The Luminous Solution Quotes

“Another word for idealism might be delusion, I'm well aware. But this is home territory for me and for all artists, whose daily lives depend on the vigorous deployment of rampant delusion. We must constantly believe in something that doesn't exist, believe it's worth pursuing, believe--all evidence to the contrary--that our seed of a kooky idea will bear fruit. All art in the making is delusion, until you're standing in front of 'Blue Poles' or watching 'Hamlet' or 'Mad Max'; or sitting tearful on your couch into the night, speechless at the genius of Hilary Mantel. It's all delusion, until it's not.”
― Charlotte Wood, The Luminous Solution

“Art urges us to imagine and inhabit lives other than our own, to be more thoughtful, to feel more deeply, to challenge what we think we already know. Art declares that we contain multitudes, that more than one thing can be true at once. And it gives us a breathing space, in which we can listen more than talk, where we can attentively question our own beliefs. It gives us a place in this chaotic world in which to find the sort of meaning that only arises out of the stillness, deep within our quiet selves.”
― Charlotte Wood, The Luminous Solution

“The unknown is always a threat. Unruly artists take to all this eagerly; they find a home in outsiderness. But while history has always made a certain space available to feral men, from Caravaggio to Picasso to Prince, feral women have a harder time of it. Much of our battle is internal. Raised from birth to please, to be helpful, to shrink and be decorative, for a woman to proudly show herself in all her individuality is a much greater challenge.”
― Charlotte Wood, The Luminous Solution