The Interview

Answered By Andrew Abballe @ A Life of Virtue

Describe the most joyful and/or the most painful artwork you ever created and why you qualified it as such?

I write a lot of poetry about the beauty and solitude I find in nature.

Spending time alone in nature gives me the opportunity to clear my mind and think. It makes me feel connected to something larger than myself, temporarily freeing myself from the anxieties of day-to-day modern life.

Which character flaw do you despise the most and how you deal with these individuals during an unavoidable encounter?

With the advent of the internet and social media, it seems like we are being pulled towards personalities of narcissism and arrogance. Online platforms incentivize one to boost their egos through constant self-promotion being driven by the number of likes they get on their profiles, and so on.

I try to practice humility and approach others like the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates, that is with a dose of healthy skepticism and curiosity.

Where do you find more turbulence when looking at your belief system? And how much influence, if any, has your art had in the way you navigate through these rough waters?

I try to get into the right relationship with uncertainty. A lot ancient wisdom in spiritual/religious traditions speak to how we have to plunge into the unknown or abyss for transformative spiritual experiences or personal development.

The Buddhist nun Pema Chodron has this concept of ‘groundlessness’ in which she advises that we surrender all control and immerse ourselves in the unknown. I think great art comes from this place of openness and spontaneity where we let go of expectations and engross ourselves in the creative flow of life.

Is the relationship between you (the artist) and your art a healthy one? Or artistic growth comes with a price, and if so, what is it?

Art can come from both positive or negative life experiences.

While I mainly find inspiration for my writing or music through nature and relationships, I think the role of the artist is to try and leverage whatever life throws at them – whatever is at their disposal.

Even the normal or the mundane can be transformed into something beautiful if looked at from a different perspective.

If given a choice of rather going back in history or forward into the future; which time, place or event would you aim to witness, participate or die in? And why? Or if you choose instead to visit tomorrow, what would daily life look like? And who you imagine yourself being?

Growing up and learning guitar as a kid I always had a fascination with Woodstock 1969. In addition to the amazing lineup of musicians, ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Santana, the festival was emblematic of the culture of the time. A new way living or ‘being in the world’, a way of existence beyond materialism.

Perhaps, it was a unique period in time and a reaction to the social upheaval of the day, but I still think some of those values of ‘freedom’ and ‘authenticity’ have stuck with us to this day.

About ‘In The Mind Of An Artist’

‘In The Mind Of An Artist’ aims to uncover the artistic mind, the perspective of individuals living under the influence of art. By and large we live collective lives, but artists see life a bit; well sometimes very different than others. As some seem to float from one artwork to another; others are deeply encrusted in their work making it difficult to catch that ride offered by the world around them, creating realities in which one person (the artist) must navigate in order to survive in society. If you are an artist and this speaks to you, please contact me if you like to share your story.

This series of articles, written by artists is about the artist’s way of processing and reacting to events in their lives. These can be tangible communal events or struggles of philosophical and psychological nature.

Through these articles artists will share their intimate views. Talking about how their perspectives changed as they trapped themselves in the cobwebs of art.

By design ‘In The Mind Of An Artist’ will not contain any images of artwork, biography, profile, lists of exhibitions, books or the artist’s creative process.

The goal here is to give the artist a chance to pause from the creation of art for a moment and explore the self.

Interviews will also be included in this series.

To submit your article, get an invitation to participate or for more information on this new series please email jo@edgeofhumanity.com .

SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW OPEN!

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Edge of Humanity Magazine is an independent nondiscriminatory platform that has no religious, political, financial, or social affiliations.

We are committed to publishing the human condition, the raw diverse global entanglement, with total impartiality.

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