One of the glories and terrors of working in public is that you do see if your output means anything to anyone.
Interpretation
Public work has the power to impact others, revealing both its value and the pressure of its reception.
In this quote, Jenny Holzer highlights the dual nature of creating art or work that is presented to the public. It serves as both a source of pride and anxiety, as the creator becomes acutely aware of the influence their work can have on others, which can be both a glorious affirmation of purpose and a terrifying vulnerability to criticism or indifference.
In practice
This quote can be used to inspire artists during an exhibition opening.
BY YOUR RESPONSE TO DANGER IT IS_x000D_ EASY TO TELL HOW YOU HAVE LIVED _x000D_ AND WHAT HAS BEEN DONE TO YOU._x000D_ YOU SHOW WHETHER YOU WANT TO STAY ALIVE,_x000D_ WHETHER YOU THINK YOU DESERVE TO,_x000D_ AND WHETHER YOU BELIEVE_x000D_ IT'S ANY GOOD TO ACT.
Can one think that because we are engineers, beauty does not preoccupy us or that we do not try to build beautiful, as well as solid and long lasting structures? Aren't the genuine functions of strength always in keeping with unwritten conditions of harmony? ... Besides, there is an attraction, a special charm in the colossal to which ordinary theories of art do not apply.
It is only the untalented director who imagines him or herself in every part, wants his or her own thoughts and emotions portrayed; it is only the untalented who make their own limitations those of the actors as well.
The number of people who read a poem is not as important as how the poem affects those who read it.
It was not the story of design or clothes, it was the fantasy of women that made me want to work in fashion.
[Six principles that make for a good story:] 1. Absence of lengthy verbiage of a political-social-economic nature; 2. total objectivity; 3. truthful descriptions of persons and objects; 4. extreme brevity; 5. audacity and originality: flee the stereotype; 6. compassion.
A drawing is essentially a private work, related only to the artist's own needs; a 'finished' statue or canvas is essentially a public, presented work - related far more directly to the demands of communication.
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