Artists, Existential Dread and Coronapocalypse

So.
You are watching some of your favorite great films during all this, right?
Reading a good book or classic poetry?
Comforted by some artwork on your wall, long ago bought at an arts festival?
Listening to some classic rock? Your favorite comedian?

Historically many artists are often viewed as starving and thus by implication, non-workers.

Non-contributors – financially – to society.
Because, everyone knows that money and wealth accumulation is what makes us human, right?

The horrible irony in all this is the societal collective of the societal successful who express these ideas in a multitude of ways while listening to their favorite music on their iphones.
Love the art, not the artist. Many devalue the lifestyle needed for the artist to produce and the trade-offs made by artists to actually do their art – which society so desperately craves yet doesn’t always value.
In the past I have sometimes said along these lines: “No one hires a ‘full-time paid with benefits’ fine artist or out-of-the-box innovative entrepreneur- there are no job posts on Indeed for the unique niches that fine artists and other artists – musicians, caricaturists, puppeteers, entertainers – jugglers, snake handlers (yes, I know a man who created a whole business around an entertaining reptile show at events!) have to offer. They must make their own way and that way is very difficult – yet we all want it, don’t we?”

As a friend texted me today – a friend who is closely following the unfolding economic issues and plans of aid being contemplated – “we must not forget those in the gig economy.”

That in a nutshell is why the starving artist stereotype. They are often far more hard-working than many yet remain perpetually under-compensated for what they do.
Yet perhaps that is why what they do is so beautiful.

While there are artists who do end up being well-compensated, the majority go about their daily lives doing what they do for the love of it and the compelling need to create.
Enough on that…on to the rest of my title…
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Existential dread.
Historically artists are the ones in society capable of putting into words the collective existential dread we all experience to different degrees.

I think creative people are probably more in touch with many things – perhaps – or simply they have the gift of expressing things we all think and feel in a way that reminds us so deeply of what it means to be human.

Many artists to some degree fit that stereotype of the moody person – full of ideas, ups and downs, eccentricities and seemingly unstable. I say seemingly because I believe also in the stereotype that these people are often not well understood by others who don’t think, act or experience life in the same way nor have the gift of creativity.

These sometimes strange or misunderstood qualities are part of the gift which allows them to create the things we all so crave – the expressions that voice what we all, collectively, experience in our personal worlds.
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I love dark humor – when things feel most dark sometimes it is a string of loosely connected thoughts and ideas with that little bizarre twist or unusual connection that simply makes you laugh – and that can be such a valuable coping skill!

I have one online artist friend whose humor is fantastic…not to embarrass, name or otherwise usurp their comedic talent – ha ha – but here are a few of their posts…the first one made me laugh so much the other day, during some moment of dark worries! When I went to their wall just now to find it, I saw some other ones equally great :

“not even anything cool like zombies or aliens or Satan…Worst. Apocalypse. Ever.”_____

“I guess people have been hoarding Winsor & Newton angled, short handle Cotman brushes size 1/8” because I can’t find one anywhere…think of your neighbors, people”
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And this one!“if the Professor was in charge we’d have a cure by now..
made outta coconuts.”

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I know for myself and probably speak for many other artists, we are the people most capable of having just the right soundtrack running in the background of our mind as we go about the challenges of our days.

Normal days, I will add.

And these, as we know, are not normal days…we have never been in the place before, have we?

To give a window into my personal world right now….my temporary living situation during all this, post-divorce, is feeling a bit “Anne Frankish” right now for certain reasons. Small space, very isolated, in a state of waiting and personal survival mode which is apart from the coronavirus issues, deprived of the normal comforts of familiar home including no stove and no bathtub, only a shower stall.
During the past couple weeks the soundtrack from The Poseidon Adventure, “The Morning After” by Maureen McGovern, has on occasion been playing in my mind.

When I left Alabama under the circumstances I left – and I am so glad for the timing as I could have never in my wildest imaginations foresaw what was to come – I was hopeful to move forward into my new, recovered life and future.
Now, like many, we are wondering, “Is there a future?”
“Will life as we’ve known it ever return?”

I ask this because I not only love art, but have interest in history and many other things. We must be sober-minded and aware that our nation and world was already on borrowed time in terms of unsustainable living -expressed in corrupt social, economic and environmental policies and practices and many ways of being that are not good nor healthy on any level – physically nor spiritually.
I certainly hope I am wrong, but we may be on the cusp of another Great Depression, perhaps greater than we’ve seen thus far. Yet I – and many, especially the young among us who are most tasked in forming a better world for us all – are seeing the great potential post-crisis for much needed change and understanding of changes needed to come forth. Someone sent me a wonderful song the other day called “We Shall Be Known” by Ma Muse, and I encourage you to listen to the video at the end. I had not heard of this musical duo but have been listening to them – very soothing and beautiful expressions. Check them out on Spotify!
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For me, being trapped in a small space with nothing to do but finish up and work on so many art projects for a limited time-out is really not so bad if these were normal times – it actually is somewhat heavenly, like the feeling of wanting the world to pause while you catch up is actually happening – yet what now makes it potentially hellish is wondering what lies beyond this.
I have found myself in recent days fighting to hold on to the meaning of any of it. And before you judge me, I can only imagine I am not the only one. For this reason we must all be more dilligent in our own lives to pull out all our coping skills to fight for personal hope and also keep connecting with those in our realm who are also struggling.

We all need to be checking on one another during this time, encouraging one another to hang in there.
And keep in mind your artists friends and others who already struggle in certain ways or were already in personal crisis. I know several friends in this scenario.

We feel like our own personal apocalypse is now engulfed in a much larger apocalypse.
And that, is extra terrifying.

“not even anything cool like zombies or aliens or Satan…Worst. Apocalypse. Ever.”_____

“I guess people have been hoarding Winsor & Newton angled, short handle Cotman brushes size 1/8” because I can’t find one anywhere…think of your neighbors, people”
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And this one!“if the Professor was in charge we’d have a cure by now..
made outta coconuts.”

I know for myself and probably speak for many other artists, we are the people most capable of having just the right soundtrack running in the background of our mind as we go about the challenges of our days.

Normal days, I will add.