Feeling Unoriginal? Don’t Get Discouraged.
(continuation of last post: Chairity Case )
When I found out another artist was taking pictures of chairs in Toronto and was having them displayed in a cafe in my old hood I was distraught.
The self-destructive thoughts began. Mostly:
Nothing I do is original.
I always laugh to myself when I see a group of teenagers dressed exactly the same as each other because I was nothing like that. When I was in High School I did whatever I could to be different, while hoping to remain unnoticed. I used to hate when friends discovered bands I liked or decorated their rooms the way I did. I remember one instance when I was 17 where I got really upset because my sister bought a sweater that looked similar to mine. Oh to be young. But the fact is, there are only so many bands out there and only so many stores selling sweaters. Just as a man’s button-down shirt can be transformed when a girl wears it with a belt, it’s not the ideas you have, but what you do with them. The simple fact is: the chairs were out on the curb and there for the taking, literally. Who knows how many others started collecting pictures of these chairs and who cares. It’s what I did with those pictures that was original and more importantly, the project meant something to me.
I loathe a cheater and those who copy don’t deserve to call themselves artists… if you’re as passionate about this as me, and haven’t seen Banksy’s Exit Through the Gift Shop you should! But I’m also wise enough to know that it’s important and impossible not to be inspired by what’s all around us. You can’t give up on something just because somebody else is doing it too (please note: this does not apply to spouses, haha), just make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons and that your individual style or voice is apparent if you attend on attaching your name to it.
ALSO it’s important to learn how to promote yourself. Nothing’s changed since my teenage days when I wanted to be different while remaining unnoticed — I am the worst at putting myself out there. Part of this is because I don’t like attention (don’t be expecting to be invited to a big wedding of mine some day), another part is because I don’t want people to think I have a massive ego, but it’s mostly because I know full well when you bring attention to yourself you become a walking target.
The reason why an article was written about the man taking pictures of chairs with his phone is because he made himself known to his friends, the cafe willing to showcase his stuff and maybe even to The Star. I learned an important lesson that day. Nobody gets discovered anymore, and in this age of Twitter and Facebook and free blogging, there’s really no excuse not to promote yourself.
The good news? My lesson helped me get noticed and soon after, it was I who was written about in The Star:
It was a happy ending for me and my chairs.
To visit either of my blogs click below:
http://abandonedchairs.blogspot.com/
http://chairitycase.blogspot.com/
Good, good, good!