[This is the work-in-progress of a manifesto of sorts, to go on the gapingvoid “About” page. Let me know your thoughts in the comments, Thanks!]
“art for entrepreneurs”. about gapingvoid: cube grenades. hugh and jason. etc.
Some people make art for the “Art World” crowd- the art snobs, the idle rich, the tax dodgers and the social climbers. People with too much time on their hands.
Others make art for the masses. Schlocky feel-good stuff. Nothing too challenging, just looks pretty and familiar.
gapingvoid does neither.
gapingvoid makes “Art For Entrepreneurs”. The person who quit her nowheresville cubicle job, turned her second bedroom into an office and took out a second mortgage to fund her dream. Or the person in the large corporation, determined to shake things up big-time.
The person with fire in their belly. Who decided to go for it, or die trying.
We make art for that person.
If you’re that person, we want your business. If you’re not, we don’t need your business, no offense.
We’re on a mission:
gapingvoid creates “Cube Grenades”:
“Cube Grenades” are cartoons designed to affect change i.e. art designed to be hung up on office walls (e.g. “cubicles”), in order to cause little cultural disruptions i.e. little explosions (“grenades”) inside the organization.
i.e. Art designed to be hung up in that second bedroom. Art to remind us what’s really important.
Why not just make art? Why all the focus on who it is/isn’t for? I thought your ethic was to do the stuff that excites you, rather than playing to an audience.
Hey Neil 🙂
I think you may be confusing Hugh MacLeod, the artist, and gapingvoid, the business.
But to answer your question… Basically, it’s easier to make the art that excites you, if you know WHY it excites you, and the reasons that drive you to make it.
In other words, it easier to know WHAT to make if you know WHY you’re making it.
And knowing these drivers helps not just the artist, but the viewer as well.
I don;t see it as PLAYING TO the audience. I see it as CONNECTING WITH the audience.
Empathy and dialogue.
Art is contextual. Art is a language. Art does not live in a vacuum. Art does not live in a ivory tower.
At least, that’s true for the work I want to make.
Thanks for asking 🙂
Hi Hugh!
Thank you so much for being “you”. I cant tell you how many times I have felt unispired and read something of yours that snapped me back “on purpose”. My husband and I are both doing what we love, but struggling monetarily. Your book and blogs give me the “oomPh” that I need to know we are in the right place. We are living our passion. I don’t know you personally, but I love and thank you from the bottom of my heart
Hugh, thanks for the reply. That’s an interesting explanation. I’m against ivory towers too, I guess. Splitting the “art” from the “commerce”, and seeing how they can be combined too, is something I battle with pretty much every day.
How does knowing the “driver” behind a piece help the viewer/audience? Shouldn’t a work stand on its own feet, without explanation?
“Shouldn’t a work stand on its own feet, without explanation?”
If you want it to, sure. Make it so! 😀
[…] Very interesting take on the standard “About Me/About Us” webpage via Hugh MacLeod […]
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