia