I had a roommate in the late 90's who was an artist. We had a lot of
really solid discussions on the subject, and managed to find a common
ground on the idea that there is a considerable difference between the
product (for lack of a better word) and the market, the latter being
more vague and subjective than the art itself. In this light, I have
great respect for artists who breathe that freedom, and congratulate any
artist that can coincide with the marketplace. A recent documentary call
Exit Through the Gift Shop is a remarkable commentary on this subject.
As for my former roommate, he happened to build furniture. In fact, his
craftsmanship at cabinetry was superior to anything I've ever seen
before and since. However, he corrected me when I called him a carpenter
one day. He said, "I'm an artist, my medium happens to be wood right now."
On 1/27/11 10:18 PM, Kim Mosley wrote:
one of my teachers, Art Sinsabaugh, would become very defensive if
anyone called him an artist. "I'm not an artist," he'd say, "I'm a
photographer." I don't think he liked the special privileges that go
with being an artist (artistic license, for example). He just wanted
to show what he saw.
