The arts, the aesthetics, the message.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 @ 9:13 AM
As many people know, I am pretty much a hardcore, full on Gaga enthusiast. Believe me, I have my reasons.. and I believe that anyone, possibly anyone who will take the time and hear me out, will agree with me as to why I honor this woman as much as I do. I just watched an interview, and I have learned so much from each 10 minute interval.
I remember being worried about who I was as an artist. I was afraid that I had the skill of my hands to create and to replicate or in other words, draw or paint. But I kept denying myself the true label as an artist. There is so much weight onto that word that I would imagine I could never live up to. The fact that Gaga is upholding this as her title all the more makes me rethink my position. I was just someone who could do something with her hands, but nothing more. I was afraid that I could create this.. piece of art, but then I wouldn’t be able to express it any further than what’s visually given. That is a limit. A wall. And that’s the problem. Art is limitless, there are no boundaries, no ends, no guidelines. I feel like, to be able to properly extend my visual piece to the right level, to be able to show it to the world and then explain the deeper meaning of it, you need to actually understand the history of art. You do need knowledge, you do need education. It is very important to know your references, and to understand your inspiration. It adds value to your work and gives credit respectably. Gaga’s numerous references to Warhol, to Bowie, Elton John, and to numerous other legends and great people.. those are apart of her as well. She took the time to study them, learn their philosophy, take everything they say and do, how they think, to heart. Just like she says, you have to make love to a record. Roll around in bed with it, pillowtalk.. take the time to connect with it spiritually to really understand the message. I realized she’s so great because of her vast knowledge and intelligence on other artists. She basically carries all the philosophy she’s learned and resurrected many things that we thought were lost. She makes me feel like an amateur, which I am.. but I will not deny myself of what I am any longer. I was afraid because I didn’t have that many references. I don’t know much about the classic legends.. Elton John, the Beatles, Elvis, Michael Jackson. I only know what’s on the surface, but never have I taken the time to dissect from beginning to end, the lives of these phenomenal people. I was worried. How can I grow, how can I call myself an artist if I don’t know of these people? And to be even more self-scrutinizing, why haven’t I even taken interest on any specific visual artist? But you know, I’ve realized something very quickly after thinking about this. I have done exactly what I just mentioned. I have taken the time to learn about Gaga, her story from beginning to current, everything that there is to know, that she offers to us - and I have embraced it and incorporated her message into mine. I’ve taken a giant leap and a giant risk with my time, and I couldn’t be happier with what I have now. I listen to what she says, and I listen to it over and over again until I 100% understand what she is saying. I take her philosophy, and then it becomes something that I try to carry on into my daily life. I am learning, and she is my reference and my inspiration. I truly have connected with this artist on a more than surface level. I have made love to the arts. It all began when my curiosity reached a level where I knew there was something more to someone than what the media portrayed. I learned about Lady Gaga not because tabloids or gossip sites kept tabs on her so often, not because I just happened to be listening to a song of hers or because of a music video.. I just wanted to. I sat down one day, and I just thought about who this ‘Lady Gaga’ woman really was. So much hype, and yet - I just didn’t understand it at all. Sure, I had a few songs of hers on my ipod, not a big deal. But why is it that when someone speaks of her name, my thoughts would go blank? To me, she had no personality, no soul. I had never knew anything about her. I knew some songs, but I did not know her. I couldn’t even imagine her talking, or what she’d say. I was just so flatly clueless, but I was fascinated by the mysteriousness of it all. As an artist, she did well on protecting her aesthetic and her message. She has hidden it from the people that do not want to know or that don’t care, but to the people that will take the time to learn and breathe like she has done in the past, she will offer you more knowledge than you have ever expected. It’s quite amazing. All of it.
I also worried that I would end up talking the talk, but never walking the walk. All this, and when it comes down to it, I still end up pointing to the same couple of pieces I did a year ago. Nothing new. But you know, I will value every minute that I am not creating, because I am growing. I am not being unproductive, I am not being lazy. I am simply doing what I think Gaga did best, learning.
-S.
