On being a muse

[topum]

I think I can talk about it now that I am a muse and an inspiration.

In the old days artists got inspired by the superior strength and incredible acts of courage and perseverance of the old day heroes. I am not like the old day heroes. I managed to inspire by cowardly fleeing from a bunch of birds.

This is the drawing of me bunn got inspired to draw after she read this entry. Thank you bunn!



The original entry in bunn's journal is here. I like the drawing a lot, the geese look every bit as scary as they are in real life and I run like a bitch exactly like I do in real life. I usually have much less hair at the back, most of mine is at the top and at the front and now I have no hair at all because of this of course. But otherwise it is an awesome drawing, which I put on my desktop.

So, if you have given up on ever being a muse, don't. It sneaks up on you when you least expect it. To speed things up a bit you might want to find some geese in your area and try to hang out with them. It worked for me.

Comments

[real-marsel.livejournal.com]

I adore the word "muse".

[topum.livejournal.com]

Why? You like the sound of it or the meaning?

[real-marsel.livejournal.com]

Yes. I like the sound. And the meaning.

[topum.livejournal.com]

You could change your username to marsel_muse or marsel's_musings.

[real-marsel.livejournal.com]

:-) I wanted simply "Marsel".

[topum.livejournal.com]

That one is probably taken but you could try "simply_marsel" instead.

[beautesauvage13.livejournal.com]

Nice drawing.  My compliments to the artist. 

Athena

[topum.livejournal.com]

I liked it too.

[darkoshi]

ha! That was a great idea for a drawing.

[topum.livejournal.com]

One probably must be a bit of an artist to see that (I wouldn't) ).

[bunn.livejournal.com]

I bet you would take a photo of yourself fleeing geese if you could be in two places at once though!

[bunn.livejournal.com]

... or maybe that would only be if you were a fleeing random stranger...

[topum.livejournal.com]

Yes, I definitely would if I were a random stranger. But I don't consider my photos (actually any photos) art.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

Oh now I'm not sure about that. I think there are a number of components to art : there's the equipment, and in photography the equipment has certainly come a very long way in terms of many pictures not needing complicated setup because the internal AI does it all for you.

But surely there is also the eye to see the image as a still picture : some people are definitely much better at that than others, and I think you are really good at it. I certainly know photographers who own a lot of complex cameras that don't produce such striking images.

And then in some forms of photography, quite complex setup is still needed: the equipment is far from being able to do it all for you. For example, my camera and phone cannot take photos of running sighthounds at dusk if I just point it : they come out blurred and the light is wrong. But with the right manual settings and the right lens choice, they look pretty OK.

Possibly, a really expensive camera AI could replicate that, but I am not sure.

However, my friend the puddleshark sometimes posts her remarkable still-life photos, which I really think must count as art. For example this one: http://puddleshark.livejournal.com/741006.html

- that's not just having the equipment, or the eye, or the knowledge to set up the camera, it's also assembling the subject matter and lighting it. If that isn't art, I don't know what art is!

[topum.livejournal.com]

I still think it is a craft, a skill but not art. Everything requires skill, technique, some talent and luck, even cooking a good steak. You friend's photo is amazing. I still don't consider it art though. It is just an amazing photo.
I think we overuse "art" so much these days. Every string of beads someone puts together while depressed, every black and white photo ("oh you see how that portrait really shows the character, what's inside" - eh...no, it doesn't, mate) , every drawing seems to become "my art" these days. Every guy who puts vintage records on in a club is "an artist". I got to the point when I think "oh shit, no..." to myself every time someone wants to show me "their art". In my experience it has never been any good and I never considered it art (just a drawing, a photo, etc). I never volunteered to tell people that I did not consider their stuff art and I don't have any problems with them thinking that it is art of course.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I take your point on 'art' - my tag is 'arty stuff' for that very reason. I tend to think of 'craft' as more specific: the sort of person who has spent 30 years honing their skills is a craftsman...

Maybe it's safest to stick to 'drawings', 'photography' etc.

[zhelana.livejournal.com]

lol hey, geese are scary man. They will cut you!

[topum.livejournal.com]

Absolutely. The only two things I am afraid of here are geese and stick-waving grannies.

[zhelana.livejournal.com]

Stick waving grannies are definitely terrifying.

[topum.livejournal.com]

You haven't met Moldovan ones. Grannies often have some serious attitude here.

[zhelana.livejournal.com]

Oh I believe you!

[zimon66]

Unless I'm armed, I wouldn't stand up to a flock of posturing geese either.

[topum.livejournal.com]

And I will not be the one to shame you for it ).

[gneu.livejournal.com]

I'd hang out with geese, but I'd be afraid they try to peddle AFLAC insurance.

[topum.livejournal.com]

I bet AFLAC would love to get them as their salesmen, salesgeese I mean.