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What powers artists who reach old age? The work

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Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#11

Post by te_chris »

mgkimsal wrote: post #9
lolive wrote: post #5

That makes me think about David Bowie’s last album. I am pretty neutral on his previous creations. But his last album really resonates in me. And I wonder how you do feel when you have reached such a level of expertise, and are given an unknown amount of limited time to achieve your last creation.

Have you listened to Brainwashed by George Harrison? It was his last album, knowing he had cancer and had limited time... wondering if you may have similar resonance with that one.

Also Warren Zevon’s last album. Keep Me In Your Heart For A While might be the perfect goodbye song.

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#12

Post by louthy »

psychomugs wrote: post #10
trelane wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like a shallow comment, but it's not. Some (many?) die long before they die physically. These folks retained their vitality long into old age.

"The creative adult is the child who survived." - Ursula K. Le Guin

She didn't say that apparently [1]. However, as a creative person, the sentiment resonates with me. There is definitely an element of child-like play to the creative process.

[1] https://genpubbranding.com/quotation-mark-up-creativity-and-...

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#13

Post by keiferski »

Not mentioned in the article: Michelangelo, who outlived pretty much all of his contemporaries and, "late in life, took on a series of huge, daunting projects, fully aware that he would never live to see them completed."

https://web.archive.org/web/20200629202130/https://www.nyboo...

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#14

Post by gannonburgett »

Tade0 wrote: post #6

My mother is an artist by education, but she didn't pursue a career in art, and opted for being an artisan and practicing art in her spare time. She's now retired and is only occasionally asked to do some part time work. By her account now is the best time for actual creativity. There's no pressure to stand out and as a long time member of the artist association she can count on some space to show off her work should…

> "She also does sculpture because every painter eventually becomes a sculptor and every sculptor eventually becomes a painter."

I've noticed this through various reading and art classes back at university, but I've never quite come across a reason why this tends to hold true across the two domains. Why do you think that is? Or, better yet, why does your mother think that is?

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#15

Post by pseudoramble »

te_chris wrote: post #11
mgkimsal wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you listened to Brainwashed by George Harrison? It was his last album, knowing he had cancer and had limited time... wondering if you may have similar resonance with that one.

Also Warren Zevon’s last album. Keep Me In Your Heart For A While might be the perfect goodbye song.

Zevon's last album is titled "The Wind" and yeah it really does stand out! His last performance on Late Night w/ Letterman is also something to check out. Really lots of his material is interesting to check out, even the stuff that doesn't do it for me is still good to enjoy!

I also love "Brainwashed" by George Harrison. Now I want to listen to the last Bowie album, assuming it was made in a similar context. It also makes me wonder if there's a list of all albums made in a similar vein. It would be an... emotional experience to listen to them all back-to-back!

Maybe I should just not subject myself to that.

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#16

Post by pjmorris »

psychomugs wrote: post #10
trelane wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like a shallow comment, but it's not. Some (many?) die long before they die physically. These folks retained their vitality long into old age.

"The creative adult is the child who survived." - Ursula K. Le Guin

I enjoyed the Le Guin quote... until I searched for its source and found her even better blog post where she demolishes it, 'The Inner Child and the Nude Politician' [0]. Every once in awhile I'm reminded that she blogged and that I owe it to myself to read her.

[0] https://www.ursulakleguin.com/blog/91-the-inner-child-and-th...

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#17

Post by te_chris »

pseudoramble wrote: post #15
te_chris wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also Warren Zevon’s last album. Keep Me In Your Heart For A While might be the perfect goodbye song.

Zevon's last album is titled "The Wind" and yeah it really does stand out! His last performance on Late Night w/ Letterman is also something to check out. Really lots of his material is interesting to check out, even the stuff that doesn't do it for me is still good to enjoy! I also love "Brainwashed" by George Harrison. Now I want to listen to the last Bowie album, assuming it was made in a similar context. It also…

The Bowie one is less of a tearful goodbye and more of a triumphant bow, so maybe one to play last heh. It’s excellent. Must be such a deep creative position to be in, making your final creative work after a long and successful career.

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#18

Post by iainctduncan »

pjmorris wrote: post #16
psychomugs wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"The creative adult is the child who survived." - Ursula K. Le Guin

I enjoyed the Le Guin quote... until I searched for its source and found her even better blog post where she demolishes it, 'The Inner Child and the Nude Politician' [0]. Every once in awhile I'm reminded that she blogged and that I owe it to myself to read her. [0] https://www.ursulakleguin.com/blog/91-the-inner-child-and-th...

Her book on writing, "Steering the Craft" is absolute gold.

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#19

Post by psychomugs »

pjmorris wrote: post #16
psychomugs wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"The creative adult is the child who survived." - Ursula K. Le Guin

I enjoyed the Le Guin quote... until I searched for its source and found her even better blog post where she demolishes it, 'The Inner Child and the Nude Politician' [0]. Every once in awhile I'm reminded that she blogged and that I owe it to myself to read her. [0] https://www.ursulakleguin.com/blog/91-the-inner-child-and-th...

Thanks for the correction and fantastic resource. I still resonate with the less-reductive sentiment of the quote; among friends in fields with little relation to their personal interests, I'm (un?)fortunate to have willed my way from childhood robot toys into a PhD in robotics. That childlike creativity is a useful asset to get unstuck.

Won't be quoting it again though.

Re: What powers artists who reach old age? The work

#20

Post by pjmorris »

psychomugs wrote: post #19
pjmorris wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I enjoyed the Le Guin quote... until I searched for its source and found her even better blog post where she demolishes it, 'The Inner Child and the Nude Politician' [0]. Every once in awhile I'm reminded that she blogged and that I owe it to myself to read her. [0] https://www.ursulakleguin.com/blog/91-the-inner-child-and-th...

Thanks for the correction and fantastic resource. I still resonate with the less-reductive sentiment of the quote; among friends in fields with little relation to their personal interests, I'm (un?)fortunate to have willed my way from childhood robot toys into a PhD in robotics. That childlike creativity is a useful asset to get unstuck. Won't be quoting it again though.

It hurt me a little bit to read what she had to say, but I don't think she detracts from your sentiment at all. Retaining a childlike playfulness has helped me through career, marriage, parenting, a PhD (in roughly that order.) I joke that we're like onions, simply adding a new layer every year, getting to keep who we were before.

Here are a couple of Einstein quotes on the matter:

“People like you and me, though mortal, of course, like everyone else, do not grow old no matter how long we live. What I mean is that we never cease to stand like curious children before the great Mystery into which we are born.” – Albert Einstein

“There is, after all, something eternal that lies beyond the reach of the hand of fate and of all human delusions. And such eternals lie closer to an older person than to a younger one who oscillates between fear and hope. For us, there remains the privilege of experiencing beauty and truth in their purest forms.” – Albert Einstein

Hopefully he actually said them!

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