So, Just What Do You Do All Day?

What do you do all day?

If you're like many, you either have a job to be able to pay for the necessities of life - or perhaps you are a student, spending time preparing to have a job to pay for the necessities of life.

Or maybe you're both.

Then, there's the element of your life that gives it meaning - that special something that keeps you going - the motivation to get up in the morning, the light that gives hope to a weary soul, the passion that stirs the fires within.

Perhaps, for you, this element is being a spouse or parent.  Perhaps it is a hobby - like customizing classic cars.  Perhaps it is an athletic activity - like golf, or cycling, or a team sport.

Now, imagine that whatever you do all day and the thing that makes life worthwhile were the same thing.

Maybe for some of you, it already is.  If so, good for you!  It seems that many people simply put in time at their chosen profession during the week, so they can get to the weekend to get to do what they truly enjoy doing.  For the sake of our argument, however, let's assume that your work and your passion are one and the same.

However, let's take this scenario a step further.  What if your daily work and your passion was judged on a regular basis in a very public forum.  Let's say someone videotaped examples of your parenting skills, and aired them on YouTube - and then asked for discussion and evaluation of your work.  Or, someone toured your classic car around from town to town, and then asked for feedback on your craftsmanship, and aired the response on a new reality show.

Keep in mind - those evaluating your work may or may not have experience or training in your area of expertise.  They may not know how many hours you spent honing the skills you have, and how many more you currently spend refining your skills.  They may not relate to the emotions tied up in what you do - that every action you take reflects the dedication.  They may not even value what you do at all, perceiving it as a whim that has no real productive function in our "bottom-line" driven world.

Which brings me to my point.

The aforementioned scenario is my life.  I'm a musician - and being a musician isn't something I "do", it's something I "am".  And yes, I do consider myself fortunate.  I am fortunate enough to genuinely love what I do, and wouldn't do anything else. 

But - that doesn't mean that it is easy to put my heart and soul on the line daily to be able to earn a living.  It would almost be easier to be a musician if I didn't love it so much - if I could look at what I do dispassionately, and matter-of-factly move through my day, thinking rationally and logically about every interaction, every artistic choice.

But it wouldn't be art then, would it?  It might take on the shell of "art", but the shell would be a dispassionate coating only catering to what others consider to be "art".

However, if one wants to make a living doing something, there has to be demand for the service, as well as value placed upon it.  And the value is rarely defined by those providing the service - it is defined by those consuming it.

Therin lies the rub.  Can art support life - and maybe more importantly, can life in today's society support true art?