That's the Spirit!

I recently popped into THE bookstore in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and found that I wanted to read everything they had on display. It nauseated me. How could it be that I’m a market, so predictable. I’ve been cultivating my interests carefully, thoughtfully, for years, and someone now just opens a bookstore and it’s all there. Plus, the place was packed. Who are these people and why do they annoy me so? Does self-hatred alone explain it?

In the same vein, there’s news of a television channel devoted to art (see Ed Winkleman’s blog post yesterday). Even more disgusting to me! What are we, NBC?

Whatever happened to the idea of artists being outsiders? It’s a romantic image I like(d) to harbor, but now, being an artist is hip and art is an establishment. Where once I thought I could be an artist because it was a home on the margins, now I find myself struggling to be part of the “in” crowd (again).

So, I’ll go to Williamsburg to pick up Jacques Rancière (because it’s better than Barnes and Noble), and I’ll be glued to Art TV like pornography, but I’ll love/hate it every second of the way.