January 2010

“You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.”
—Jack London

Howard Zinn, author of A People’s History of the United States, died today at the age of 87, and the nation and world will miss his presence.

His contributions to our society, however, will live on forever. (Read the Associated Press obit here.) Recently, the History Channel aired the much-anticipated and  thoroughly stirring “The People Speak”—a visually and audibly compelling 101 course in democracy and American history based on Zinn’s important work. So we present in his honor this performance from the aforementioned documentary, by an artist much admired by The Madness of Art, that in many ways sums up the spirit of the man who used his art to seek and deliver truth. Read more…

On my first exploration of the Telfair Art Fair this past November, I had no expectations to leave with any art in hand. Well, to be honest, I had no expectations at all. So I wandered through the tented maze that overtook Telfair Square that sunny Saturday in Savannah, ducking in and out of the numerous nooks occupied by artists from all areas of the country (though Savannah and other parts of the Southeast seemed most prominent).

Eventually, I found myself transfixed by the delightfully disturbing work of Victoria Sexton. Despite the early onset of sensory overload in the midst of a somewhat hectic affair, her Burtonesque clay sculptures called out for attention. Each of the dozen or so thought-provoking pieces on display required rumination. As a writer, both Deadline (pictured below) and Mental Block possessed a disarmingly poetic appeal. In the end, I chose the lesser of two evils: As much as I detest a deadline—that “black bird” teasingly hovering about your head no matter how many times you try to shoo it away—it’s much easier to ignore than a mental block is to overcome. Prominently displayed in my apartment, Deadline now alternates, depending on when I cross its path, as a practical reminder, an inspirational catalyst and an agent of angst.

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”
—Maya Angelou

From Dave Matthews and Neil Young to Jay-Z and U2, from Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay to Wyclef Jean, musicians of all stripes and styles played music of hope on a multi-network telethon to raise money to help all those suffering in Haiti in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake.

Once again, I’m struck by the sheer potency of music, galvanizing the global community to offer financial support to a nation of people that desperately need it. While many of the big-name stars gave moving performances, the real example of the transcendent power of music came during a report from Haiti. Amid the rubble, groups of Haitians continue gathering to summon positive vibes and spread hope through the sounds of salvaged instruments, strained-yet-optimistic voices and hands clapping in unison.

Whether you watched or not, whether you donated already or not, simply buying some good music right now will have an impact. iTunes is now offering an album of the live performances from Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief for $7.99 (a video of the complete broadcast will be available for $2.99), and proceeds will support several vital organizations involved in the relief efforts: Partners In Health, American Red Cross, UNICEF, Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, Yéle Haiti, and Oxfam.

Check out some of the performances from the benefit concert after the jump. Read more…

Non-Profit, Quarterly Arts Journal Launches in Savannah

One of the great things about Savannah—this big small town (or, depending on your perspective, small big city) on the Georgia coast that I’ve called home for 20 months—is its robust, ever-expanding arts scene, generating a palpable creative energy suitable for invoking the muse.

Despite this burgeoning arts community, and even with a fairly respectable assortment of local print publications, Savannah lacked an “offline” magazine dedicated solely and specifically to this community, its creative creatures and their admirers. I, for one, thought it obvious that such an arts journal could not only survive but thrive here. Luckily, I wasn’t alone. Read more…

In an effort to showcase the work of more artists, The Madness of Art is pleased to announce the start of a new feature: Exhibit A.

Each post in this ongoing series will feature a single piece from a visual artist, along with a bit of information about the artist, including where to view and buy his or her work. Obviously, the criteria I will use to make selections are subjective: An artist whose work I have discovered—perhaps locally here in Savannah, throughout my travels or somewhere on the Web—and find appealing and compelling, in such a way that speaks to me, qualifies. I certainly welcome suggestions of artists you think warrant inclusion in Exhibit A (send a message, with “Exhibit A” in the subject line, that includes the artist’s name and Web site).

During these tough economic times, artists and galleries need more support than ever. The intention of this feature is to shine a light on some interesting (and, most likely, unheralded) artists who might benefit from the attention.

To access Exhibit A, click on the button located between “Connect” and “Listen Up!” in the far right sidebar.

“You must take an obsessive pride in the smallest details of your craft. And you must be willing to defend what you’ve written against the various middlemen—editors, agents and publishers—whose sights may be different from yours, whose standards not as high.”—William Zinsser

If you’ve ever been required to sit through a excruciatingly boring lecture by a self-important professor, it’s easy to understand why the mere mention of the word itself—lecture—might trigger a negative reaction, or even sheer terror. If you’ve ever been required to attend a mind-numbing, time-wasting conference by your employer, it’s easy to understand why the suggestion of attending such an event could cause unease, at the very least.

So when I stumbled upon TEDTalks a while ago, I was surprised by what I discovered: lectures that were intriguing, insightful and inspiring. Could this really be possible? These few clips must have been anomalies, I thought, rare standouts plucked from hundreds or more of the aforementioned variety. But over time, as I watched new and newly discovered selections, TEDTalks—videos of lectures given at annual conferences put on by TED (which stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design)—rarely failed to deliver, even when the subject matter seemed a bit outside my typical interest zone.

TED, a nonprofit, has a simple but noble mission: “Spreading ideas.” And it does so through a well-designed, fun-to-explore site (along with a YouTube presence). The themes of the engaging and thought-provoking talks are wide-ranging, from arts, culture and entertainment to technology, science and a host of global issues. The styles, backgrounds and expertise of the speakers are equally diverse. TEDTalks, as a result, is fairly addicting (and healthy) Internet fare, especially considering what’s on the rest of the menu.

With TED2010 only a few weeks away, The Madness of Art presents its Top 10 TEDTalks—most of which deal with the topic of creativity (in some way) and its powerful effects. So, in the spirit of TED, here are some ideas I thought were worth spreading. Read more…

“A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry, and see a fine picture every day of his life, in order that worldy cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in the human soul.”—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe