Colleen
Absolutely agree with two things that destroy creativity. The clickishness and snobbery and yes money ( for certain supplies and costs of showings, etc. So often too, belonging to the elites will get you the visibility. When you are in the “in crowd “ you get accepted, hence you get visibility and if nothing else the others in the group $support your work as you do $theirs. I love to read the “criticism “ from the critic.
I do not like most abstract art and when I see a very large price on say, a beat up couple of milk cartons .. I lose respect, perhaps it is because that seems to place value not so much on the reality of the piece, but makes the price become the reality of value, its worth of being art and in defining a large sum of money somehow depicts one’s ability. Also once someone makes it as a $professional$ artist . Seems that everything that follows, is often automatically accepted and is valued by the former $sucess$ of the preceding piece.
This is reminiscent of early artifacts, yes often the first in what is ART. ‘The Virgin of Willendorf. Minimized as in gods (only an aspect a mere fertility symbol) . Bah!!!. No, she is the God ( goddess)! Not to be plasticzied as in everything today: SUCKING OUT THAT HORRIBLE FAT! Sculpting a body to be well a female, is to be tied to JUST the body, in excruciating AND painful alterations, unreal and NOT empowering. Which is what feminism should do, to get back our power, taken looong ago! Power to simply BE! Yes love your body,this can be real in this painting.. it is not a prison for men and deranged women of the Patriarchy to decide, what you should be, how to act, how your body is:EVEN IN taking the (reproductive organ ) and imprisoning her within her own body! This is not yours but theirs! This is a vision of strength and vitality and… in not giving a shit what others think you should be!
I want to get off this merri-go-round. We do have unexplored territory right here, our waters hide an unknown world. It is religion that makes us ponder the sky. It’s always been there, those sky gods. However, Nature is very much in control of our watching the sky, since not only beauty can come from a beautiful day, but the horror of disasters. When in deep felt pain one must be able to sense an escape. Art and creativity allow us to escape and in that world, we are given that ticket to ride AWAY, into Infinity. Not unlike the heavens. that lead into an existence of unfathomable possibilities, called our Universe, we find a place beyond human suffering.
Makes me shiver but in a very nice way.