It seems every artist has read this book. It’s been on my shelf since college. 9-11 years. I haven’t read it.
Well, I’m trying to get into the habit of the Miracle Morning routine. I love it. But I also love laying in bed and looking at Facebook until Gunnar starts insisting my life isn’t all about me.
So anyway, part of the Miracle Morning is reading for 10 minutes. Not just anything, something that will get you to your goals. I’d been reading Worth Every Penny, but this morning, I wanted something else. Enter, The Art Spirit.
Now I finally know why everyone else has already read it. Every paragraph had me saying, “Same.” Every single one I thought, “I need to share this on the blog. Wait, no, this one… OMG. This one is life.”
Then, I read this one, emphasis, mine:
No matter what may happen on the surface [of society] the brotherhood [of artists] goes steadily on. It is the evolution of man. Let the surface destroy itself, the brotherhood will start it again. For in all cases, no matter how strong the surface institutions become, no matter what laws may be laid down, what patches may be made, all change that is real is due to the brotherhood. (p. 19)
Of course, this probably stood out because of how uncertain the surface seems right now. Art is the root of mankind. It’s the first way we communicated. The highest experience of everything is an art form.
It’s reassuring. In a society that uses artists in everything, yet rarely recognizes them in anything, it’s necessary to be reminded that artistry is it. I don’t just mean painters, although, obviously we’re the best. After Beyonce of course. Steve Jobs was an artist. Martin Luther King Jr. was an artist. Michael Jordan was an artist. Their mediums were just electronics, words, and a basketball.
Sure, we have people who make up the rules, but that’s only because the artists are too busy working.
This isn’t a new concept. Obviously. The copyright is 1923. It’s just one that needs repeating as often as possible.
No matter what happens. We’ve got this.