Words are neither words
Nor the use of words.
So, how should one support one's family while still being a "serious artist?" I sometimes envy those who find meaning in their work which can still be marketable to a large audience. I certainly have had my fantasies about BL Lacerta becoming the next Beatles. My problem is that I cannot make a product that is designed for the market. I always have created something or worked through a process that was meaningful for me and then tried to find people who would appreciate it. That doesn't always make good business sense but it does make good art. The reader has probably figured out by this time that I good have problems making a living, especially during this "Contract on America" era. Our present government seems to think that it is immoral for an artist to seek public money for support. Certain politicians have said that if our audience isn't large enough to support us then we may not be worthy of support or are too elitist. America is a democracy and is supposedly ruled by the majority, If the majority supports someone's art, then they would gladly pay for it at the box office. But, what about the artists who experiment and push our consciousness forward into an "integral" world? Are we too elitist and all that we have trained ourselves for, the new perceptions we have discovered and what we are begging to share is of no value because most people don't appreciate it?
542
The sound of the yellow tongue
The splashes of the yellow brush;
There is advantage in seeing the one who knows.
Dream - A long hand extended from a second story window of a building and pulled someone in from the street by the head.
543-544
There is advantage in babble --
The babble of discussion
Among the men who make forecasts.
As a member of the Ascetic Order of American Artists (or Order of the Euphonius Monks) I can tell you stories of the trials and tribulations of being an artist in America. Like other ascetic monks, I beg for a living. When politics aren't too bad , I beg from the government, corporate and foundation's programs for the arts. When times are bad I also spend much time begging for Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Medicaid, City Housing Authority, etc. I am still a practicing artist doing my art no matter what program supports me. It's just that honor traditionally comes with the first kind of support and shame comes with the later.