Destiny Allison's Blog, page 23

Fire Season

I woke this morning to hot, still air.  Tinderbox.  Twigs stretched and aching on wilted trees.  The tinge of brown and threat of eruption everywhere.  Turning on the computer and looking at the photos of Colorado, I almost felt relief.  There, at least, the tension was breaking.  If nothing else, there was movement. 

Remembering last year, the ashes drifting down like snow, the smoke, coughing, and apocalyptic flames on the hills above Santa Fe, I  ached for the people facing the nightmare.  I sent a prayer via facebook.  What else could I do?

The day stretched on.  There was no wind.  The heat was relentless.  This is not the desert I know.  Tempers flared.  Proportions were skewed.  Small things got big and big things were tabled.  We watched the clouds.  We soaked cloths in ice water and wrapped our necks.  Errands were impossible.  Traffic was insane.  The air conditioner, on full blast, muted conversation and wasn’t enough.  Music, filtering roughly through the stereo in my old, beat up pick up truck, scratched — brittle as the dry grasses and just as rough. 

We are waiting.  For a storm.  A fight.  A wind.  For night and its liquid dark.  For some soothing relief.  We talk about Florida.  We envy the rain.  We move oh so slowly.  It is too dry for sweat. 

We think about precaution, packing valuables and making ready.  There was, afterall, a fire in the neighborhood a few days ago.  But we don’t.  It is too hot to move.  We love the pinons overhanging the patios.  They are rare, precious shade,  bird havens,  things that survive in the desert.  

I wrote the other day about what it means to have a house to myself.  Today, I am thinking about fire season and what it means to have a house at all.  My thoughts and prayers go out to Colorado.  My heart cries for rain.

Author, Photographer and Film Maker, Debra Denker

I am pleased to welcome Debra Denker to the conversation.

Debra is the author of the novel War in the Land of Cain and of the non-fiction Sisters on the Bridge of Fire: One Woman’s Journeys in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. A journalist and feature writer since the late 70’s, she wrote the June, 1985 National Geographic cover story “Along Afghanistan’s War-torn Frontier,” illustrated by Steve McCurry’s now-famous photograph of the Afghan girl. Her work has appeared in numerous international publications, large and small, where she has written about subjects ranging from political and social documentary to alternative architecture, sustainable living, and energy healing. She is also a healer, photographer, and film-maker. Debra is founder and director of the Global Diversity Film Project, a project of the non-profit SkySpirit Foundation, which has made films on Tibet, South Africa, and local issues. Her latest film, Community Garden, shows the common ground between gardens in Santa Fe, where she now resides, and South Africa. 

The Q & A

From where do you draw inspiration?

The beauty of the natural world inspires my photography and filmmaking, and my poetry. The strength of the human spirit, and the interconnectedness of all life inspire my writing, both fiction and non-fiction, and filmmaking. I see and hear stories that need to be told, as in a documentary, and stories from “real life” that inspire fictional characters and scenarios, as in my novel set in 1980’s Afghanistan, War in the Land of Cain. In whatever medium I am working, I want to inspire, to tell stories that open hearts and lift spirits, and show our connectedness.

What is the hardest thing about your creative process?

Finding the time to be creative while simultaneously dealing with the pesky business of making a living, and marketing the creative works that I have completed. I’ve never been particularly good at marketing. I don’t know whether I dislike it because I’m bad at it, or whether I’m bad at it because I loathe most of the process and would rather be creating. I find that I need to go into complete retreat for a number of days in order to work on a screenplay, for example. I’m very fortunate that I love what I do for a living, from my healing and spiritual counseling work to my writing, photography, and filmmaking, but sometimes I crave the silence, the peace of not knowing what is going on in the chaotic world.

Do you work every day, or only when inspiration strikes?

I can say that I do something creative every day. Years ago when I interviewed Julia Cameron shortly after The Artist’s Way came out, I was struck by her saying that many daily activities, such as baking a cake, can be done in a creative way. I feel I am always thinking creatively, whether I am following inspiration about what to say to a client or what healing technique to use, deciding what to plant in my garden, or designing a website to market my creative work. I carry around a small high quality digital camera at all times because I often see beauty around me as I go about my day, or something quirky that either inspires me or makes me laugh. I’m always inspired to write, and have never had writer’s block (hope that’s not tempting fate!). I try to state things beautifully and succinctly, even in a Facebook posting. I do find that in order to write a long project, a screenplay or a book, I do better if I can set aside complete retreat time. I get into a flow (some might refer to it as “channeling”) and the words just pour out. I write very quickly, and can finish a first draft in a matter of days or weeks. I feel like I am connecting to Source, and the words, the stories, just overflow out of me. The characters and story take on their own lives. I don’t need to do extensive revision and editing. For me the actual writing is the joyous part of the process, even if the stories I am telling are sad and make me cry as I’m writing.

How do you feel about the current art market/art climate?

I wish that we in the U.S. had the kind of support for the arts that seems endemic to many other countries. I wish that everything was not so focused on the bottom line, which has created a risk-averseness, a fear of taking chances on anyone or anything that isn’t a sure money-maker. I’ve been told by publishers that I’m not yet famous enough for them to publish me. The state of the economy for the past few years is not helping book sales. I have a lot of friends for whom spending over $20 on a book is a luxury they cannot afford on the fixed income of disability or Social Security, and I think this is true of the general public. Publishing is in such transition (and disarray), with many people still resisting e-readers, even though the market share of e-books is growing. I need to find a literary agent who believes in the value of my overall talent and my specific projects, books and screenplays produced and in process, and sees that there is money to be made for me, him/her, and the publisher and movie producer who takes a chance.

Historically, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and European nations have nurtured film-makers creating feature and short films that are cutting-edge in content and style, and documentaries that are far from mainstream money-makers. I watch a lot of foreign films and have noticed that despite the cuts in the age of austerity, there is still significant government support for films in other countries. For example, the U.K. Film Council put in one million pounds of lottery money into early development of The King’s Speech, something we don’t see happening with feature films inHollywood at all, where the process of movie-making has become increasingly corporate.

If you could change one thing about the art world today, what would it be?

I would love to see a modern version of the WPA, the Works Progress Administration of the 1930’s. Let’s put the artists, photographers, film-makers, and writers to work doing something they are good at rather than forcing them into being business people, a talent not all of us have.

Talk a little bit about your current project and why you decided to embark on it:

Aside from marketing my recently published novel, War in the Land of Cain, I am revising a screenplay adaptation of the novel that I first wrote about 20 years ago. I had my 15 minutes of fame as a journalist for National Geographic and other publications in the mid-80’s, and there was a fair bit of interest in my personal story and in the novel and screenplay, but the timing was somehow wrong. That was the beginning of media consolidation—in 1980 there were 50 media companies controlling 90% of the media, and now we are down to 6—and the publishing industry did not seem interested in a novel on Afghanistan that humanized the Afghan people and showed the terrible toll of war.

I feel that now the world is ready for this story, so I’ve taken some retreat time to begin revising the screenplay. The version I had was in dot matrix, which shows how long ago I wrote it. A director of some note on the film festival circuit took it seriously all those years ago, but when I look at it today I can’t figure out why! I’m a much better screenwriter than I was 20 years ago, a much better writer overall. Life experience, the proverbial joys and heartaches, has honed my understanding of character and process. I’ve been reading quite a few books that have been adapted to the screen, such as The Help and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and then watching the film versions so I can study what works best on the screen. Adaptation is an art form in and of itself. Film story is primarily visual, though good dialogue is also important. It has to be much more succinct than in the novel form. When I go on retreat, I write a chunk of the screenplay and then mull on it in between retreats. I’m also working with my friend L. Joseph Nichols on a screenplay adaptation of his spiritual sci-fi novel Return to Sirius, which is a lot of fun and a learning process for both of us.

I’m looking for production funding (a type of creative process) for my screenplay Spirit Mountain, a healing story set in northern New Mexico, and hope to be involved as a co-producer. It’s about the transformative power of love and Vision Quest, and deals with issues ranging from breast cancer to post-combat PTSD to the terrible toll of drunk driving to cross-cultural conflict and cooperation in our diverse corner of the world.

How does being a woman impact your work?

I feel we are living in a time when the Divine Feminine is in much-needed resurgence after 5,000 years of patriarchy. I long ago noticed that there is a more “feminine” whole-brained, compassionate approach to journalism, documentary photography, and filmmaking, in clear contrast to the prevailing cliché of the hard-assed male war correspondent. I met sensitive men whose respectful approach was more “feminie” and caring, and a few women who tried to out-ballocks the men, so it is sensibility rather than gender that determines how one works. When I was covering the war in Afghanistan and the refugees in Pakistan in the 80’s, I never even brought out the camera until I had had tea and talked with people for a while, and never took photos without permission. I learned Dari, the Afghan dialect of Persian, which helped to give a voice to women from remote rural areas without formal education, as I could tell their stories. I’ve always shied away from aggressively pursuing “the shot” and can tell some humorous stories about male photographers literally pushing in front of me and taking silly and dangerous risks in the process. Before I went to Afghanistan I took an advanced first aid course because I knew that given the choice of getting the Pulitzer Prize-winning shot and aiding someone who was wounded, I would help the wounded person.

This approach very much informs the attitude of the main character of War in the Land of Cain, the young American journalist Elizabeth Owen. The book is not autobiographical (I never met a dishy Afghan doctor), but that is one way that Elizabeth and I are alike. A lot of my readers, female and male, have told me how refreshing it is to have a story about war and about the hope of peace told from a feminine point of view rather than the usual clichéd male approach of warrior worship, if not worship of war.

If you had a chance to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

Actually I did have that chance a few years ago when I was asked to address Girls Rock! atDesertAcademy. I was given the theme “Phenomenal Women,” from the Maya Angelou poem. I chose to speak about three women who have phenomenally influenced me: Mother Teresa, whom I had volunteered with and interviewed in 1979, just after the Nobel Peace Prize was announced; Fatana Said Gailani, founder of the Afghanistan Women Council, a women’s rights and human rights organization started in 1986 in Pakistan and continuing work in Afghanistan today; and my mother, Maria Denker, who took me traveling by car across what was then the Soviet Union and the Eastern bloc countries of Europe when I was a teen-ager in the late 60’s.

All of these women have inspired me in various ways, through their courage, their desire to do service and make the world a better place, their indomitable hope, and their disregard for prevailing opinion.

Overall, my message to young girls is the old Joseph Campbell quote, “Follow your bliss.” Although following one’s bliss does not guarantee making a living doing so, our lives are immeasurably more satisfying if we can spend at least a part of them following our creative passions and our passions to make the world a better place.

For more information about Debra, visit:

www.warinthelandofcain.com

www.debradenker.com

www.rainbowlotusproductions.com

A house to myself

In the late bloom of evening, just before dark, when the air temperature finally dropped to pleasant and home was only minutes away, I bumped into a friend finishing a salad by herself in an empty restaurant. 

My friend was blissfully happy.  She had come back early from a family vacation to fulfil some work obligations.  She wasn’t cooking.  She wasn’t cleaning.  She was determining her own schedule and indulging herself in every way because she had the house all to herself.

I was still wondering about why women are so often thrilled to have the house to themselves when I went into a meeting the next morning.  The meeting was about a new service organization that is working to address immediate needs for the homeless using an innovative model.  Martha was powerful.  Her grip was crushing when she shook my hand.  She was motivated, articulate and determined.  One of the first statistics she cited was the rapidly growing number of women over 40 who had been self-employed, or owned businesses, who are now homeless.  It turns out, she had been one of these women. 

As the meeting continued, I found myself pondering what it means to women to have a house to themselves – literally and metaphorically.   I have been watching a seemingly endless parade of need over the last few years and trying to figure out why some manage to hold on, in spite of the economy, and why some fall so hard.  Is it random?  Or does it have something to do with the metaphysical house we each inhabit?  Is the foundation of our house made solid with a sense of self-worth,  an understanding of our place in the world (friends, community, etc.), firm goals and a positive outlook?  Or, are we neglecting the foundation through self-doubt, fear, and isolation? 

For me, having the house to myself means having quiet time to spend with myself.  Usually, this time is creative and when I have the house to myself, I am in my studio or tapping away on my keyboard.  Sometimes, having the house to myself means working in my garden or taking a hike with the dogs.  I even have the house to myself when I am sipping a glass of wine, looking at the stars, and enjoying quiet conversation with my love.  I almost never find myself craving alone time in my actual house, though lots of women I know do.  This is probably because most often when I find myself alone in my house, I decide to clean it!

I wonder what having a house to yourself means to you and would welcome essays, thoughts, poems, photographs, etc.  If you want to send your ideas in for publication here, email them to me at destinyallison (at) aol (dot) com.  I look forward to your perspectives.

Food for Thought

I am so enjoying the wonderful interviews and look forward to more.  If you want to play, email me your responses to the questions at destinyallison (at) aol (dot) com. 

I love how many things these women have in common, and am truly inspired by the shared experiences and feelings so many of us have. 

Here are a few recent quotes to stimulate your thoughts.  Even if you don’t want to do the full interview, send me your quotes on art, being an artist, and the relationship between art and life.

Quotes:

“Art has a responsibility to unveil the truth, to make the viewer question their feelings and the reality of the world around them” — from Cat Gwynn’s reply to a comment by Kevin Box. 

“Art is not about duplicating an idea or emotion.  It is about the places where ideas and emotion come together.”  — from my book,  Shaping Destiny. 

“But to take a photograph of  a person can be intimidating to me and I get a little nervous… wanting to create something honest and beautiful from it…  with integrity” — From Robbie Kaye’s interview.

“How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.” — Thoreau (taken from Mercè Cardús’ interview).

 

Photographer Cat Gwynn

I am thrilled to welcome Cat Gwynn, an amazing woman and photographer,  to the conversation.  Don’t forget to follow the blog so you don’t miss upcoming features.  Click on the link to the right to subscribe.

Cat Gwynn is an accomplished fine art and assignment photographer residing in Los Angeles, California. Her award winning images have been published, collected and exhibited in galleries and museums internationally. Educated in fine arts, film and photography at the Otis Art Institute of the Parson’s School of Design in Los Angeles, she has completed master workshops with such esteemed artists as Mary Ellen Mark, Joel Peter Witkin, William Wegman and Barbara Kruger.

Known for her decisively intuitive eye, Cat Gwynn’s work has been hailed as distinctive for capturing the inherent beauty and deeper meaning of commonplace scenes and events in everyday life.

The Q & A:

From where do you draw inspiration?

Observation. Everywhere I go I keep my eyes, ears and heart open to life around me. Sometimes I’ll overhear a conversation, maybe a phrase or how someone puts a twist on things and I’ll infuse my work with that vernacular. I always carry my camera with me so if there’s anything, and I mean anything, that catches my eye I will stop and make photographs of it. And because I’m constantly looking out for visual opportunities, over time themes show up and I will specifically zero in on that, be it parked cars, orAmericana, or perfectly normal things I find beauty in. But my best gage of inspiration is how my heart sees things, and if it tugs at it, or makes it smile, or invokes a strong emotional response I am mindful to explore whatever it is and see where it may lead.

What is the hardest thing about your creative process?

DOUBT. Letting others opinion of my artwork and me define who I am. Sadly, sometimes I’ll buy into my nagging lack of self worth, which neuters my courage and ability to see the bigger picture. In moments of clarity I know the only appropriate response to this is – fuck that shit – I’m better than these limitations. A friend once said to me, “Cat, just shut up and do the work”. That might sound a bit harsh, but when I am mindful to get out of my way and choose to step into the flow, this sage advice has proven to be spot on.

Do you work every day, or only when inspiration/ opportunity strikes?

Many years ago I married my life as an artist. Yes, I really did. And truthfully it’s been the best marriage I’ve been in thus far. One of the vows I made in this ceremony was to ask myself every single day – “what did I do for my art?” Maybe it’s spending the whole day in process of creating something. Or perhaps in making phone calls and strategizing a marketing plan to get more work. And maybe it’s lazing around all day and being kind to myself and recharging my battery. No matter, not a day goes by that I don’t contemplate the creative process. Making art is a practice and I am fully committed to it and understand that creativity is a muscle that needs to be worked out all the time. I’ve learned that my past work informs my new work so this is the inspiration part of the equation. But ideas come much more readily with a dedicated practice, so with this knowledge and genuine passion for what I do, I look forward to the wonder and possibilities each day presents.

How do you feel about the current art market/ art climate?

It feels crappy right now for a lot of reasons. For sure the economy has dragged things down pretty badly. For me as full time freelance artist it’s hurt me tremendously on a financial level, which is demoralizing and makes the practicality of living difficult. I never dreamed after all the years of doing this and getting to a good point in my career where I was making a decent living and working on great projects and selling lots of my imagery that in a matter of a few years I would be back to living hand to mouth and barely scrapping by. But I haven’t thrown the towel in yet and actually am coming to the conclusion that sometimes wonderful things come from the wreckage, so I’m definitely in the process of recreating my career and believe ultimately things will work out. It’s just being deep in the shit and not knowing when it will shift that’s the challenging part.

Another disappointing by-product of our bad economy is the lack of chances being taken on new and emerging artists, and much of the work that is being shown or commissioned is really safe stuff that doesn’t get to the heart of what we’re experiencing as a society right now. You’d think there’d be more challenging work that questions the status quo or is filled with the outrage we all should be expressing for how fucked up things are. But no, you see a lot of the ‘same old’ stuff that’s impervious to our current circumstances. It’s almost as though if we gloss over reality somehow this will make the injustice of our collapsing economy, environment, educational system, and the out of control greed, corruption, fundamentalist bigotry, sexism, and homophobic hatred acceptable… all in the hopes that our declining physical and emotional well-being resulting in a spiritually broken down, warring world will go away. Pretending won’t make anything go away, it just exasperates our problems. However, I do have a lot of respect for the street artists who found a way to work outside of the box and provocatively point out the ludicrousness of the adverse imbalance in our world. Mark my words; the street art that’s happening will be the marker of important work documenting these times in art history.

Talk a little bit about your current project and why you decided to embark on it?

My most current project is making portraits revealing the democracy of humanity in the faces of a wide variety of people: a cross section of gender, age and nationalities, all at different stations in life. I needed to step away from my long-term book projects, “Hungry – The Insatiable State of America” and the follow up, “Photo Omnivore – One Nation Undervalued”, for some personal perspective and to get back on my feet financially. I thought, what can I shoot that will support my goal of making more money and bring me some joy, and it always comes back to photographing people. So that’s what I’ve been doing lately and loving it. This has also been helpful in finding my way back to my book projects and myself. I believe in balance and for me when things get out of whack I’ve found the way to reclaim harmony is trusting the circuitous path that takes its time in attending to my heart and practical matters so I can clear out the gunk, reboot and begin again.

How does being a woman impact your work?

Whether it’s conscious or not, I’m sure my female perspective has an impact on the artwork I create. My work is not necessarily gender specific, although I have a great deal of admiration for feminist work, but where I think the divine feminine comes through in my own work is in its willingness to be vulnerable and thought provoking at the same time. It’s in how I look for life’s inconsistencies yet still find resolution or acceptance for how it is. I seek out the place where shadow and light meet and find value in both sides.

If you had the opportunity to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

You can be and do anything you damn well please. Don’t listen to the naysayers – even if it’s your family – their negativity belongs to them and you don’t have to make them comfortable by limiting yourself to their position. The only permission you need is the permission you give yourself – your life and choices in how you live it is your sovereign right. So stand proudly in your brilliance; there is no one on earth like you and your need to express yourself is a gift that gives back to your life and the world exponentially. Be magnificent…

To find out more about Cat, visit her at:   www.catgwynnphotos.com or www.catgwynn.com

 

Powerful Woman Marie-Anne Mancio

Join me in welcoming London based artist and author, Marie-Anne Mancio

Marie-Anne Mancio trained as an artist before gaining a D.Phil from the University of Sussex for her thesis Maps for Wayward Performers: feminist readings of contemporary live art practice in Britain. She has lectured on art and architecture for The City Literary Institute Tate Modern, The Course, Art in London, and many private art societies on subjects as diverse as The Victorians; Russian Modernism 1900-30;The Femme Fatale; Love, Marriage and Desire in Art; Caravaggio and Redemption. She has written for several art publications and is fluent in Italian and French. Since attaining an MPhil (Distinction) in Creative Writing from Glasgow University, her art practice has become primarily text based.

Q & A

From where do you draw inspiration?

I draw inspiration from real stories. It could be a document like a diary entry or a letter or something I overheard on the subway.

What is the hardest thing about your creative process?

The hardest thing is to keep persisting. There are always good excuses for not making work – you’re too busy, too tired, it’s not good enough, no-one will want to read it anyway…. but somewhere in there is the fear that if you do actually finish something and put it out there, there is a possibility people won’t like it.

Do you work every day, or only when inspiration strikes?

I think writing is almost like exercising and it gets easier if you keep at it, a little bit each day or work in intensive chunks. Inspiration is great for getting you started but after that you need discipline.

How do you feel about the current art market/art climate?

I think there is an odd dislocation between the current economic climate and the huge figures being spent at auction on certain types of art. But then if you look back at the 1970s – another period of recession in theUK- some of the most exciting developments in conceptual art happened then and, for me, these were more exciting than a lot of work made in the boom periods.

If you could change one thing about the art world today, what would it be?

I think the art world is still male dominated and that just because there are several high profile, high earning female artists that doesn’t mean the situation is typical. So I’d ask the Guerilla Girls to be Artistic Directors at Tate Modern.

Talk a little bit about your current project and why you decide to embark on it.

I have just written and published a short novel called Whorticulture about four migrant women in antebellum America. I started it because I wanted to explore prostitution in its myriad forms and there were many moral ambiguities then, as now. For instance, in Gold Rush San Francisco prostitution was officially frowned upon yet respectable women were advertising themselves as prospective brides and stating quite clearly that only men of a certain income should apply. Given the choices available to women, prostitution sometimes offered more economic independence than marriage or other forms of employment, yet this remains unpalatable to many.

How does being a woman impact your work?

I think being female totally impacts on writing historical fiction because of course there were periods when women’s daily lives were made so difficult by any number of issues. But part of my interest lies in finding parallels with our current situation. How can we use historical fiction to teach us about the present? It is now unfashionable to believe in feminism. There’s a perception that the feminist project failed or that it’s redundant but for me many of the issues are still unresolved (equal pay for instance) and I think we have to be very careful not to presume that just because some of those have been addressed in our own countries that they aren’t pressing elsewhere.

If you had the chance to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

I’d tell them that if you are creative you won’t be happy if you’re not making work. So feed your practice. If needs be, make your goals more manageable (no time to write a novel? write a short story) but do something. And finish it. Surround yourself with a support network of your peers. And don’t underestimate or undersell yourself.

To find out more about Marie-Anne, visit the following links:

www.hotelalphabet.com

Sample or purchase Whorticulture in a variety of formats here or at Amazon for Kindle here

 

Powerful Woman Robbie Kaye

This week, I am thrilled to welcome photographer, Robbie Kaye. 

As a classically trained pianist, Robbie comes to photography looking for visual melodies. Just as music can take you on a journey, make you laugh and cry and touch the deepest part of your soul so can a photograph.  She is a storyteller and looks for visual narratives that define a place in time. She is also drawn to finding beauty in unexpected places, hoping to intrigue, inspire, and evoke a reaction from the viewer.

Q & A

From where do you draw inspiration?

I draw my inspiration from unassuming beauty… either close up and personal or  far away and usually unnoticable.  Sometimes, the obvious catches my eye but I like to capture a subject that I would otherwise walk right by.  I specifically love to photograph a subject that  lends itself to the narrative… that’s why I think I was so drawn to taking photos for Beauty and Wisdom.  The women’s faces and hands have so many stories embedded in them and if I can convey at least a few of those, it would be a privilege.

What is the hardest thing about your creative process?

I would have to say that it is me getting over my shyness about taking the photograph of a person.  It’s so much easier to take photographs of landscape or objects… but to take a photograph of  a person can be intimidating to me and I get a little nervous… wanting to create something honest and beautiful from it…  with integrity.  For Beauty and Wisdom,  it is being in an environment that makes me think of my own aging process… and question what that path looks like.  Sometimes, it is difficult to be objective about the images I create… which ones  to use and not to use.

Do you work every day, or only when inspiration/opportunity strike?

I feel like my eyes are working everyday as a photographer, whether I have my camera or not.  Noticing light and texture and character… and the not so obvious subject that I would love to document.  I go for walks in the morning and listen to inspiration audio on my phone and everyday, I find something on my walk that I take a photo of, whether it’s a flower or a house… anything that catches my eye enough.   I think it’s part of honing my skills, even if I never use what I photograph… it helps me with composition.

How do you feel about the current art market/art climate?

I try not to get too caught up in the overall conversatoins about the market.  I believe that there’s always a market for our work in one way or another and that as individuals, we can create that market… somehow.  I don’t want to use what other people think of the “art climate” as an excuse not to succeed or even try…If I believe in my work than I trust that sooner or later it will find a home in the market it is best represented in.

If you could change one thing about the art world today, what would it be?

I think it would be great to create opportunities in the art world for our elders who create art as well as giving opportunities to those who cannot afford to explore their creativity for whatever reason… creating anything, is a very healing process and I think taking it out of schools is a big mistake.

Also, like so many other things, like teachers, I would like to see the value of art being more financially appreciated.  So much time and work goes into creating art…more than is realized.  Art is a gift that can last forever.

Talk a little bit about your current project and why you decided to embark on it.

“Lorraine” — Robbe Kaye

I decided to work on Beauty and Wisdom because it decided to work on me. I was approaching the age of 50 and I had no idea what the aging process was all about… and that I was documenting a generation of women that were overlooked and discarded simply because of their age.  My desire of wanting to change the perception of aging and beauty in our culture grew and continues to grow as I learn about  the amazing women I photograph.  I had always feared getting older and didn’t want to… and I believe there are no mistakes… and here I am in the middle of facing my own fears about aging, learning that there is a beauty beyond compare, that exists with every year that I get to be here.  I had to find the beauty myself, in order to make peace with the process.  Coming from the world of music and performing, vanity, was a huge element..and I needed to unlearn some beliefs so that I could create ones that were so much more healthy… and of course, wise, like the women I photograph.  Each one is a gift and a treasure of life and stories… and if I have even just a little bit to do with giving them their due visibility, then I feel purposeful.  And hopefully, through my work, I can offer all of us women, an option to age in beauty and peace as well.

How does being a woman impact your work?

For Beauty and Wisdom, it makes it easier to take and present photographs of other women, since there is an inherent relatability even to men who saw their mothers or grandmothers in the “beauty parlor”.   For my series, “Man In Nature” I think I will have a more difficult time getting it seen since it subliminally depicts aspects of a man’s body.  There are plenty of nudes of women taken by men by not so many women are taking nudes “of” men.  In my own experience, I have found the reaction to “Man in Nature” much more reluctant in general.

If you had the opportunity to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

I would share my own experience of life… and let them know that 1. They are perfect the way they are right this very minute…2. That any dream they have they can manifest  and 3. The best person ever to trust in this world, is themselves… believe…. believe…. believe….in your mind, heart and soul…believe.

To find out more about Robbie, check out the following links:

Lenscratch
http://www.lensculture.com/kaye
Beauty & Wisdom Trailer
www.robbiekaye.com
http://www.robbiekayegallery.com/

Powerful Woman Mercè Cardús

I am pleased to welcome Mercè Cardús as the first guest on my blog! 

Mercè is the author of two novels, I say Who, What, and Where! and Deconstructing Infatuation. Her novels are inspirational, thought-provoking, and witty.  Their themes reflect and explore the great questions of Life and constantly search for Truth.

She has a Master’s degree in Corporate Law, and has headed her own law firm. In 2008, after a wake-up call, she began an inner journey to realize her passion, and comitted to following her heart. She’s currently living her passion by working on her third novel.

Q&A  

From where do you draw inspiration?

My writing stems from the discovery and reflection of the great questions of life. So basically the analogy of my experiences plays a great role. Other sources can be a conversation, a phrase in a book, a piece of art, etc. Life itself is a great source of inspiration, hence I totally agree with Thoreau’s quote, ‘How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.’

What is the hardest thing about your creative process?

As in life, trust is the hardest thing. Once I wonder about a subject, and some fitful images and/or dialogues between characters come to me, all I need to do is to trust. Having confidence in conveying my discovery and my reflections in a funny, witty, and thought-provoking story.

Do you work everyday, or only when inspiration strikes?

Yes, I sit down at my desk everyday, even if I have to stare the blank screen the whole morning. I couldn’t agree more with Albert Einstein, ‘Creativity catches you when you’re working,’ though I always carry a notebook with me. Just in case. He discovered e=mc2 when he was taking a bath.

How do you feel about the current art market/art climate?

In the book industry, I feel the Internet is the invisible hand—the invisible power that guides the free-market—that Adam Smith talked about in The Wealth of Nations. So fortunately the invisible hand, along with the new technologies, have opened the publishing market to self-publishing authors, who are not at the mercy of the publishing industry and can participate in the Long Tail without needing validation from anybody. True enough, the open door gives room for more background noise, the opportunists who do not follow their passion, but only chase down the large event.     

If you could change one thing about the art world today, what would it be?

As in life, there’s a lack of awareness. I sense there’s no understanding, value, and respect for the art world, unless your name sits in lights on billboards. To give you an example, not long ago, one guy laughed in my face when I told him I was a writer. 

Talk a little about your current project and why you decide to embark on it.

It’s been a call of discovery, like the rest of my projects. My third novel is still an embryonic project, and all I can tell is that it reflects the dichotomy between time as a human dictation and time as a dictation from nature.  

How does being a woman impact your work?

My two novels are character-driven, so it doesn’t surprise me the two main characters of ‘I say Who, What, and Where!’ and ‘Deconstructing INFATUATION’ are women. 

If you had the chance to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

I would not give them a lecture, but would share my experiences. They would be free to take them as a source of inspiration or leave them apart.

To find out more about Mercè Cardús, go to http://mercecardus.blogspot.com

Powerful Women Artists and Writers

After yesterday’s post, I thought long and hard about the things that matter most to me and came up with an idea.  I have invited other creative women to join me on this site and share their stories.

Each week, one woman will answer the following questions:

From where do you draw inspiration?
What is the hardest thing about your creative process?
Do you work every day, or only when inspiration/opportunity strike?
How do you feel about the current art market/art climate?
If you could change one thing about the art world today, what would it be?
Talk a little bit about your current project and why you decide to embark on it.
How does being a woman impact your work?
If you had the opportunity to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

I am encouraging women writers and artists (all genres) to participate.  Please follow the blog (click the link to your right) and share this post on your facebook and twitter accounts to help spread the word.

Contribute to the dialog by commenting on the posts, sharing your own stories, and sending me pictures of of powerful, creative women.

Here’s a picture of me in my studio.  I look forward to getting and sharing yours.

To send me your answers and/or photographs, email me at destinyallison (at) aol (dot) com.

The first guest will appear next Wednesday.

Mapping a New Course

I tend to ramble, talking mostly about land and love, art and sky.  Today, I’m going to set a new goal.  I am going to pick a topic every week that relates to the things about which I am most passionate and I’m going to try to find something, or someone else, who is thinking/writing about the same topic.  I will post every Wednesday. 

To help with this goal, I’m going to list some things that inspire me here:

Art (all forms)
The creative process
Land and Sky
Women’s Issues (Yes, I am mad as hell about current legislative attempts to take away our rights)
Passionate people living their passion.

If you have thoughts or writings about any of these things, please share them with me and I will try to include them here.  You can email me your blog posts, books, etc. at destinyallison (at) aol (dot) com.