New York, New York //
Today I’m at the Met. I’m sitting on a bench in the 19th and Early 20th Century European Paintings and Sculpture Hall after a meeting to discuss moving forward on an opportunity with the a New York Botanical Garden. It’s early, so I have the remainder of the afternoon to have a quiet stay among the greats.
It would be irresponsible of me to do anything else. Worse, it would be pompous of me to think I didn’t need to do so.
Great art inspires if we let it. In passing, we take a narrow look at art and revel in it’s esteem.
At the Met, everyone is here. Lautrec, Rodin*, Munch. Who’s to say which is better?
Right. You just wouldn’t compare.
Standing here I recognize that each artist had a different path. These paths were built from the individual experiences the artist had in his life. His path built his technique and I blindly respect the journey of the art art in its individual timeframe. I make this very important point because as artists ourselves, we treat our own work much differently. We are harsh and judgmental. There are days we won’t stay focused on our individual project journey because we compare our *downs* to an Instagram feed of *ups*. We say we understand that this isn’t the whole of their work, it’s only what they decide to display, but we judge ourselves as if every sketch they do is marketable. These artists have a process they don’t share to move forward in their paths and improve.
As designers we must continually improve. To improve we must create. With creation comes failure which is vital to learn what not to do again. REPEAT.
Without this there is no provenance to round out the project.
Hanging with these guys** incorporates them into my own thinking. I understand my own process in order to empower it and today I am feeling particularly empowered.
* I saw Rodin’s calling card in person. I would have not been happy with this project if I did this one myself.
**you know: Toulouse, Auguste, Edvard (we go way back)