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the layman’s corner Living for artwithout livingonart Theproblem is that if an artist knows they are a genius, they don’t work. The only solution is towork as a worker doeswith no illusions of grandeur. AugusteRenoir Themost worthy andglorious stories tend not to talk about it. Some of themost iconic or celebrated figures of the art worlddid not always drink the ambrosia of success and fortune, and even if sometimes they put their lipon the cup, theywere not always able todisconnect themselves from an occupation that allowed them to earn a livingon the side of art.Many artists slogged away out of necessity, doing jobs andoccupations that guaranteed them their succour and some (perhaps the cleverer ones) tried tomake their second job simple and trival enough tobe happywith a limited timetable that would allow them todevote themajority of the day towhat was really their great passion. Works that are literally forced, on times precariously due to a logical lack of preparationgiven that theyweremade out of sheer self-maintenance, but they ended upbeing tremendously useful for thosepeoplewho naturally tend to skipout on reality in an intermittent search for inspiration from their sofa. Pope JohnPaul II said that work is better for theperson than for theproduct, and this is perfectly true. Studies carriedout by theUniversity of Chicago revealed that busying themindwith some task or other, as irrelevant or routine as itmay be, keeps negative emotions and feelings at bay. Keeping a linkwithpeople or even the simplest things is somehow enriching, it nourishes creativity and keeps us frombeingovercomebymisfortune anddeprivation: bothof which eat away at the calm contemplation required to let themuses come to us. Normal yet fruitful jobs allowus to findour way into the nooks and crannies of humanbehaviour, the colours of everyday life or the aroma or reality. An inexhaustible source of inspiration, the everyday confrontationof thedaily grind thatmight have nothing todowith artistic or literary creativity ends upbeing a fount of encouragement and suggestions towork on at the endof theday. HermanMelville, the author of MobyDick , one of the greatest works of all time, was able tomake themost of his time and experience onboardwhaling ships, where he worked for three years. TheBaroquepainter Georges de la Tour spent a largepart of his lifeworking in the family bakery in the glowof the embers and the flickering light of the oil candes, so it should come as no surprise that he has gone into history as thepainter of night scenes. FranzKafka was a lawyer and spent almost his entire lifeworking as an employee in insurance companieswhose timetable allowed him todedicate himself towriting and enjoy a greater sense of freedom. Art is a soft bed for those of uswho are lazy inour choice of profession.Whenone accepts this truth, one can solemnly proclaimoneself an artist, writer or painter,musicianor poet. PíoBaroja . El mundo es ansí © WPWide.com 17