I didn’t exactly “write” Persist. It would be more accurate to say that I put it together. I have been observing the art world since the early 1970s, and have been fascinated with the phenomenon of the artist (read: writer, musician, actor, dancer…) managing to persist in pursuit of the mission despite all obstacles and discouragements. Our culture tends to reward celebrity and prior financial success rather than traditional creative values like skill, dedication, depth, and so on. There are tens of thousands of creative people out there in the world, and only a handful get to taste what is held out to us as success, and I myself, as a writer, have struggled with this predicament. The essays in Persist span thirty odd years of shifting thought and observation. Many of them were published or offered as lectures along the way. A while ago, after presenting a lecture at “The Painting’s Edge” in Idyllwild, California, it occurred to me that it would be of interest to look back over those years–and I discovered “the book.”
Why do you think artists are having a particularly difficult time these days?
It’s a particularly difficult time not just for artists. We are all caught in the same predicament, as I see it. As a society, we have come more and more to worship money and celebrity. The capitalist system has run wild, and functions these days without conscience or restraint. Corporations, with exclusive interest in the bottom line, dominate every aspect of our lives. In the creative world, it is no different. The gallery system and the art magazines–based largely, still, in the New York art world–promote values quite different from those most artists embrace.
What do you think is wrong with commercialism?
Actually, I see nothing wrong with it per se. Even artists and writers need to make a living, and I’m honestly delighted for those who do so with their creative work. My concern in Persist is for those who don’t, and who need to find alternative strategies and reasons to feel comfortable with who they are, and what they feel given to do with their lives. Commercialism provides the way for some, but not for all. Those of us who do not–and cannot–rely on our chosen art to support us must find other definitions of “success.” I myself have learned through what I know about the Buddhist teachings that I will be happier and more fulfilled as a human being if I learn the art of non-attachment to outcomes, cherish the process itself, and strive to break through the obstacles I set up for myself.
How can Persist help your readers?
Persist is not a how-to book. It offers only what I myself have learned from long years of experience as a writer: like so many others, I am neither rich nor famous, but I have established a consistent writing practice that serves me well along my path. One thing that has served me particularly well in this is the daily practice of meditation, in which I have discovered an excellent model for a creative practice. In meditation, a person learns to show up, sit down, get focused, and persist in bringing the mind back to the object of meditation–in my case, the breath. It’s a way of teaching the mind to do those things we want it to do, rather than wander off according to its own devices. The mind is our most powerful creative tool, but unless we know how to observe and direct its actions, it can be equally destructive. Persist does not preach meditation as the only way to learn the kind of discipline a creative person needs, but as a fine model for the discipline that is needed. In addition, the book is intended to provide solace, even a kind of healing, for the many who find themselves caught in the predicament it describes; and, I hope, inspiration to persist in the work, despite all obstacles.
Interview Q&A
An Interview with Peter Clothier
Why did you write Persist?
I didn’t exactly “write” Persist. It would be more accurate to say that I put it together. I have been observing the art world since the early 1970s, and have been fascinated with the phenomenon of the artist (read: writer, musician, actor, dancer…) managing to persist in pursuit of the mission despite all obstacles and discouragements. Our culture tends to reward celebrity and prior financial success rather than traditional creative values like skill, dedication, depth, and so on. There are tens of thousands of creative people out there in the world, and only a handful get to taste what is held out to us as success, and I myself, as a writer, have struggled with this predicament. The essays in Persist span thirty odd years of shifting thought and observation. Many of them were published or offered as lectures along the way. A while ago, after presenting a lecture at “The Painting’s Edge” in Idyllwild, California, it occurred to me that it would be of interest to look back over those years–and I discovered “the book.”
Why do you think artists are having a particularly difficult time these days?
It’s a particularly difficult time not just for artists. We are all caught in the same predicament, as I see it. As a society, we have come more and more to worship money and celebrity. The capitalist system has run wild, and functions these days without conscience or restraint. Corporations, with exclusive interest in the bottom line, dominate every aspect of our lives. In the creative world, it is no different. The gallery system and the art magazines–based largely, still, in the New York art world–promote values quite different from those most artists embrace.
What do you think is wrong with commercialism?
Actually, I see nothing wrong with it per se. Even artists and writers need to make a living, and I’m honestly delighted for those who do so with their creative work. My concern in Persist is for those who don’t, and who need to find alternative strategies and reasons to feel comfortable with who they are, and what they feel given to do with their lives. Commercialism provides the way for some, but not for all. Those of us who do not–and cannot–rely on our chosen art to support us must find other definitions of “success.” I myself have learned through what I know about the Buddhist teachings that I will be happier and more fulfilled as a human being if I learn the art of non-attachment to outcomes, cherish the process itself, and strive to break through the obstacles I set up for myself.
How can Persist help your readers?
Persist is not a how-to book. It offers only what I myself have learned from long years of experience as a writer: like so many others, I am neither rich nor famous, but I have established a consistent writing practice that serves me well along my path. One thing that has served me particularly well in this is the daily practice of meditation, in which I have discovered an excellent model for a creative practice. In meditation, a person learns to show up, sit down, get focused, and persist in bringing the mind back to the object of meditation–in my case, the breath. It’s a way of teaching the mind to do those things we want it to do, rather than wander off according to its own devices. The mind is our most powerful creative tool, but unless we know how to observe and direct its actions, it can be equally destructive. Persist does not preach meditation as the only way to learn the kind of discipline a creative person needs, but as a fine model for the discipline that is needed. In addition, the book is intended to provide solace, even a kind of healing, for the many who find themselves caught in the predicament it describes; and, I hope, inspiration to persist in the work, despite all obstacles.