Category: ArtLife

  • Are you the hero of my story?

    Are you the hero of my story?

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    Do you want a sense of what itโ€™s like to be a trying-not-to-starve artist? Well thatโ€™s pretty easy to summarise: you spend most of your allocated art time on thinking about or executing actions and strategies for promoting yourself. Sometimes you snatch a bit of time to make art. But even in those cherished moments…

  • Peopled out but not down

    Peopled out but not down

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    People exhaust me. They do. I donโ€™t mean that in a mean spirited or misanthropic way, although some people are genuinely exhausting. But Iโ€™m referring to people in general. Being autistic, processing and reciprocating human interactions takes a lot more processing power than for non-autistics. That doesnโ€™t mean that I donโ€™t like being around people,…

  • Block Party – Why it’s OK to get stuck once in a while

    Block Party – Why it’s OK to get stuck once in a while

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    Iโ€™m a strange beast in that I hate deadlines but I also need them. I hate being constrained, but I work best when I have a clear goal. I love to explore, but get twitchy when I donโ€™t know where Iโ€™m going. I love to start things but sometimes, just sometimes, I canโ€™t. So I…

  • No Doubt – A tale of my lifelong romance with low self-esteem

    No Doubt – A tale of my lifelong romance with low self-esteem

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    People who write for artists have a lot to say on doubt. Self-doubt, projection of doubt, the general fetishisation of doubt. Doubt, it seems, is an artistโ€™s foremost skill. Even as I write this Iโ€™m fighting the doubt that I can or should have anything useful or insightful to say on doubt. And perhaps I…

  • Drawing from multiple sources, or things I do while watching TV

    Drawing from multiple sources, or things I do while watching TV

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    While I watch TV I like to make pictures with pencil. I never just watch TV. I’m not very good at that. If I try I get restless and fidgety, then irritable, and eventually end up doing something else. It’s not that I don’t like watching TV. It’s one of my favourite activities. I simply…