Take Five With Mickey Pangburn

Name:
Mickey Pangburn

Creative Specialties:
Songwriting, Music, Singing, Painting, Latte Art

Current Location:
Tempe Arizona

Mini Bio:
In fear for her life, Norah B. took her then-3-year-old daughter Mickey Louise and fled her home in Knoxville Tennessee. Mickey's convict father was hot in pursuit, causing them to live in hiding for the next 15 years. Running from state to state, Mickey took to a life of secrecy and solitude; spending most days alone in her room making mixed tapes, and writing songs with an acoustic guitar her mother picked up at a yard-sale. In college she met and married drummer Jesse Pangburn, and the two studied jazz. They moved to Tempe AZ, and formed The Prowling Kind out of coffee culture meet-ups and late night jams. Their debut album, Tennessee, is comprised of glimpses into Mickey's tumultuous childhood, and Norah's young love of an outlaw. A story sure to draw you in.

Website: 
WEBSITE: http://theprowlingkind.com
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TheProwlingKind
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/TheprowlingKind
YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxcSXYIRRnxwDlMlryU2n1A

1) What is one thing you've learned as an artist that you wish you'd known when you first started out?

Use the time you think you’re “stuck in waiting”, to refine your skills. Allow room to be creative and practice without expectations. Those behind the scenes hours count. It’s what we don’t see, that makes what we do see (be it -on stage/canvas/film, wherever) worthwhile.

2) How do you cope with creative anxiety and societal expectations?

In the words of Regina Spektor, “People are just people, they shouldn’t make you nervous.” Maybe everybody won’t dig what I do….but that has to be Okay. It’s simple, but that’s how I see it.

3) If money was no object, what would you make?

What I make now, only faster. My mind goes a million miles an hour, pulling my ambitions right along. My pocketbook slows me down though and I think God intended it that way. I need to be slowed down enough to at least let the good stuff sink in and gain meaning.

4) How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life?

I’m a planner. Uncertainty can be terrifying. I generally freak out as a means of “dealing”. By the time I come to my senses (either as a result of my husband’s gentile rebuking/ or much needed prayer) I remember that this creative life is the only option for me. As humbling, disconcerting & uncertain as it may be- it’s what I was made for. I am happy to say however, my freak out episodes have decreased steadily over the years!

5) What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person?

Just letting myself be me and letting a project be what it is. There’s always room and need for growth, but I realized that if I wait till I’m perfect at anything- nothing will EVER get done! If I change the harmony of that song one more time, I may never actually record it! Simply allowing myself to take each experience for what it’s worth, acknowledging it as a means of refining, or allowing it to be a testament to a specific season (and not the end-all-be-all summation of my creative expression!), has been the biggest and most rewarding challenge.

The Prowling Kind's debut album, Tennessee, drops on August 27th! You can read more about Mickey and their band on their WEBSITE! You can even download a copy of their first single "Babycakes" for free!

Take 5 With Anne Condit

Kick-ass illustration by the artist, found here.

Name: 
Anne M. Condit

Creative Specialties:
I work primarily in pen and ink, but I'm learning more about digital methods. My sculpture background has led me to favor pattern & texture over color, generally. I find inspiration from old books of specimens, fairy tales, and science fiction. My graphic design work is another natural extension of my love for stories. The right typeface has as much narrative power as an illustration.

Current Location:
Huntsville, AL

Mini Bio: 
I have loved art since I was young. I studied sculpture & drawing at Birmingham-Southern College, where I earned my BFA.  A distinctly narrative quality emerged from my work. In any material or style, my art wants to tell a story. Because of this quality, I found myself drawn (bad pun! bad!) towards illustration. Honestly?  I just want to be my 3rd grade librarian. Except I will have designed and illustrated all of the books.

Website:
http://www.danslalunedesigns.com/


1. What is one thing you've learned as an artist that you wish you'd known when you first started out?

It’s okay to introduce yourself by saying, “I’m an artist.” You have nothing to be ashamed of-- the amount or quality of work you’re doing, the possible negative perceptions. For the longest time, I didn’t do so because I didn’t “feel” like an artist, I was just trying to be one. F*** that! If you’re trying to be an artist, you are an artist. Even if you’re just a high-school kid drawing ponies.


2. How do you remain positive and hopeful when either the ideas stop flowing, the work dries up, or the money stops coming in?

I try to always have a project going. Even if the piece isn’t very technically or conceptually challenging, I feel much more positive if I’m creating something. That endlessly quotable Picasso said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”

I keep two inspiration boards-- one hanging in my studio, one on the website Pinterest. If I don’t have a deadline or an organic inspiration, I look to those for new project ideas.


3. What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person?

Time management, in the forms of procrastination and saying “no” to people. I am a very people-oriented person, so it’s difficult for me to carve out studio time or decline project opportunities. Sometimes if you’re the “creative one” in a group, people will automatically turn to you for artistic projects.

I’ve had great fun taking on some of these challenges, but you also have to consider 1) If it’s within your scheduling and technical abilities; 2) If you can make the person happy. If you draw like Edward Gorey and your best friend wants a Thomas Kinkade mural, you might want to think twice.


4. How do you cope with creative anxiety and societal expectations?

On the one hand, I want to create revolutionary, important work. On the other hand, what is revolutionary in art anymore? Society expects art to be controversial-- so much that controversial art has become boring. Then you also have people who just want something pretty to hang over their couch. There’s nothing wrong with that.

I would like to create art that people buy initially because they think it’s beautiful. But I want them to one day be sitting on that couch and be disturbed. Not necessarily grossed-out or upset. But I want them to notice a subtext, and wonder if it’s the artist’s intention or if it’s all in their head.


5. If money were no object, what would you make?

I would go to an old church, or chapel, or some kind of sacred space, and transform it into a massive encaustic installation with beeswax. I would paint it in the winter, then let it slowly melt in the warm Alabama summer. I’m not sure what I would embed in it, that would depend on the history of the location or what’s fascinating to me at the time. But I like the idea of a piece changing and revealing itself. I think that walking through the piece would be overwhelming-- the warmth, the smell of the beeswax.


6. What moment/place/time/setting lets you function to your fullest creative potential?

I hope I still haven’t found it yet. Right now I do best in my studio space, right after breakfast. I’m not hungry or tired, and I haven’t committed to anything else in the day.

7. Do you have a ritual way of preparing to create?

Yoga pants are a must. Music, radio, or background noise so I don’t feel lonely. Coffee. Ridiculous amounts of coffee.

8. How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life?

I think about this moment: when I was cleaning out my childhood bedroom, I pulled out my old portfolio. I started flipping through the stuff that I worked so hard on, but thought was crap at the time. I’m still unsatisfied with my work, but it’s gotten better. It was in that moment I decided I wanted art to be a part of my life, no matter what, and I would fight for it.

Take 5 With Kylin Jewell

We get back into our Take 5 series with Kylin Jewell, a multi-talented and multi-passionate artist who's come to some pretty significant realizations in her life post- art school. Check it out! 

Name: Kylin Jewell

Creative Specialties:
Drawing, painting, dancing (ballet, jazz, modern) aerial silks, yoga… being up-side-down, hula-hooping, jewelry making, hair/ makeup, modeling, sewing and costume design, basic wood and metal-working, teaching any of these activities…

Current Location: 
Tucson, AZ

Mini Bio:
Kylin Jewell’s art is documentation of the processes she employs to uncover the relationship between emotion and emotive content. To one degree or another her work has always revolved around a central idea of feeling held captive by our own thoughts, actions, and the ‘inner realities’– or the escape to sublime states of being after the process of letting go, meditating, and allowing for a more spiritual connection. In a sense, her ultimate goal in creating is to tap into the universal experience of feeling.

Kylin was born in 1986 in Tucson, Arizona where she has spent 26 years improving on and perfecting her passion. In 2005 she graduated from Tucson High Magnet School with a performing arts endorsement and was credited for her AP 2-D portfolio. In May of 2010 she received a BA in 2-D design with an emphasis in painting from the University of Arizona. In August she will leave behind her desert home for life in the city of Chicago. Here, she will delve further in her interest in the ‘inner-self’ and begin her career in Art Therapy.

Website:
Currently, some of my artwork can be seen through my Facebook page. In the fall, I will have a website running through SAIC.

5 realizations I had that changed my life and the way I define myself as an artist:

DREAM BIG
1) If money was no object, what would you make?

I think it’s important to remember that we are all creative beings. Some of us don’t tap into it, or have little faith in our artistic ability and thusly do not nourish the imaginative spirit. Many have ways of being creative that aren’t in our traditional definition of the term so they don’t recognize their potential.

That’s why I have chosen to introduce myself with my dreams…

This is why I (we) create. Because we are able to dream.

If I had all of the financial resources imaginable, and could employ a crew of any number, I would make… SO MANY THINGS!!!

First and foremost, I would knock out the brilliant interactive idea my significant other and myself proposed to the Burning Man grant committee this year. It is a large-scale, multi-medium, interactive, two-phase sculpture with fire elements.

It would be nice not to feel limited in terms of resources for completing more paintings and drawings, but my interest in art has developed into something that goes beyond satisfying an internal need to make something that is both aesthetically pleasing and healing for myself anymore.
I want to, and will - after two years at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s Master’s in Art Therapy program starting this Fall! – be in the position to help others find their voice and discover healing through art making. As made obvious by the career I am pursuing, I am more interested in being a first-hand witness to the emotional response to a project and getting the audience involved in the creative process than I am in fulfilling documentation of the images and designs constantly swirling through my mind. I want to know how opening a conversation about art, through the act of creation, can not only bring people together but can also help individuals work through any dis-ease in their lives. I trust in my creativity to bring joy into my own life.
I suppose I am just curious to know if my beliefs can be supported. If art making affects the minds and hearts of all beings in the same manner, and, if it does, I would like to uncover its potential for emotional/ psychological rebuilding in all beings.

In a magical world with no financial limitation I would travel with sculptures like the one we plan to bring to Black Rock City someday. I would research the reaction and interaction of art, people, music, etc. and project that I would find my hypothesis to be supported by my findings.

DON'T BE AFRAID TO MAKE MISTAKES
2) How do you remain positive and hopeful when either the ideas stop flowing, the work dries up, or the money stops coming in?

I really try to be an optimistic person but I must admit, I went through a dry-spell for nearly a year after I received my Bachelor’s in Studio Art.

At the time, I was ashamed and extremely disappointed in myself.

I am supposed to be a painter!
I am supposed to be selling my work!
I am supposed to… 
 
I am sure you are all familiar with a similar internal mantra, no?

But the fact of the matter was that I was uninspired, unmotivated, and painfully unsure of my next step. I needed a job but knew that selling my work was going to take more energy and devotion than I felt like I had at that point in time.

In fact, over the past couple years since graduating I have come to realize how little interest I have in selling my work at all! (More on this later.)

Luckily, I was not relying on my artwork before graduating as a means of income so not having that resource post-degree didn’t make much of a difference to me.

Just when I needed it most, I was given the opportunity to teach art to elementary school aged children. It got my creative juices flowing again because I had to train my mind to think about making art in a way I hadn’t in my entire life. For so long it had just flowed, and now I had to inspire students – some who didn’t have the same innate interest for mark-making, color, shape and light as I had as a child. More so, I had to inspire myself! My livelihood depended upon it!

I was forced into a new state of mind that wasn’t so concerned about the final product of what I drew or the concept behind it. I had been given a time-machine into the most creative sources on Earth – something that got lost along the way with all the schooling and the aging – the mind of a child!

Yes, my classes were about learning how to draw a certain objects and how to best use the mediums chosen for each project, but it became something so much more than that – we were playing! Creating from an intuitive source and letting the story write itself as we went along. If that wasn’t divine inspiration on learning to trust myself again, how to be okay with taking steps toward the next chapter of my life, I don’t know what is!

This approach not only brought joy to my students, but there was an upwelling of healing for my own tired heart as my students and I connected over common human emotion and the desire to leave our mark.
I realized that I had to reevaluate how I thought about my work.

To abandon old processes and concentrations so that I could allow myself to breathe. I had to give myself the freedom to make art that I might hate when I was done with it. It was absolutely necessary to allow myself to make mistakes again. To make in a manner of complete abandon the way the five-year-old version of myself had.

Now, if I find myself feeling unsatisfied with my work or feeling stuck I know I need to spend some time drawing with people half my age. Or, at least check in with my inner-child and get back to a place where I am not over thinking my work.

The mission of feeling financially secure in your artistic endeavors can be an equally daunting task. It’s hard not to get upset when you spent all that time working on a grant proposal and the funds are awarded to someone else.

My S.O. and I didn’t get the Burning Man grant by the way, but the project hasn’t been abandoned yet. There are other options available to us if we are willing to network, to spend more time setting up “kick starter” web pages and accounts, and if we refuse to lose sight of the purpose for our art.

Know that a lot of the time you have to meet up with the right people, who will become your support system for a specific project. Sometimes we just don’t know how to present it to the panel of judges and the whole “there’s always next year” thing starts to make a lot more sense. Other times it means we need to expand our audience.

Trial and error is just as important to us in building our reputation as an artist as it was when we were first learning to make a balanced composition.&

If at first you don’t succeed…

Well, you know the rest.


BE THE SOURCE OF YOUR OWN MOTIVATION
3) What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person?

The greatest challenge I have faced as a creative person is two-fold.

1. Finding the confidence within myself necessary to pursue a career that others may have trouble understanding.
2. Coming to terms with the financial and emotional struggles I face because I have chosen to follow my passions instead of seeking out the most comfortable or lucrative career.

It is so easy to allow the opinions and seeming lack of support from the most important people in our lives (parents, friends, etc.) discourage us from listening to our hearts.

What I have discovered over the past year, during GRE exams, tears, graduate school applications, interviews around the country, financial planning, and yes… more tears… is that sometimes a loved one’s concerns over the steps you are taking in pursuit of your goals aren’t voiced because they don’t want you to be happy. It’s not that they don’t want you to succeed or don’t believe in your ability to meet your goals. Family and friends – we worry about each other. This is no mystery!

So, it is important to keep in mind that a lot of the time things that come across as unsupportive are said out of fear that you are taking a path that they know virtually nothing about… beyond the “starving artist” stereotype.

I implore you to follow your own arrow, and not let their words dissuade you from a calling.If it brings you bliss and you are willing to work for it – why not?


KNOW WHY YOU CREATE
4) How do you cope with creative anxiety and societal expectations?

This is something I must deal with on a day-to-day basis.

Sometimes it is extremely difficult for me to ignore the bits of advice given to me with all the best intentions and to truly trust that my inner-voice is guiding me in the right direction.

Because I am who I am, and have developed a profound interest in yoga – in the form of an Asana and Meditation Practice – I believe in an internal source of knowing.

I am creative, therefore I am meant to create…

But there is extreme trust there.

I have to believe that

      a) my gut instincts are valuable and valid
      b) I deserve to do what makes me happy.

My Practice now spills over into every aspect of my life and gives me the confidence I need to completely trust my decisions and myself.

In addition, I have taken a page from the book of my students and made the decision to embrace my creative spirit. It is, without question, one of the best things I have ever done for myself. It hasn’t been until the past six months that I have really wanted to start projects that have nothing to do with youth or school. It is what my desire, along with encouragement from my SO, to make interactive sculptures.

Because of the things pushing me to create, I don’t think of making a profit off of my ideas in terms of money. A successful piece would bring a sense of clarity to at least one person who aids in its construction, if not many.

MAKE FRIENDS WITH CHAOS
5) How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life?

I trust in the chaos of the world around me because I have no other choice – unless I want to become bitter and immobilized by my fears of the unknown.

Remember all those stereotypes and naysayers we mentioned earlier?

Well, they have their place and don’t come without some hint of truth.

Making a living as an artist is not easy work, but we wouldn’t have chosen this path if it were.

Tell me you never had to hide a smile when someone criticized you for wanting to be an artist, going on about how much you would struggle to make ends meet!

Admit it, you liked the idea of this challenge.

We wouldn’t want to create if we didn’t have questions about the world we live in. If we weren’t trying to figure it out.

We wouldn’t have these questions if we knew everything.
(Do you see where I am going with this?)

Without the uncertainty of the future there would be no need for creative thinking. No questions to be answered. No problems to solve.

When we allow ourselves to embrace the unknown we can actually be present in our lives, and in our work. Sometimes things are going to go well, and sometimes there are going to be bumps in the road.
It’s life and a reality someone in any profession could encounter.

If my intentions are good and I continue to push forward even when things get rough – if I refuse to quit dreaming – I can use the uncertainty of my future as motivation to use my creativity as a solution to any hardship I may face.

The Incredible Keri Smith

WARNING: Extreme fangirling ahead.

Keri Smith. Always Awesome. (Image from kerismith.com)

If the world had a BFF, and that BFF was always trying to make the world sit up and take care of its creative spirit, well, that BFF would probably be Keri Smith.

This kickass author/illustrator/guerilla artist and generally awesome person lives in Vancouver, B.C., and has been rocking the world with her incredible books since 2005. For a complete bio, check out her site. Actually, for a whole lot of awesome, check out her site -- you'll be glad you did.

But what I want to focus on today is what she wrote to one young artist -- yes, she reads and responds to ALL of her fan mail, including the email I sent her (squeee!!!).

It's called Ecstatic Flailing, and these are the choice quotes from it that made my little heart tie itself up in knots before exploding in joy:

(BUT SERIOUSLY FOR REALS GUYS, GO READ THE WHOLE THING, AND THE COMMENTS, BECAUSE DAYUM.)

If we were sitting in the same room I would sit next to you, take your hand in mine, and look straight into your eyes and say, “I know that pressure you speak of very well. The “focus on self-promotion, competitiveness, networking and always attempting to be edgier and smarter than others at all costs”. I have felt that pressure too, still do on occasion. But here is what I know now, that I didn’t know before when I started out… Creating work out of that pressure, doing all of the things that you have been taught by others, and listening to that voice in your head that tells you you need to be better is not what will create that success you are craving. The true work, (meaning the work you are here to do), comes from a completely different place than this.

[… T]he energy that you feel when you are creating is very important and will tell you if you are on the right path. Not that there is only one path, there are many, but I am referring to doing work that fulfills you and brings you “success”, and when I say success I really mean “work that is meaningful to you”, work that is aligned with your ideals

[...] I’m not saying that you won’t have many bad days where you feel incompetent and like you are flailing like a crazy person. As Kurt Vonnegut put it so perfectly, “When I write, I feel like an armless, legless man with a crayon in his mouth.” But at times you will also feel like you are able to leap over tall buildings with great ease if you go directly into that place you spent a lot of time when you were a kid, experimenting and making messes, and playing on the floor.

[...] I hope I have not painted the picture that I have got it all figured out, because that is hardly the case. I am flailing right along with everyone else. But I now do it with as much open energy as I can muster, and I am much better at recognizing what is filling me up and what is sapping me.

You can see why I'm a fan, right? But this is the clincher for me:

[... Y]ou are beautiful, and talented and you have something to say. [...] It doesn’t matter one iota if you are unsure of what it is that you want to say just yet. The more you try to trust the process, the more you will figure it out piece by piece.

BE STILL MY FREAKING HEART. (Did you read the whole thing yet? No?? GO. READ. Now.)

Was I right about the awesomeness? Perhaps --- it certainly is #somethingawesome for me. But I bet there are some other something awesome things out there, that you might want to share. If so, I have some good news for you! There's still time to enter your #somethingawesome to win our something-secret-and-awesome -- and you have until midnight Friday to do it! Read more here, and then get to sending us the stuff that rocks your world!

Take 5 With Anna + Micah Garman

Name:
Anna & Micah Garman

Creative Specialties:
Photographer (Anna)
Musician (Micah)

Current Location: 
Chicago, IL

Mini Bio:
Anna & Micah Garman currently live in the Humboldt Park neighborhood of Chicago.  Anna has both a concert and lifestyle portrait photography business. She loves a good craft day with her girlfriends, festivals and craft fairs, bike rides, and doing anything outdoors. She is not afraid to be silly, she loves to dance, and is great at making funny faces.  Micah has played and toured nationally with several bands but currently enjoys playing worship for different churches in the Chicago area.  He loves having morning coffee with his gorgeous wife and reading epic fantasy novels.

Website:
www.thebandwife.com
www.annacorinnephoto.com
www.thecanesmusic.com (Micah's most recent/past project)

1) What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person?

Anna - I have just recently joined the professional photography community and honestly, sometimes looking at the professional photography world as a whole can be very overwhelming.  There is a lot of gear and software to learn and so many different types of photography specialties.  So for me the greatest challenge so far has been learning what type of photography I am most passionate and gifted at.

Micah - I think the greatest challenge I've experienced as a musician is finding the right people to create music with.  Lots of people who play music will always talk about finding someone "to jam with" but it really takes great chemistry with other musicians in order to create an environment where a project can really thrive.  That said, I think building up a great musical network takes time and is a pretty big challenge in and of itself.  Most professional musicians attribute their success (besides practice and talent) with someone who hooked them up with someone else.  I've played with some incredibly talented musicians and it was mostly because someone referred me to some dude looking for a guitarist for an event.

2) If money was no object, what would you make?

Anna - If money wasn't an issue, I would love to travel the world so I could take pictures of kids in different cultures at play.  The goal being to capture what brings children joy in different parts of the world.  At the end of the trip I would work to get a book of those images published.

Micah - Oh dang, besides supporting my incredibly beautiful wife by traveling the world, I would totally make guitars, guitar amps, pedals, and pedal boards!  One of my favorite things to do recently has been making my own gear to use when I play live.  The last thing I made for myself was a bypass looper pedal; which basically makes it easier for me to choose which effect I need at the push of one button; instead of tap-dancing on all my pedals.  

3) Do you have a ritual way of preparing to create?

Anna- I head out with my camera, I try to always carry it with me.  If I am preparing for a shoot I love to sit and talk with my clients and feel out who they are and what they love.  Once I have a good idea of who they are, I research and look for ways I can incorporate and bring that out in our photo session.

Micah - I basically just open up Reason, my favorite music program, and start laying out tracks.  I know this sounds crazy, but I don't necessarily need to be in the mood to create music.   I typically lay down a simple melody and build off of it.  I honestly love the spontaneous melody lines and song ideas that simply happen because I thought a certain sound or synth sounded rad.  I'm also a huge proponent of creating music that makes me feel different emotions.  Think of the way you felt when you heard your favorite song for the first time.  That is what I try to capture every time I write something.

4) How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life?

Anna- I keep looking forward, trying to learn as much as I can and exploring different avenues that could allow my creativity to really blossom.  When it comes to finances and staying afloat I honestly try to hand it all over to God.  He gives me peace about it.  He has always pulled through and helped us make ends meet.

Micah - I'm going to be lame and "ditto" Anna's comment.  We have been incredibly fortunate to pursue what we both love to do.  We both love to encourage each other and cheer on our various creative pursuits.  I think having someone there to help push through any doubts makes creating a reality instead of a hobby.

5) What moment/place/time/setting lets you function to your fullest creative potential?

Anna - Sunday afternoons :)

Micah - Watching other musicians do what they love!  A good beer with friends also helps…seriously.

If you are a passionate creative and want to share your own Take Five on The Art Abyss shoot us an email at theartabyss@gmail.com and let us know!

Take 5 With Kyle Jones

Name: 
Kyle Jones

Creative Specialties: 
Graphic Design, Animation, Illustration, Character Design and Typography

Current Location: 
Nashville, TN

Mini Bio: 
Kyle Jones is the creative director at Fivestone Studios in Nashville TN. He spends his days designing styleframes and animating broadcast graphics packages, commercials, and anything else that moves. Their clients have included Verizon, John Deere, CMT, ServPro, Honda, Dell, and Krystal among others. He has a passion for illustration, character design, and typography. Kyle has won several awards over the years, but none more meaningful than his "best friend" certificate from 6th grade. 

Website: 
Follow Kyle on twitter @justkyle
Or check out his website: www.justkyle.com


1) What is one thing you've learned as an artist that you wish you'd known when you first started out? 

Making good art takes a lot of time. I used to think that if something didn't naturally come together quickly that I just didn't have the talent. When you see great art it often looks effortless; you can visually take in a painting or illustration in seconds and you forget that it actually can take days or weeks of hard work for something that looks so simple. I think it really clicked for me right after college when I interned in New York at Eyeball NYC. They had such an amazing talent pool of designers and animators, and I saw that what really made their work stand out was the amount of time they spent working. It's really amazing what started happening once I let myself push past the initial "well this first attempt doesn't look that great" phase of everything I've ever done and allowed myself more time to push it into great work. 

2) What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person? 

Confidence. Pretty much as soon as I create something I hate it. Maybe for a few days I'm happy and think it's the best thing I've ever done, but I quickly realize all the things I could have done better. I think there's also timidity in proclaiming that you are an artist with something to contribute. Who says my aesthetic is valid? Who would pay me for drawing? Do I really have the experience for this? Don't people know there are other people better than me? I try to just focus on the fact that what I do makes me really happy, and in holding myself to high standards, hopefully people like what I do and pay me for that. I don't have to prove anything... even though deep down I think most artists, including myself, crave validation. bad.

3) If money was no object, what would you make?

Children's books. To me, they have always been the holy grail of art and story. Short, beautiful, fun. I love that one person can craft an entire world in words and pictures. Some of my favorite books growing up were Dinotopia by James Gurney and Santa Calls by William Joyce. I want to be able to capture the same joy I got from reading and looking at these when I was young. In fact, my friend and I are collaborating on a story right now for a children's book that I want to illustrate. I've always wanted to make a children's book... why wait? Maybe we'll kickstart a printing of it if it comes together.

4) How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life?

I've been pretty lucky to crave such a commercial line of work. I started out doing web design and development, then transitioning to motion graphics. I've only recently felt confident enough to do some freelance illustration. The great thing about this industry is that there are so many outlets to be creative in. I had no idea I would be doing motion graphics 5 years ago, but I got the bug and went full steam pursuing it. I'm pretty sure in 5 years I may be doing something else, but as long as it is creative I know I'll be happy. Solving problems creatively has a lot of applications. It is daunting to think about going freelance. That would be much more uncertain. It takes a lot of work to find and maintain clients, however I think I may end up doing that sometime in the future.


5) What moment/place/time/setting lets you function to your fullest creative potential?

I am NOT a morning person. I wish I was. I do the best when I can get in a moment of flow, and really focus. I actually really like listening to podcasts and interviews with other creatives while I'm working because their stories really motivate me. My favorite and most productive time is actually between 11pm and 2 am when I'm working on something that's got me excited and I can't stop for bed because I'm afraid I'll lose my creative flow.

If you are a passionate creative and want to share your own Take Five on The Art Abyss shoot us an email at theartabyss@gmail.com and let us know!

Take 5 with Alyea Pierce

I first discovered Alyea Pierce through her Ignite speech, which I've embedded below. She makes a compelling and inspiring case for allowing your dreams to be the thing that drives your profession in life, and writes some pretty excellent poetry while she's at it. The interview portion of this post is excerpted from AmericanBeau.com, and is definitely worth reading all the way through. Enjoy! 

Name:
Alyea Pierce

Creative Specialties: Motivational speaker and poet
 
Current Location:
New Brunswick, NJ

Mini Bio:
Alyea Pierce is a Junior at Rutgers University New Brunswick, majoring in Communications with a double minor in English and Linguistics. She was a Top 12 finalist in the 2012 NY Knicks Poetry Slam (Premiering on the MSG website and channel), Top 20 finalist in the 2011 and 2012 NYC Teen Poetry Slams and one of seven students in Rutgers University chosen to perform at the RU Mark Conference. Some of the venues Alyea has performed at are the Apollo Theater, Broadway’s New Amsterdam Theater, Columbia University, Kean University, the Nuyorican Poets Café and over 75 events at Rutgers University. She is a Hopeful Romantic, Poetry Mentor for the NAACP ACT-So Program, and a Public Speaking Coach and Judge currently working on her first book entitled “Every Stranger Deserves a Poem”. She was a member of the first Rutgers Slam team in 2012 which placed 11th in the nation at the College Unions Poetry Invitational in California and Team Leader of the 2013 RU slam Team competing in New York. Alyea strives to be a world traveled motivational poet, teaching children the beauty of art and voice through poetry.
(Source)
 
Website:
https://www.facebook.com/Alyeaspeaks




(Interview excerpted from AmericanBeau.com)

1) When did you first start reciting spoken word/poetry and what was your inspiration behind starting?

Since I was a little girl I was always enticed by the arts, but would only perform for myself. My first writing experience was actually forced by my seventh grade English teacher, and I hated it. After being forced to free write for 15 minutes every day, poetry began to fly out of my pen and from there poetry slams started coming into my eye all the time. My inspiration was the fact that I could never speak my true feelings. I always held a lot in as a child, and never knew how to voice my words… so my motivation was that I must speak for those who can’t.


2) Do you find it hard to accept criticism? What was the most rewarding comment someone has given you?

When I was younger I used to be very protective of my words. When you are giving yourself to a page and someone critiques it and tells that person that they could fix this and that. It hurts…Poems are like your baby. They are a part of you. They are you. However, as I got older, I now understand that criticism is necessary for evolution and growth. When I show a person my piece for the first time I normally have a disclaimer, “This piece will never be perfection, but I appreciate your opinion. Please tell me where you become confused, and please tell me where you feel the most.” The most rewarding comment someone has given me was from a first time poet. She said “Thank you. You are my inspiration. If it wasn’t for you, I would not have touched that stage.” 

3) When do yourself having the greatest spurts of creativity? Do you always write down your lyrics or do you often find yourself keeping them in your head?

Literally, poetry can be written out of anything. That’s why I love it, there are no amazing bursts of creativity (sitting on the Rutgers bus on a Friday night is inspiration.) However, I will say that sitting in a silent room by yourself, is great for creativity if I must give an answer because you can only face yourself. All you have in a room by yourself, is yourself. You have your regret, your love, your anger, your tears, your thoughts. So, that is a great way to truly write an honest piece of work.

4) Judging from your live performances, I would say that emotions from past/present relationships and love have created a great amount of your poetry. Is this true?

(Laughing) “My pain is another person’s therapy session”…What poet doesn’t use past relationships as motivation for a masterpiece. There are many topics that I love to touch on and challenge myself with, but love…everyone can relate to. We all strive for love, at all ages, at all moments in time, in some shape or form. Love is our drive for living and that is why I take from past relationships, and fairy tales. It brings all of this figurative language, and years of attempting to master poetics back to its origin. It reminds me that I am a truth teller. I am human.

5) Would you like to make poetry/spoken word your main career?

YES! I am an entrepreneur. I am a business woman who does what she loves for a living. Poets can’t sit in cubicles. I have known that this is what I wanted to do for a living since I was 14…I can’t stop now. I am built for the stage and the page. I am a motivational poet and spoken word artist, a public speaking and poetry coach/mentor and I would not change a thing.

To see what Alyea is up to these days, check her out on Facebook.

Take Five With Morgan Lee Kestner

Photo By: Hilary Mercer

Name: 
Morgan Lee Kestner

Creative Specialties: 
Costume Design

Current Location: 
Los Angeles, CA

Mini Bio: 
Morgan is straight from Nashville Tennessee. Growing up she had her mom and grandmother teach her how to sew. From there Morgan knew that she wanted to be a designer. After college and 2 years in Atlanta, Morgan has resided in Los Angeles where she works on print and commercials.  She is working on her new lines and hopes to have it on display in 2014.

Website: 

www.morganleekestner.com
Or check out her Facebook Page!

1) What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person?

Making a living at what I love to do. Obviously, this is an ongoing challenge but the fact that I have made this choice to do what I love over any other "safe" job has been my biggest challenge. Since embarking on this challenge, after 3 years I am finally hitting my stride. 

2) How do you cope with creative anxiety and societal expectations?

I workout and dance. I find that if I have some social interaction and do intense workouts it helps my mind release stress and thus be able to think clearer. 

3) Do you have a ritual way of preparing to create?


I love to walk the fabric district in downtown LA. Trips to Mood Fabrics (a must), glimpsing through magazines, and sketching. Coffee is always apart of this ritual. 


4) How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life?


Save your money! I work freelance and it is inevitable that there will be slow months and busy months. You have to really figure out a budget for yourself. I limited all my outings for 3 months so I could save an emergency income supply for those dry months. 


5) What moment/place/time/setting lets you function to your fullest creative potential?

For me, its coffee, This American Life, music, clean space, and evenings. I am most productive around 3pm-10pm. 

If you want to check out some of Morgans work, check out her VIMEO page.

Take Five With Cassie Fox

Mini Bio: 
Cassie Fox generally keeps busy by kicking butt and fighting for the issues that are important to her. When not attending to her superhero duties, she spends her time in Tennessee with her amazing husband and two adorable mini-humans.

Creative Specialities: 
Poetry, Prose, Photography

The Best Way To Describe Her Is: 
Passionate - about her family, about her friends, about the issues that matter to her.

Personal Pages: 
http://thewretchedpoet.tumblr.com/ 

1. What is one thing you've learned as an artist that you wish you'd known when you first started out? 
For it to really, truly count, your art has to be your voice --it's not enough for it to come from your hands, or your mouth, or your body. Every pen stroke and brush stroke and adverb and pirouette have to be wholly and authentically a gift from your soul to yourself and the world around you. Be appreciative of what other artists have to say, but learn to say your own truths, and let others appreciate you. 

2. What is the greatest challenge you have faced as a creative person? 
I believe creative people are, by nature, extremely open – open hearts, open minds, open arms. We embrace all that we see, all we can sense and touch and dream – the beautiful and the horrible, the sweet-smelling and the decayed – and sometimes, we watch it crumble in our hands, everything reduced to a tiny pile of ashes or a burning pile of rubble, smoking at our feet. Sometimes, it seems like all the great triumphs and all the great ills of the world we live in sneak in under my skin, and when the input becomes greater than the output, I begin to feel claustrophobic inside myself. Words get bottled up in my bones, and extracting them can be a long, difficult process. 

3. If money were no object, what would you make? 
I would make everything. I would write the sun up into the sky and I would dance with dawn. I would draw lazy lunchtime daisies and photograph the faces of the fields around my house. I would sing out across a hundred sunsets and I would tell stories to the moon. But mostly, I would write – poems, prose, a single word, ten thousand words. 

4. What moment/place/time/setting lets you function to your fullest creative potential? 
I am both blessed and cursed with an imperfect but persistent muse. It doesn't so much matter where I am or what time I am there as where she is at any given moment. I think of her as kind of an older sister, one who comes home from college every once in a while, and who is really present and in the moment when she's there, staying up talking with you until three in the morning about all the things you're too embarrassed to mention to your friends, giving you your first wine cooler, lighting up a joint for you and not laughing when you cough, telling you in a hushed whisper to never shave down there because it's insanely itchy growing back and totally not worth it; but she dates these skeezy guys who leave bruises and she never eats enough and she has scars you don't even want to ask about, and she's just really wise and really funny and really amazing, but also really fucking broken. Which is all a very long way of saying that I write whenever the hell she shows up. 

5. How do you deal with the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies a creative life? 
I accept that being creative is not just something I do, it's something I am. When I was eight, we had a small pool in our backyard, and I spent most of the summer sinking to the bottom, learning how to hold my breath for longer and longer periods of time. By August, I'd worked my way up to two minutes and thirty-eight seconds, and the last thirty were the worst; sitting under four feet of water, pressing on top of me like a living thing, my eyes wide open and staring at my brother's brown legs, my lungs like liquid fire, counting, counting, imagining what it would be like to simply open my mouth and breathe, would it hurt, would anyone notice, wouldn't it be the best way to go, to inhale and then look right at the sun, so that a beautiful muted light was the last thing you saw before you closed your eyes? Not creating feels like that – like I'm eight again at the bottom of the pool, my chest expanding as big as the earth, ready to burst. And in the same way I always made it back to the surface in time, lungs sucking in sweet air that smelled like blue hydrangeas and tasted like chlorine and clover, I create, sentences and paragraphs and photographs and it feels just exactly like breathing.


For more from Cassie, be sure to check out her Tumblr.

Take Umm… 40? With Hugh MacLeod

Image © Hugh Macleod and gapingvoid.com

This Thursday, instead of our normal take five post, I wanted to share some amazing advice from cartoonist Hugh MacLeod. I recently got the chance to read his book: Ignore Everybody And 39 Other Keys to Creativity and was blown away by some of the really powerful observations he made about living a creative life. I'll be posting up all 40 of his key points below, but I highly suggest you pick up a copy of the book itself because it is definitely worth the read!!!  Hugh even lets you read the first 25% of the book for free if you click here!

Ignore everybody.

“The more original your idea is, the less good advice other people will be able to give you. When I first started with the cartoon-on-the-back-of-bizcard format, people thought I was nuts. Why wasn’t I trying to do something that was easier for markets to digest, like cutie-pie greeting cards or whatever?”

The idea doesn’t have to be big. It just has to be yours.

“The sovereignty you have over your work will inspire far more people than the actual content ever will.”

Put the hours in.

“Doing anything worthwhile takes forever. Ninety percent of what separates successful people and failed people is time, effort and stamina.”

Good ideas have lonely childhoods.

“This is the price you pay, every time. There is no way of avoiding it.”

If your business plan depends on suddenly being “discovered” by some big shot, your plan will probably fail.

“Nobody suddenly discovers anything. Things are made slowly and in pain.”

You are responsible for your own experience.

“Nobody can tell you if what you are doing is good, meaningful, or worthwhile. The more compelling the path, the more lonely it is.”

Everyone is born creative; everyone is given a box of crayons in kindergarten.

“Then when you hit puberty, they take the crayons away and replace them with dry, uninspiring books on algebra, history, etc. Being suddenly hit years later with the “creative bug” is just a weak voice telling you, “I’d like my crayons back please.”

Keep your day job.

“I’m not just saying that for the usual reason – that is, because I think your idea will fail. I’m saying it because to suddenly quit one’s job in a big ol’ creative drama-queen moment is always, always, always a direct conflict with what I call “The Sex & Cash Theory.”

Companies that squelch creativity can no longer compete with companies that champion creativity.

“Nor can you bully a subordinate into becoming a genius.”

Everybody has their own private Mount Everest they were put on this earth to climb.

“You may never reach the summit; for that you will be forgiven. But if you don’t make at least one serious attempt to get above the snow line, years later you will find yourself lying on your deathbed, and all you will feel is emptiness.”

The more talented somebody is, the less they need props.

“Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece on the back of a deli menu would not surprise me. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece with a silver Cartier fountain pen on an antique writing table in an airy SoHo loft would seriously surprise me.”

Don't try and stand out from the crowd; avoid crowds altogether.

“Your plan for getting your work out there has to be as original as the actual work, perhaps even more so. The work has to create a totally new market. There’s no point trying to do the same thing as 250,000 other young hopefuls, waiting for a miracle. All existing business models are wrong. Find a new one.”

If you accept the pain, it cannot hurt you.

"The pain of making the necessary sacrifices always hurts more than you think it’s going to. I know. It sucks. The being said, doing something seriously creative is one of the most amazing experiences one can have, in this or any other lifetime. If you can pull it off, it’s worth it. Even if you don’t end up pulling it off, you’ll learn many incredible, magical, valuable things. It’s not doing it – when you know full well you had the opportunity – that hurts far more than any failure."

Never compare your inside with somebody else’s outside.

“The more you practice your craft, the less you confuse worldly rewards with spiritual rewards, and vice-versa. Even if your path never makes any money or furthers your career, that’s still worth a ton.”

Dying young is overrated.

“I’ve seen so many young people take the “Gotta do the drugs and booze thing to make me a better artist” route over the years. A choice that wasn’t smart, original, effective, healthy, or ended happily.”

The most important thing a creative person can learn professionally is where to draw the red line that separates what you are willing to do from what you are not.

“Art suffers the moment other people start paying for it. The more you need the money, the more people will tell you what to do. The less control you will have. The more bullshit you will have to swallow. The less joy it will bring. Know this and plan accordingly.”

The world is changing.

“Some people are hip to it, others are not. If you want to be able to afford groceries in five years, I’d recommend listening closely to the former and avoiding the latter. Just my two cents.”

Merit can be bought. Passion can’t.

“The only people who can change the world are people who want to. And not everybody does.”

Avoid the Watercooler Gang.

“They’re a well meaning bunch, but they get in the way eventually.”

Sing in your own voice.

“Picasso was a terrible colorist. Turner couldn’t paint human beings worth a damn. Saul Steinberg’s formal drafting skills were appalling. T.S. Eliot had a full-time day job. Henry Miller was a wildly uneven writer. Bob Dylan can’t sing or play guitar.”

The choice of media is irrelevant.

“Every medium’s greatest strength is also it’s greatest weakness. Every form of media is a set of fundamental compromises. One is not “higher” than the others. A painting doesn’t do much, it just sits there on a wall. That’s the best and worst thing about it. Film combines sound, movement, photography, music, acting. That’s the best and worst thing about it. Prose just uses words arranged in linear form to get its point across. That’s the best and worst thing about it, etc.”

Selling out is harder than it looks.

“Diluting your product to make it more “commercial” will just make people like it less.”

Nobody cares. Do it for yourself.

“Everybody is too busy with their own lives to give a damn about your book, painting, screenplay, etc., especially if you haven’t finished it yet. And the ones who aren’t too busy you don’t want in your life anyway.”

Worrying about “Commercial vs. Artistic” is a complete waste of time.

“You can argue about “Selling Out” versus “Artistic Purity” till the cows come home. People were kvetching about it in 1850, and they’ll be kvetching about it in 2150.”

Don’t worry about finding inspiration. It comes eventually.

“Inspiration precedes the desire to create, not the other way round.”

You have to find your own shtick.

“A Picasso always looks like Picasso painted it. Hemingway always sounds like Hemingway. A Beethoven symphony always sounds like a Beethoven symphony. Part of being a master is learning how to sing in nobody else’s voice but your own.”

Write from the heart.

“There is no silver bullet. There is only the love God gave you.”

The best way to get approval is not to need it.

“This is equally true in art and business. And love. And sex. And just about everything else worth having.”

Power is never given. Power is taken.

“People who are 'ready' give off a different vibe from people who aren’t. Animals can smell fear. And the lack thereof.”

Whatever choice you make, the Devil gets his due eventually.

“Selling out to Hollywood comes with a price. So does not selling out. Either way, you pay in full, and yes, it invariably hurts like hell.”

The hardest part of being creative is getting used to it.

“If you have the creative urge, it isn’t going to go away. But sometimes it takes a while before you accept the fact.”

Remain frugal.

“The less you can live on, the more chance your idea will succeed. This is true even after you’ve 'made it.'”

Allow your work to age with you.

“You become older faster than you think. Be ready for it when it happens.”

Being poor sucks.

“The biggest mistake young people make is underestimating how competitive the world is out there.”

Beware of turning hobbies into jobs.

“It sounds great, but there is a downside.”

Savor obscurity while it lass.

“Once you 'make it,' your work is never the same.

Start blogging.

“The ease with which a blog (or whatever social medium you prefer) can circumvent the gatekeepers is staggering.”

Meaning scales, people don’t.

"It may be modest, it may not be. It could be a little candle shop; it could be a software company with the GNP of Sweden. It doesn't matter. Meaning Scales."

When your dreams become reality, they are no longer your dreams.

“If you are successful, it’ll never come from the direction you predicted. Same is true if you fail.”

If this hit home with you, make sure to pick up a copy of Hugh's Book Ignore Everybody And 39 Other Keys to Creativity so you can get the full story behind each of these amazing statements!

Hugh Macleod is a cartoonist, author and creator of gapingvoid.com and Social Object Factory.  He currently has three amazing books for sale: Ignore Everybody And 39 Other Keys to Creativity, Evil Plans, and Freedom is Blogging in Your Underwear.