“But in the end it’s only a passing thing, this shadow; even darkness must pass.”
-J.R.R. Tolkien
And here we are again. The world faces yet another difficult winter, a time of constraint, perhaps of loss. We feel frustration at this path, which seems to lead again and again to the same place. And yet – this darkness will pass. All darkness does. It may take longer than we care to consider, but there will come a day when we will reflect back on these days and marvel that we made it through. Perhaps the world will be changed when we emerge on the other side, but emerge we shall into a different sort of light.
Kathleen Winter joined us in early October from California to chat and read some of her poetry. She says that the last year has affected her writing quite a lot – for many months she didn’t write anything at all, which is quite unusual for the poet and university teacher. Her third book, Transformer, came out just as the pandemic began in 2020 causing all book events to be cancelled. To hear work from Transformer and more, listen to the complete interview.
Nikolas Ventourakis joined us from Athens, Greece in early October. He reports that in March 2020 he was meant to fly back to London but, as things began to intensify he decided that travel would be unsafe. Instead, he remained in his native Greece for the duration, which he reports has been quite interesting – spending this extended time back home. Staying put gave him time to focus on some of his more archival work. A visual artist, Ventourakis works with photographic images in some unique ways. To hear him discuss his practice and the meanings behind his work, listen to the complete interview.
Few Words to Keep in your Pocket:
Endure the darkness but look to the inevitable light ahead.
Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android please click here. All weekly essay pieces in a shareable format are here. The full archive of interviews here.
Books to Read
What are you reading? Add your titles to our reading list here. Nikolas Ventourakis was reading Foundation by Isaac Asimov when we spoke. To learn more about the work of Kathleen Winter, click here.
Deadlines:
Below you will find links to webinars offered by Creative Capital covering a variety of COVID-related issues and how they relate specifically to the lives and livelihoods of creatives.
Centering and wellness care for creatives
Financial Implications for Creative Individuals
Time Management for Artists During Challenging Times
Adaptive Platforms for Artist Resilience
Brainard Carey is an author, artist and educator. He is the director of Praxis for Aesthetics. He has written six books for artists; Making it in the Art World, New Markets for Artists, The Art World Demystified, Fund Your Dreams Like a Creative Genius, Sell Online Like a Creative Genius, and Succeed with Social Media Like a Creative Genius. His book, Making it in the Art World, is available now with bonus content here.