As It Relates to This Humble Blog

11/05/08

I have two equally powerful aspects to my personality: the helpful optimist and the pissed-off cynic. As an artist I want to make the world less ugly, express what is in my heart, and what needs to be said. Making a living is the secondary motivation for working in the arts. Art is primarily about learning and discovery - the final product isn't the most important thing.

I can't really divide my thoughts on art, and my thoughts on the workings of the world, so bear with me. When I look around at how fucked up the world is, I want to do what I can to make the world a better place, and what that first means is to be true to myself and actually do what I believe. 'Making a living' can never supersede the reasons for making art. When I look at a magazine, for instance, what I love to see is an honest passion for the subject presented - not an excuse to sell advertising. Also, as you can see, I consider making magazines an art form - and if the creators of a magazine don't think of it as an art form and just a job they do - it really shows in the magazine. I am not interested in a world that just does its job - not interested in just surviving. Life has to mean more than that.

Recently, the relaunch of Interview really depressed me, because it accurately express the state of the arts - which is crass, unimaginative, formulaic, devoid of inquisitiveness, and most importantly-completely dishonest. I definitely think this sad state of the arts is directly correlated to the selfish state of our country, which is obsessed with celebrity and spectacle more than with issues, where people care more about buying things than with helping people. It makes me angry, it makes me frustrated and it makes me want to give up.

But.

I don't even know how to describe what I felt last night. The lack of empathy, the selfishness, the hatred, ignorance and greed that I see and feel has made me angry, has made me hopeless - but when I heard them announce Obama winner, it smacked my cynicism away like a red-headed stepchild. I could not stop crying. Reason, judgement and compassion has triumphed over hatred and greed. It is the most monumental example of this in my lifetime so far.

So all you zinesters, discount fashionistas, ranters, photographers, drawers and shit-talkers: None of us has any excuses. Keep doing what you believe. Don't give up. All things are possible. Make it happen.

Read More? Ramblings, Rants and Redundancies

posted by Mr. Mcginnis on 1:40 with 3 Comments


Comments (3)

cassius:

http://printfetish.com/2008/06/interview.html

how quickly you change your tune. you must not be much of a cynic, i mean, what do you expect from a mainstream magazine? (most) magazines are advertisements disguised as content.

Posted by cassius | November 29, 2008 6:29 PM

Posted on November 29, 2008 18:29

Mr. McGinnis:

I didn't change my tune... the between issue, which I was positive about, was better than the relaunch.

I think plenty of European "mainstream" magazines are wonderful. I think it is possible to be commercial and of quality - I don't really care to get dragged into issues of "alternative" or "mainstream" or whatever. It's all very immature. The percentage of crappy non-mainstream magazines to good ones is the same as mainstream titles. Perhaps even MORE so. Is it GOOD at what it is TRYING to be? This is the question I ask myself. In the instance of Interview - no, it is not.

Posted by Mr. McGinnis | November 29, 2008 6:40 PM

Posted on November 29, 2008 18:40

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