One thing you will never think after reading a great book or listening to a great album or seeing a great piece of art is, “I’m really glad this person remained cautious while they were making this and guarded against being perceived as weird.”
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My husband was once told by someone "you're the weirdest person I know". His response was "Thank you! I mean, I feel a bit badly if I'm it, you should get out more, but thank you!"
Alligator Bites Never Heal by Doechii comes to mind for me. She has this thing about her where her weirdness is her strength. And she's so unapologetic about it.
I'm doing my best, but more importantly I'm encouraging my kids to be as weird as they want. The contempt they have for authority is admirable, but also extremely frustrating when I am the authority figure.
They all love to make art too, so that's great and can only get better!
One thing you should think:
“The Goverment could make
sure the lives of creative people
don’t resemble those of Resistance
Fighters behind enemy lines.
Maybe the way the problem is
handled in Cuba, China,
and numerous other countries
is something Westerners should
consider.”
Assembling an art collection is akin to financial investment in constituting a series of bets on what others would think as valuable and how the perception of it will evolve in the future.
That mindset is what holds back most of the population. Even those who are aware of fear of their own weirdness. All brilliance is based on being outside the norm. It’s a place of bliss.
I saw some of it in the gallery in context of his work, and it's never going to be my favourite, but it's easier to see where he was going with it and why. He wouldn't have been a better artist if he tried to paint normally; he's just an artist we neither of us love.
Art where the artist is either pushing themselves or just being themselves with great passion, increases the chances I will a: love it, b: hate it, or c: appreciate its ambition despite not loving it. All, even hate, are better options, than d: not even notice it because "meh".
This doesn't mean it can't have commercial success; some great art gets recognized as such. But it also sometimes ends up a very wonderful niche, and not enough of those are celebrated.
When I was young I gave up writing because when I let myself write freely I felt terribly exposed, and when I tried to nudge my writing to be more acceptable in the eyes of my family and friends it withered and was lifeless. I’m writing again, in my 50’s, but it doesn’t flow from my pen as easily.
I thought the exact opposite of this after reading Amygdala(Sam Fennah). The book literally tells you to mentally steel yourself because it explores wild ideas and a twisting world where morals are extremely grey.
In fact, "morals" is kind of a joke in the world.
There's too much to say and praise.
I mean, I thought the opposite of "I’m really glad this person remained cautious while they were making this and guarded against being perceived as weird."
My yet-to-be-picked-up-by-a-publisher book Uncorrected Bound Proof is entirely free of caution. It might be the most revolutionary book written about music.
Alan Moore's discursive and allusion heavy style take more effort than the bland stylistic identity free narratives favoured in fiction currently but is far more nutritious.
I’ve spent a lifetime thinking like this. I still do. In my head it’s better to create no art rather than my art. I’m trying to break away from my complete lack of confidence. I’ll get there…one day.
See, you say this, but almost all of my coworkers listen to music with the exact same "bass beat", that just goes "umcha umcha umcha umcha", to the point where the numbers are completely indistinguishable from each other.
And they all think it's great...
I like that music when I want to dance, or want energy but don't want to annoy peers. Sounds perfect for inoffensive public workspace music. It's also not what I listen to at home -- or when I put on my headphones due to an emotionally hard phone call (my work involves those sometimes).
Theres a physicality to music, and four on the floor beats are a very easy way to produce a physical desire to move to music.
Art is hard and as artists we're all on a path of improvement, but some people use different crutches in different ways
Here's a recent video extolling a 20+ year old song that was widely decried when it was released as being too weird to get any radio airplay (at least where lived at the time) - https://youtu.be/upTDLfsuWZs
On the other hand, watching the film version of The Sound of Music or listening to a Carpenters album can make you appreciate extremely talented people who drew within the lines.
Summer Days And Summer Nights by The Beach Boys. Lacks the innovation and experimentation of Today or Pet Sounds, but the songs are just as good, and the band’s oeuvre would be worse for its absence. Spice one, Mikey Boy.
You know what's a weird book? Moby Dick. You know what book experiments with the form? Don Quixote. Weirdness has always been a huge part of greatness.
I like the sentiment but there are exceptions. For one of my favourite authors, their best works are when they’ve been reigned in from their wildest indulgences. Editors make a big contribution too!
I think the contrast between a well-edited book and a book "too big to edit" is a different problem. An editor will want to keep in the weird that makes the story, and get rid of the *self-indulgence* that blocks the shingjng weird from view.
im weird but im not weird enough, especially offline. Im too guarded n awkward. I want to design a style or outfit, but if i just copy something, i dont have the social experience so itd be inauthentic even with genuine interest. So I feel like its too much effort need like 5 more sets of skills.
i think a deeply paranoid and neurotic obsession with being perceived as normal could produce some interesting art but that would in itself be a form of being weird
The terrifying knife edge of art (it seems to me as someone who has never accomplished it) is to *allow* yourself to be weird without *trying* to be weird.
Late 80s: Terence Trent Darby has a couple big hits
Follows up w aggressively weird statement LP
It … isn’t great but hey he went his own path & later had a sense of humor about it (comment about ‘at least it’s taking up space in the shops that might be filled w something w 0 soul’)
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For when we look at the truly average person. Who the hell would ever want to be that? Weird just means outlyer, far away from average. Exceptional
They all love to make art too, so that's great and can only get better!
“The Goverment could make
sure the lives of creative people
don’t resemble those of Resistance
Fighters behind enemy lines.
Maybe the way the problem is
handled in Cuba, China,
and numerous other countries
is something Westerners should
consider.”
1. During the first eight I had not yet learned, lived, written and read enough to find my flow.
2. During the most recent seven I have not been holding back on any weirdness.
I wish I had half your gumption, but I do try to surround myself with people who are smarter, wiser, more eloquent, and more creative than I am.
https://youtu.be/v0DpBnUznd0?si=vYsfPlxgGV9KSYGb
And some folk do love it.
In fact, "morals" is kind of a joke in the world.
There's too much to say and praise.
I mean, I thought the opposite of "I’m really glad this person remained cautious while they were making this and guarded against being perceived as weird."
I LOVED THE WEIRD.
Cesar A. Cruz
Though, I kinda keep berating myself, too.
"If they can do it, what the hell is your problem? What's holding you back?"
I know the answer but, ye.
Vincent Van Gogh is an outlier
Alan Moore's discursive and allusion heavy style take more effort than the bland stylistic identity free narratives favoured in fiction currently but is far more nutritious.
The most important opinion of your work is yours.
All the greats did what they did because they knew it was worth it.
And they all think it's great...
Art is hard and as artists we're all on a path of improvement, but some people use different crutches in different ways
When you create unrestricted, you move innumerable souls
Follows up w aggressively weird statement LP
It … isn’t great but hey he went his own path & later had a sense of humor about it (comment about ‘at least it’s taking up space in the shops that might be filled w something w 0 soul’)
-exceptionally, dangerously milquetoast people