Painting, forest series; Mike Eldridge
A book well worth reading, 'the work of art' by
Adam Moss. An eye opener for creative people
The author takes us through a
convolution in a maze, a journey into what happens in the minds,
actions, and the ups and downs of the processes of creativity. He
tracks down and investigates and then interviews over a length of
time, painters, sculptors, poets, writers, playwrights, chefs,
dancers and in fact every type of creative person imaginable.
I read last week, coincidentally, from
various sources, that when you look at a painting, in fact any form
of creative art; that you are also looking into the soul of the
artist; the very ingredients of what in every essence they are, as if
these things are somehow ingrained inside, and are awaiting
disclosure.
In fact, a lot of the stories in the
book have made me laugh as they are almost all tragic and painful to
read and I have had to put the book aside at times.
You can open the book at any one of the
stories but in a circuitous way the are similar and all share something in common, they are
about creative beings struggling with their own ghosts and phobias,
almost as if they are at war with what they are trying to produce.
But they don't give up and continue, continue, continue, until
something in them shouts 'STOP!! They see, they recognise, that they
have arrived and are surprised by what has been achieved.
Well, you know I always crack on about
what the American artist and teacher Robert Henri wrote over a
hundred years ago, that, 'The subject isn't to make art, it's to be
in that wonderful state which makes art inevitable'. I was given a book by an artist friend a while
back, 'The Creative Act' by Rick Rubin' And I've just picked it up to
flick through it, and there on the very first page, is this very
quote by Henri. Serendipitous; must mean something.
Most of the stories in Rick Rubin's
book, I must add, are less grinding and more gentle. Because getting
into that state of being that Henri wrote about, I have experienced,
can also be found in the contemplation of nature, music, the
friendship with other artists and the love of our friends and even
spending quality time with our pets and animals. But also the eastern practices of meditation
and Tai Chi, Ci Kung. And lots of other gentle things that nurture
and quieten our restive controlling minds. My personal way is to
wander around my studio looking at paintings, contemplating them,some from way back and
listening to them and often finding one that was never finished, and
dappling with white paint here and there, or splashing it with a
colour, and, bingo, voila ! I'm in
My creativity workshops in Italy are of
the latter kind.
In the meantime, wishing you all a
fruitful and laughter filled year ahead on this auspicious day of
Imbolc, the return of the light
Michael
michaeleldridgestudio.com
whatsapp +39 3283535358
email, micermice@gmail.com
