I sincerely thank you both for the compliments.
Here is a snippet from one of my favorite books,
by a beloved teacher in the early 20thcentury
"Art when really understood is the province
of every human being.
"It is simply a question of doing things, anything,
well. It is not an outside, extra thing.
"When the artist is alive in any person, whatever
his kind of work may be, he becomes an inventive,
searching, daring, self-expressing creature. He becomes
interesting to other people. He disturbs, upsets, enlightens,
and he opens ways for a better understanding.
Where those who are not artists are trying to close the book,
he opens it, shows there are still more pages possible.
"The world would stagnate without him, and the
world would be beautiful with him; for he is
interesting to himself and he is interesting to others.
He does not have to be a painter or sculptor to be an
artist. He can work in any medium. He simply has to
find the gain in the work itself, not outside it.
"Museums of art will not make a country an art country.
But where there is the art spirit there will be precious
works to fill museums. Better still, there will be the
happiness that is in the making. Art tends towards
balance, order, judgment of relative values, the laws of
growth, the economy of living - very good things for
anyone to be interested in."
The Art Spirit by Robert Henri
And I love this passage as it relates to the American Idol contestants:
"The work of the art student is no light matter.
Few have the courage and stamina to see it through.
You have to make up your mind to be alone in many ways.
We like sympathy and we like to be in good company.
It is easier than going it alone. But alone one gets
acqainted with himself, grows up and on, not stopping
with the crowd. It costs to do this..
If you succeed somewhat you may have to pay for it
as well as enjoy it all your life."