The Artist's Drive

Perhaps you read the article in the New York Times this week about 94-year old Carmen Herrera. Herrera, a Cuban-born artist living in New York, has been doing abstract geometric painting for more than fifty years but has only started receiving praise and acclaim within the past five. Her story is not entirely uncommon – many great artists received no recognition or monetary reward for their work until after they were long dead. One could argue that it takes society decades to appreciate and understand a new style, or perhaps the posterity of death shines a new light on the work, making it instantly more intriguing. Whatever the reason, artists often don’t receive the kind of career affirmation that most of us need to stay motivated day after day, year after year.

So what drives the artist? What returns them to the canvas, to the drawing board? Well if you have ever known a true artist of any kind, be it painter, musician, or poet, you know that what motivates them is a pure love for the process and for their medium. From that moment when a flash of an idea comes into the mind, to the hours spent executing and experimenting, finding the right combination of colors, or words, to the deep satisfaction when a piece is completed and a vision is realized. Creativity cannot be catalyzed by external factors like money, or fame – it is a deep, internal desire to express oneself and to put form to a vision that allows the artist to create.

I am reminded of my first art teacher here in San Francisco, Susan. Susan is in her sixties and, like Herrera, has been painting for most of her life without much critical acclaim. She has a small gallery where she displays and sometimes sells her oil paintings, mostly French scenes depicting women in fabulous shoes, small Parisian dogs, and street life. Susan’s life, as I have come to learn about it, has taken many twists and turns. She moved to San Francisco from upstate New York when she was just seventeen; she worked in clothing boutiques and was swept up in the free-love culture. Throughout her life she struggled with money, men, and substances – but art was always a constant, and she never stopped painting, sketching, and creating, and eventually was able to establish her gallery.

Susan is a woman completed obsessed and dedicated to her work – it is her lifeblood, and when you hear her speak of it, you know she creates it entirely for herself. In fact, I have even seen her turn away interested customers from her gallery who did not seem like adequate parents for her paintings. What has kept her going all these years is not recognition from the art world, or wealth – it is the desire to paint the perfect woman’s hat, or to find the right shade of orange-red that will demonstrate the vibrancy of the Golden Gate bridge at dusk. You need this kind of spirit if you are going to survive as an artist – your motivation must be your love for the process, for your medium, and for your work. Perhaps if you are lucky you will receive some acclaim while you are still alive, like Herrera has. Or perhaps you will scrape together enough to have a small gallery. But above all your goal must be to continue the work each day, and be satisfied in that.

NYT article about Herrera: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/20/arts/design/20herrera.html