'Of course you do,' I said, 'everybody does once. But they get over it, thank God, like the measles and the chickenpox. Go home and go to bed and take some hot lemonade and put on three blankets and sweat it out.'
'But, Mr. J-jimson, there must be artists.'
'Yes, and lunatics and lepers, but why go and live in an asylum before you're sent for? If you find life a bit dull at home,' I said, 'and want to amuse yourself, put a stick of dynamite in the kitchen fire, or shoot a policeman. Volunteer for a test pilot, or dive off Tower Bridge with five bob's worth of roman candles in each pocket. You'd get twice the fun at about one-tenth the risk.'
—Joyce Cary
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| Why Go and Live in an Asylum Before You're Sent For? 6 x 6"; acrylic, pastel, and collage on gessobord abstract 2019 |
6 comments:
What a great quote! Guess we like to be crazy, but sometimes I would like to crawl under the blankets! My first reaction... candies! sweet wrapped candies!
The biggest gift of this piece was that it came on the stumbling heels of the previous day's crawl-under-a-blanket time in my studio. In the end, I still opt to crawl out from under and take the risk of pointing myself in the direction of the asylum before I'm sent for!
Carol, totally fun to hear that your first reaction to this piece is sweet wrapped candies! Fabulous!
This post makes me smile. The artist quote - hilarious! And then that perky painting which thumbs its nose at people who don't appreciate artists! Perfect!
Thanks for shining your smile back at me and my perky painting, Jen! "Asylum" was hard won, and it stands alone this week. Everything else I've turned my hand to in my studio in the past few days is snickering at me, suggesting I might want to go put a stick of dynamite in the kitchen fire!!
Love this post. Going back for a third look, LOVE :)
Sheila, hello! Thank you. I love this piece, too, every time I look at it:
first, in and of itself: because it pleases my eye with its colors, depth, and texture;
second, for its history: because it involved a process of one-after-another messy-middle moments before it suddenly gave way to unexpected beauty.
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