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This week we're wrestling with some tough questions (courtesy of our inner-critics):
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- With so much going on, does making art even matter?
- Can my art really change anything?
- Is making art right now trite or self-involved?
- Should I quit making art and help people in a more effective way?
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To help answer these questions, we're turning to Beth Pickens. Pickens is a Los Angeles-based consultant for artists and arts organizations. She's the author of Make Your Art No Matter What (Chronicle Books, 2021) and Your Art Will Save Your Life (Feminist Press, 2018)
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In 2017, she wrote Making Art During Fascism, a workbook responding to the first Trump administration. She's got one message: DO NOT STOP MAKING ART! Because as a creative person, you need to make art and other people need the art you make.
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"Anytime you start to feel overwhelmed by humanity’s impact on people, animals, and the planet, anytime you see the awful, smug faces of fascist leaders, anytime you think you cannot leave the house because the world is too hard, I want you to think about the art, performance, music, books, and films that have made you want to be alive. Think of how those artists, like you, probably felt overwhelmed by their life and times but they made the thing anyway. Your future audiences need your work and you need to make it."
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Making Art During Fascism
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This short and sweet workbook from Beth Pickens and CO-CO Press gives you the emotional support you need to keep creating, even in a plutocratic nightmare.
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Available in print or PDF!
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Art saved my life practice:
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Make a mental list of artworks (books, movies, songs, etc) that saved your life. Spend 15 minutes with them every day this week.
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We think your art is important. So please, keep practicing.
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