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Neil Gaiman’s speech at the University of the Arts Class of 2012 graduation ceremony is something that every writer, artist, or creative person should listen to. I had this speech recommended to me by one of my professors this semester and I was not disappointed by it. Gaiman talks about his beginnings in the writing industry and also shares his wisdom and knowledge.

One of my favorite parts of his speech is when he says that in the beginning of your career you don’t have any idea what you’re doing. He says that this is a great thing because we don’t know the rules; we don’t know what is possible and impossible. He says that this is great because it means that we get to test the bounds of the possible and going beyond them. He also stresses the importance of just doing the work. This idea is also present in the War of Art by Steven Pressfield, in which Pressfield demands the reader to be creative, and to explore the creative mind through doing the person’s chosen artform rather than waiting for creativity to come.

Gaiman’s speech is filled with prose and advice that young and up incoming artists and writers will find deeply impactful. He talks about the fears of failure and even the fears of success. The fear of success is something that I never thought about until listening to this speech. He also details the beauty of mistakes, and says that every artist will face them and that the best artists grow from them, which I couldn’t agree more.

I found Susie Pearl’s conversation with David Lynch to be interesting. I am a big fan of Lynch’s work, but I never knew that Lynch participated in daily meditation, let alone twice a day for 46 years. In Susie’s conversation with the director of Eraserhead, Lynch details his experience and routine with meditation. The pair discuss the link between creativity and meditation. Lynch is a big proponent for meditation as a way of getting more creative and overall, in better health. I have dabbled in meditation and I agree with Lynch’s position. I think we need to have a time set aside for a deep connection to the mind, to slow things down and let your mind wander.

Lynch describes meditation as a way to find inner happiness. He says that when human beings transcend everyday through meditation that you are able to unlock your full potential and become a blissful. Susie and David also discuss the Beatles and their meditation practices. The Paul McCartney story that Susie shared about how McCartney’s trip to India and whilst asleep McCartney saw the lyrics for one of the famous songs they wrote, and all McCartney had to do was write it down. McCartney transcended and connected with a deeper different part of his creative mind.

One thing that struck me is that Lynch agrees with the idea that a creative artist needs a place to do their work. This is an idea that I’ve come across before in The War of Art of Steven Pressfield. I found that the conservation between Susie and Lynch is very eye-opening and leads me to want to pick meditation back up.

Kara Walker received an MFA in painting and printmaking from Rhode Island School of Design. Winner of a MacArthur award, she represented the U.S. in the 2002 São Paulo Biennial. The Walker Art Center’s 2007 exhibition Kara Walker: My Complement, My Oppressor, My Enemy, My Love was her first full-scale U.S. museum survey. She is a professor of visual arts in the MFA program at Columbia University.

She was part of The Risable Visual: Humor and Art, a biennial co-sponsored by the Menil Collection and the Department of Art History, Rice University, Houston, Texas. Monday, March 14, 2011 where she gave a speech about her art, her history and identity.

I viewed her speech and found it to be very interesting and inspiring. She scrolls through her work and explains her thought process and talks about the meaning and connection that she has with the artwork. She expressed her beginnings in printmaking and how it was different from painting. Much of her work revolves around the struggle of Africans Americans in the 1800s. One thing I quite enjoyed was how she talked about redefining imagery through the lens and gaze of the self, how an artist can change or redefine the image to reflect the ideals, beliefs, experiences, and thoughts of the artist. She also discusses the desire to branch out beyond painting and printmaking. As someone who plans to create art in multiple different ways, formats and platforms, I found the speech to be very enlightening for someone who is journeying into the realm of mixed media.

The Southern Illinois University Honors Program had a meeting with Ben Lowder. Ben is an artist with a passion for drawing people’s awareness to Nature’s sacred geometry by expressing the forms and patterns that are the universal building blocks of material growth structures. Benjamin Lowder is known for his geometrically arranged and reclaimed wood and vintage metal signage. He serves as creative consultant at the Center for Spirituality and Sustainability, SIU Edwardsville. He recently designed an installation to honor the legacy of Buckminster Fuller. The event was in conjunction with Lowder’s installation at Bucky’s Haven on campus lake that will honor Fuller’s legacy and open the space to future creative activity. It was fun to hear Lowder’s thought process when creating and designing the project. Lowder also spoke about how he was honoring Buckminster Fuller and how the project affected him. It was very cool to hear him talk about sacred geometry and describe it in a way that I’ve never really thought about before. I look forward to seeing the installation.

I listened in on a virtual visit with Kris Rey. Kris is an SIUC Alum in the cinema department. It was interesting to hear about her experiences at SIU. I found that her experiences are similar to mine. She also talked about her experience in the industry after her enrollment. Much of the discussion revolved around her film I Used to Go Here starring Gillian Jacobs. The film was even shot briefly in Carbondale, Illinois where SIU is located. She shared her experiences with Andy Samberg and the Lonely Island who helped produce her most recent film as well as her experience with Gillian Jacobs the lead. Kris also talked about the current state of the world with the pandemic and how independent filmmakers are coping. I found it really interesting hearing from a former student at SIU and to see where she is and asking her about any advice she would have for current students and future filmmakers. It was nice to see someone succeeding in a career who started from the program I’m currently attending. Overall, it was a good reassurance that the program I’m in does lead to success. Also, Kris’ advice is very helpful and enlightening.

By Nicholas Sharp

I attended the virtual Visit with Michele Leigh and Lora Mjolsness on October 13. They talked about their book She Animates. In the book, they talk about some of the women in the Russian Animation industry. They bring these artists to the forefront in an industry that didn’t give them the credit they really deserved. During their presentation they showed three animated short films from four women in their book. The first was a classic tale of Little Red Riding Hood by Valentina and Zinanida Brumberg. The short resembled the old Disney style of Silly Symphonies. The short featured some noticeable changes to the origin and classic story rooted in folklore. For starters, the character of the Huntsman is absent and in his place is a new cat character. Red Riding Hood is also less of a damsel than in the original story. In these ways the film incorporated subtle equality and feminist nods through the lens of folklore which helps to bypass the Soviet Union censors. The second film Alter Ego – Nina Shorina was extremely different to the previous film we saw. Appearing to be more surrealist and abstract. The film also had a nod to Sergei Einstein’s Battleship Potempkin, a 1925 Soviet silent film. The third film is one that is very recent as it came out in 2013. The film was My Mom is an Airplane by Yulia Aronova. Overall, the presentation, gave me information that I never really thought about like the Soviet and Russian animation industry.

My performance class has wrapped! I thoroughly enjoyed the class. It opened my eyes in new and creative ways. At first, I thought I wasn’t going to like the class but after experimenting and opening myself up to the weird and creative ideas that Spahr was trying to teach us, I found it to be very fun.

My final performance project was today. I struggled to figure out what I wanted to do but after rereading the instructions of the assignment I found inspiration. Project 3 consists of my story and what brought me to where I am now. I think that in the end my project turned out ok.