May 2017
While I was in getting my latest tattoo a week ago, I expressed an interest in the possibility of getting a line or two from one of my own poems tattooed on me somewhere. I'm not sure that Stan (my artist) understood that I was talking about my own writing. His answer to my expressed desire was basically a question: why words, when a picture is worth a thousand words?
It was an awkward moment for me because I totally agreed with what he said, but in my mind I was very upset. I wanted to answer him with "because I can't ******* draw, so all I have is my words!", but I didn't. So the awkward moment was inside my mind and stayed there to never come out until now.
Honestly, I'm not really even sure if I've written anything worthy of being permanently placed on my skin. I'm not even sure I have written anything worthy of even having been taken out of my mind and put in plain view for anyone to see in the first place. I've always been jealous of the traditional artist who paints and draws and sculpts. They create life out of absolutely nothing but pigment and paper and even trash.
What does a novelist do, but lie about some fictitious event or group of charachters on some world based ever so lightly on reality and sell a reader on his or her ******* to escape their own. That's pretty harsh. I realize that. I guess I can admit that artists are doing the exact same thing, but with much greater effort and, often times, with less environmental impact! Maybe not. I don't know.
I guess as a man who dabbles in poetry, and I don't dare call myself a poet, I'm just jealous of the attention that other art forms get from audiences. A painter spends so much time on her canvas, puts it out for the world to see, and the effort immediately receives criticism, both good and bad. The same thing can be said about musicians.
Poetry is different though. It's much more subjective. I've both written and read topical poetry that was simple and to the point, but that writing is usually just slogans, or maybe even post card worthy crap. I've done the same thing with poems that I've read a thousand times and I STILL couldn't figure them out! There really is such a thing as overly clandestine. I've learned that over the years. You can play hide and seek, but if nobody finds you, then it's no fun right?
All art really does is give it's creator an outlet to express himself or herself no matter the vehicle. Maybe I'll find that perfect stanza of my own words to put on my calf. Maybe my tattoo artist will read the words and love them. Maybe he'll scoff, take my money, and throw them up in a hurry. I guess it doesn't matter much. Like anyone else who creates, I do it because I have to and not because I want to and, while it would be nice if I could connect with people over my creations, in the end I don't care. I'm just like every other artist out there who loves what they do and ******* if you don't!
It was an awkward moment for me because I totally agreed with what he said, but in my mind I was very upset. I wanted to answer him with "because I can't ******* draw, so all I have is my words!", but I didn't. So the awkward moment was inside my mind and stayed there to never come out until now.
Honestly, I'm not really even sure if I've written anything worthy of being permanently placed on my skin. I'm not even sure I have written anything worthy of even having been taken out of my mind and put in plain view for anyone to see in the first place. I've always been jealous of the traditional artist who paints and draws and sculpts. They create life out of absolutely nothing but pigment and paper and even trash.
What does a novelist do, but lie about some fictitious event or group of charachters on some world based ever so lightly on reality and sell a reader on his or her ******* to escape their own. That's pretty harsh. I realize that. I guess I can admit that artists are doing the exact same thing, but with much greater effort and, often times, with less environmental impact! Maybe not. I don't know.
I guess as a man who dabbles in poetry, and I don't dare call myself a poet, I'm just jealous of the attention that other art forms get from audiences. A painter spends so much time on her canvas, puts it out for the world to see, and the effort immediately receives criticism, both good and bad. The same thing can be said about musicians.
Poetry is different though. It's much more subjective. I've both written and read topical poetry that was simple and to the point, but that writing is usually just slogans, or maybe even post card worthy crap. I've done the same thing with poems that I've read a thousand times and I STILL couldn't figure them out! There really is such a thing as overly clandestine. I've learned that over the years. You can play hide and seek, but if nobody finds you, then it's no fun right?
All art really does is give it's creator an outlet to express himself or herself no matter the vehicle. Maybe I'll find that perfect stanza of my own words to put on my calf. Maybe my tattoo artist will read the words and love them. Maybe he'll scoff, take my money, and throw them up in a hurry. I guess it doesn't matter much. Like anyone else who creates, I do it because I have to and not because I want to and, while it would be nice if I could connect with people over my creations, in the end I don't care. I'm just like every other artist out there who loves what they do and ******* if you don't!
