Dear friends/family,
I’m sure you’ve heard me refer to myself as an artist in casual
conversation. This was a term I used to describe myself as a matter
of convenience. I erroneously used the term “artist” when
I was, in fact, alluding to a particular way of life rather than
a profession. Up until now I have not actually been an artist nor
have I ever really felt I was one. At times, I did feel I was “artistic,”
“bohemian,” “different”--but these qualities could have just as
easily been applied to a stockbroker or a plumber. These qualities
did not determine whether I was an artist or not. Already, I had
received two professional degrees in art. I filed my W-9s under
the title “Conceptual Artist,” yet when a stranger asked me what
it was that I did, I hesitated. I felt as though I were stuck in
a perpetual state of gestation--always becoming and never arriving.
Sometimes I felt close. Was I merely a twenty-minute train ride
away? Twenty years too late/early? How far out is the center of
culture?
As the recession unfolded, I began to feel more and more apprehensive.
I was twenty-five . . . I knew I had to get to work if I ever wanted
to succeed in life.
I fell into a great depression. I locked myself in my studio, determined
to leave only when I felt I had become an artist. I looked deep
within myself. What was missing? For forty hours I sat surrounded
by my sketchbooks and new works . . . and that’s when it hit me
. . .
EVERYTHING MUST GO! Sell it all!
Sell paintings! Sell drawings! Sell project-based work! Sell readymades!
Sell videos! Sell documentation! Sell things that are pregnant
with meaning—and truth!
Everything is potentially priceless!
Everything is potentially worthless!
Everything has value!
Everything comes with a price!
I am an emerging artist.
Now I knew how I would become a professional female artist; it
was time to do some brainstorming on how I might brand myself.
How could I reassure consumers that my work was both timeless and
contemporary? How could I guarantee that my image would be, at
once, in fashion and avant-garde? I wanted everything, so I settled
for nothing. I hope you enjoy all that I have to offer.
Happy holidays,
Kyle K