When shit hits the fan, consider to subscribe to art coaching when it has become hard to focus on what really matters in your life. It will help to quiet your mind, jacobinao.com/coaching.php
We all react to similar circumstances in a different way. When the outside circumstances were getting more and more difficult for me to accept in Asheville I looked inside for an opportunity. Price Pritchett observes in his book how a fly desperately tries to break through a glass window to get to the blue sky and gain freedom. I think we all have watched these attempts of flies which almost always result in the death of the fly.
He has a formula for personal breakthroughs. Unfruitful attempts to achieve success through massive effort and continuous trying harder mostly leads to exhaustion. He says that there are options available that are beyond what common sense would allow. The takeaway what I get from it is that we, especially as artists, need to think outside of the box for answers. The fly can also turn 180 degrees and fly through the open door to freedom.
After the massive destruction of the River Arts District I decided to look inside myself for options instead of trying to find a new place and time to paint. The inner world is a steady place to go when the outer world is in turmoil. You can always count on a safe place inside yourself. Even in the death camps Eli Wiesel found solace in his inner world. It doesn’t mean you are oblivious to reality, it means you are not touched by it.
This stillness is what I am promoting through my art coaching program. Anybody who can draw can benefit from it. If you cannot draw I would suggest you learn it. Allow to become quiet through drawing your world. It is something to hold on to and create stability. If not now then when?
(By the way, the painting 10” x 10” of a still life shown here is one of a series of four that is forever lost in the crazy river)
