JOLLY DAYS

Lin Arison, Arts Patron

This story of a young arts patron has a mention of her epiphany. She had thought artists were slackers but visiting Van Gogh's small workspace:

…she wept after visiting the closet-size room where van Gogh spent his final 70 days…“I realized that for [Van Gogh] being an artist wasn’t a choice…And just as much as I would have been unhappy being an artist, he would have been unhappy not being one…”

Okay, she should have, if properly schooled and more thoughtful, have wept at the intensity of the living spirit in Van Gogh's work; she could better and more honorably have derived the realization of Vincent's expansive spirit without the necessity of a visit to his cramped worldly quarters.

At least she realized. It is true about creating art — art chooses you.