"The artist finds greater pleasure in painting than in having completed the picture." - Seneca
In this title, I am being careful to choose a term like artisan, instead of artist, because I want to be as inclusive as possible. On some level everyone can call themselves an artisan of something. Even a tradesperson, like a plumber, can elevate their trade to the level of craft.
I was inspired by this quote by Seneca and found it to be appropriate given a number of related conversations in the past months. It all began with a simple question. A student of mine asked me, "there are so many interesting things to do in digital media, what should I focus on?" My answer wasn't what she expected. I said, "figure out what you enjoy doing. Even the boring parts of doing it. If you enjoy the boring part of doing something, then you have found your craft." Her response was, "but I love all these cool graphics that people can make. I think that is so cool." My response again was, "ah, but have you ever tried making one of those cool things?" She said, "Yes, and it was SO hard, and tedious, and boring." At that point, I knew she was not destined to pursue this "cool thing" as her passion for her life.
My grandfather was a custodian in a school for his entire life. He was a kind, practical, fun-loving guy. I didn't realize the passion that existed in him. On the day he retired, he invested in some carving tools, and began his second career... as a wood carver. He would have called it a "hobby" but I disagree. He made a fairly decent living as a wood carver and supplemented his retirement income with the sales of his hand-crafted pieces. He consumed every bit of literature, every magazine and book. He looked at other carver's work and decided that he didn't like how some of them carved using power tools to shorten the time and effort to remove the unused parts of the wood. He studied wood. He studied chisels. He studied techniques. He became an expert. He enjoyed his second career every day until 15 years after he began, he passed away. I often wonder what his life would have been like if someone had told him that his "hobby" could have been his job.
I was fortunate enough to have parents who never once questioned my career goals and aspirations. I have been fortunate to have people around me (first my parents, and now my wife) who are incredibly supportive. As such, I haven't ever thought that there should be a division between what I am empassioned by and what I make money from. In fact, I have (most of the time) been able to find work that was related to my passion.
So, what is a passion that elevates what a person does to earn a living to the level of someone who cares deeply about what they do like that of an artisan? Well, it is not an infatuation. Like many things, it is possible to find yourself infatuated with skills and the products those skills produce. i was infatuated with law, lifeguarding, music, drywalling, renovating, painting (both walls and canvas), acting, aeronautics, space flight, and various other things at different points in my life. With each of these, I explored them, and then found myself unenamoured with them because there was some aspect of the career that I found tedious and boring. So much so that it took all the romance of doing that thing right out of the picture. I was able to admire the end result, but had no desire to participate in the process.
In stark contrast, I have found myself fascinated with many other things that others would regard as deadly dull. For example, animation. Everyone is fascinated by the end result of an animators efforts, but if you participated in the process involved in the creation of that animation, you might not regard it as your cup of tea. Much of an animator's job is deadly tedious. But, I find it fascinating.
I worked in one of the more "cool" or "fun" jobs in the world. I was an actor. For 15 years I was an actor who earned his living primarily through stomping on the boards before a live audience. There was much about the job I enjoyed. There was also much that I didn't enjoy. I HATED learning/memorizing lines. I HATED auditions. Eventually, I realized that it was okay to not enjoy those things, and I always had a secret envy of those who seemed to relish in them. I was fascinated with Nancy MacAlear's uncanny ability to be "off-book" faster than anyone else. I was stunned at Tim Hauer's perspective on auditioning. Both of these people have stayed in theatre and are very good at what they do. It is their passion.
So, here I sit, in front of my computer adding a blog post. I have discovered my passion. I am fascinated by digital media. I relish in the technologies and the wizardry. I consume the code, and the techniques. I teach others how to play in this wonderful sandbox. I also warn them that if they aren't completely engaged and consumed by this career, perhaps it isn't their passion. "It's okay," I tell them, "this stuff isn't for everyone.
It's great if you like the end result and you want to talk about it. Don't let your appreciation of the painting/sculpture/song/application/house fool you into thinking you want to be a painter/sculptor/composer/programmer/carpenter. Look for the things that you like doing even though they might be dead dull to someone else. When you find that thing, you will probably find your passion and from there you will be on your way to becoming an artisan.
