Artists anonymous

I think about whether it is preferable to not be named on a piece of work. There is often the case where an audience struggles to separate the art from an artist because of prior knowledge and bias. This is why Hollywood so quickly discards actors and directors and recasts characters without even the flinch of emotion.

I must admit, the idea of having great renowned is a powerfully attractive one, and clearly only possible is there is an appreciation for the artist whom created the art. We might not know who Banksy is, but we do know THAT Banksy is. The problem comes though, that if you are known for something, and there is an expectation, no matter how much the art might be separate from previous work and themes, the audience still finds a way to attach those same old meanings, and make comparisons that don’t belong to be made.

Like a comic actor who tries to turn serious, or a country folk singer doing pop music, people wonder what’s going on… but Robin Williams and Taylor swift seem to have made great success of it. J.K Rowling, as many have before, changed her pen name for her recent detective novels.

I think that there may be greater joy in seeing the art be appreciated than actually receiving praise as the artist. Creative individuals always crave some recognition and acknowledgement, not for their skills, but for their craft. That is to say, it is not so much the ego but more the idea that you have been able to break through the noise and be heard. – and that’s where a problem lies. What happens when people stop listening.

Art is appreciated, generally, much longer than the celebrity of the artist. This is true for all forms of art. Paintings famously take on lives beyond the fantasies of the painter. Imagine being a retired former rock star, who has long been forgotten, and you enter a bar and your song plays on the jukebox. Nobody knows who you are, and if they did, they wouldn’t care, but as you watch the a small merry band dance and sway, you feel that same sense of satisfaction that you had the day the you first wrote the song.

That is where the beauty of the art lies. It is important to not get carried away a creator, and to always hold closest the meaning that the art has to you.