tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17175275.post6332598142509908594..comments2024-02-28T10:45:39.037+00:00Comments on Threading thoughts : A work of art speaks for itself -?Olga Norrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10554469124546960971noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17175275.post-89283202697326055182016-10-07T18:37:55.234+01:002016-10-07T18:37:55.234+01:00I believe that especially in the case of great art...I believe that especially in the case of great art the creative maker should be separated from the remaining everyday person. I remember hearing (while ironing!) Bridget Riley in an interview explaining why she decided not to have relationships so that she could concentrate on her work. She did not trust herself to be able to dedicate enough time and emotional energy to her work otherwise.<br />I don't know who your author is, but one of my all time favourites is Patricia Highsmith, and what an unreliable friend she was according to biographies. But as it is her writing I admire and not her personality/character, I simply read about her behaviour with curiosity.<br /><br />I do understand the pause for thought, however - especially in examples like Eric Gill, say. Olga Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10554469124546960971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17175275.post-12939444518211050452016-10-07T10:55:00.720+01:002016-10-07T10:55:00.720+01:00I too was struck by Orr's powerful article and...I too was struck by Orr's powerful article and her insight into the violation of Ferrante's private life, particularly since there is increasingly very little that I agree with or like about the Guardian's reporting. She wrote very powerfully about the need to separate the work from its creator, but also about the scrutiny, often very negative, that women in public life have to face which these days also involves abuse from internet trolls: as she correctly says it's a real violation of both the person and the artist. <br /><br />I have to admit though that knowing about the artist/author does sometimes affect the way I view their work. Picasso is a good example: even though I admire and love his work, what I know about his attitude to women has influenced, in ways that I cannot clearly define, the way I view his work sometimes. Another example is the work of a contemporary writer whose novels I used to read avidly. Her boasting in the press about how she was the 'only true and original writer' of the late 20th century' has made me much less enthusiastic about reading her recent novels even though I do know in my heart that I should allow the work to speak for itself.<br /><br />My last paragraph does in no way undermine any of the points in Orr's article, it's just an observation about the way I sometimes feel.<br /><br />I also agree with your observation that sometimes the work of famous artists is admired without being looked at closely. Eirenehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05350820845130506117noreply@blogger.com