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INTERVIEW:

POWERFUL WOMEN ARTISTS AND WRITERS

Today I share with you an interview I got invited to participate by Destiny Allison—Award Winning Sculptor, author of Shaping Destiny, A quest for meaning in art and life, and managing partner of La Tienda at Eldorado. Thank you so much, Destiny!

Comments are welcome!

From where do you draw inspiration?

My writing stems from the discovery and reflection of the great questions of life. So basically the analogy of my experiences plays a great role. Other sources can be a conversation, a phrase in a book, a piece of art, etc. Life itself is a great source of inspiration, hence I totally agree with Thoreau’s quote, ‘How vain is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.’

What is the hardest thing about your creative process?

As in life, trust is the hardest thing. Once I wonder about a subject, and some fitful images and/or dialogues between characters come to me, all I need to do is to trust. Having confidence in conveying my discovery and my reflections in a funny, witty, and thought-provoking story.

Do you work everyday, or only when inspiration strikes?

Yes, I sit down at my desk everyday, even if I have to stare the blank screen the whole morning. I couldn’t agree more with Albert Einstein, ‘Creativity catches you when you’re working’, though I always carry a notebook with me. Just in case. He discovered e=mc2 when he was taking a bath.

How do you feel about the current art market/art climate?

In the book industry, I feel the Internet is the invisible hand—the invisible power that guides the free-market—that Adam Smith talked in The Wealth of Nations. So fortunately the invisible hand along with the new technologies have opened the publishing market to self-publishing authors, who are already not at the mercy of the publishing industry and can participate in the Long Tail without needing the validation from anybody. True enough, the open door gives room for more background noise, the opportunists who do not follow their passion, but only chase down the large event.    

If you could change one thing about the art world today, what would it be?

As in life, there’s a lack of awareness. I sense there’s no understanding, value, and respect for the art world, unless your name sets in lights on billboards. To give you an example, not long ago, one guy laughed in my face when I told him I was a writer.

Talk a little about your current project and why you decide to embark on it.

It’s been a call of discovery, like the rest of my projects. My third novel is still an embryonic project, and all I can tell is that it reflects the dichotomy between time as a human dictation and time as a dictation from nature.

How does being a woman impact your work?

My two novels are character-driven, so it doesn’t surprise me the two main characters of ‘I sayWho, What, and Where!’ and ‘Deconstructing INFATUATION’ are women.

If you had the chance to address a group of young girls, what would you say to inspire them?

I would not give them a lecture, but would share my experiences. They would be free to take them as a source of inspiration or leave them apart.

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The above interview is a literal transcription of the post Powerful Woman Mercè Cardús on ShapingDestiny: A quest for meaning in art and life.

Copyright © 2012 by THE PYTHAGOREAN STORYTELLER. All rights reserved.