From the diary of Rodney Chang
November 1986
THE POWER OF COMMITMENT -
Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too.All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and materials assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way.
Are you in earnest? Seek this very minute, whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Only engage and the mind grows heated, begin and then the task will be completed.
-Goethe
1. a long term effort to achieve life's goal of making it as an artist
2. accepting rejections as well as acceptances along the way
3. doing instead of dreaming (although that's important too)
4. not giving up the fight or dream
5. goal directed series of tasks
6. experiencing to grow and develop
7. using one's creativity to make art
8. vision made up of the continuum of past, present and future
9. tackling the problems that all artists need to solve to "make it' - such as exposure, press reviews, acceptances into juried shows, development artistically, purpose as artist, formal criticism and self evaluation of one's works, sell, document, perservere....etc.
10. resilience to failure, depressions, surviving plateaus, failures...
11. renewed strength and effort immediately after breakthroughs
12. holistically using all one's life experiences for creating art
13. taking alternative routes around conventional barriers to get to one's destination
14. constant expenditure of time, money and energy for one's art
15. continuous effort in the art studio
16. DRIVE
17. serial trial and error experimentation in the visual
18. endless reevaluation of one's former and current work
19. staying in touch with other artists and the pulse of teh cultural climate, go to openings
20. fun and energy!
21. applied creativity to fulfill innate potentials
22. a priority over other ways to use one's time and money
23. not being stagnant
24. concrete efforts to get hopes alive for the future
25. involvement in one's work
26. in transit towards fulfillment and sharing one's creative efforts with others
