Friday, September 30, 2011

Corita Kent's Art Rules

  Corita 1979//79-12.jpg 344×350 pixels
Sister Corita Kent wrote a set of rules to open up the creative spirit within. The very opposite of the kind of rules that allows fear to stop us.

Rule I
FIND A PLACE YOU TRUST AND THEN TRY TRUSTING IT FOR A WHILE.
  • Rule 2
GENERAL DUTIES OF A STUDENT:
PULL EVERYTHING OUT OF YOUR TEACHER.
PULL EVERYTHING OUT OF YOUR FELLOW STUDENTS.
  • Rule 3
GENERAL DUTIES OF A TEACHER:
PULL EVERYTHING OUT OF YOUR STUDENTS.
  • Rule 4
CONSIDER EVERYTHING AN EXPERIMENT.
  • Rule 5
BE SELF DISCIPLINED. THIS MEANS
FINDING SOMEONE WISE OR SMART AND
CHOOSING TO FOLLOW THEM.
TO BE DISCIPLINED IS TO FOLLOW IN A GOOD WAY.
TO BE SELF DISCIPLINED IS TO FOLLOW IN A BETTER WAY.
  • Rule 6
NOTHING IS A MISTAKE. THERE’S NO WIN AND
NO FAIL. THERE’S ONLY MAKE.
  • Rule 7
 The only rule is WORK.
IF YOU WORK IT WILL LEAD TO SOMETHING.
IT’S THE PEOPLE WHO DO ALL OF THE WORK ALL THE TIME
WHO EVENTUALLY CATCH ON TO THINGS.
  • Rule 8
DON’T TRY TO CREATE AND ANALYZE AT THE
SAME TIME. THEY’RE DIFFERENT PROCESSES.
  • Rule 9
BE HAPPY WHENEVER YOU CAN MANAGE IT.
ENJOY YOURSELF. IT’S LIGHTER THAN YOU
THINK.
  • Rule 10
"WE’RE BREAKING ALL OF THE RULES. EVEN
OUR OWN RULES. AND HOW DO WE DO THAT?
BY LEAVING PLENTY OF ROOM FOR X QUANTITIES." JOHN CAGE
HELPFUL HINTS: ALWAYS BE AROUND. COME OR GO TO EVERY- THING. ALWAYS GO TO CLASSES. READ ANYTHING YOU CAN GET YOUR HANDS ON. LOOK AT MOVIES CAREFULLY, OFTEN. SAVE EVERYTHING, IT MIGHT COME IN HANDY LATER. THERE SHOULD BE NEW RULES NEXT WEEK.




9 comments:

  1. These are wonderful rules, and I hadn't heard of Sister Corita Kent.

    Thank you!

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  2. Anonymous10:18 AM

    What great inspiration heading into the fall weekend!

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  3. Great rules, particularly #6.

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  4. Back in the late 60s, I had the luck to be taught by a nun who used Corita Kent's art in her classroom. Her approach opened my eyes to a different kind of art.

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  5. in the early sixties had a job that included restocking Sister Corita Kent's greeting cards with her serigraph art. i collected the dog eared ones to frame for my drafty beach rental walls.

    "War is not good for children and other living things" was a popular one

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  6. Thoroughly enjoyed this post. It has me thinking. Thank you.

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  7. Excellent post. #8 speaks to me because I tend to over analyze everything...not just my art. But, concerning my art it is helpful to think that creating and analyzing are different processes.

    I will print these out and I bet different ones will speak to me on different days.

    Always a pleasure to read your blog. Thanks for being so committed to it :)

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  8. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm printing this out and hanging it in my sewing room.

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  9. Danby3:14 PM

    I have been very fortunate to have lived with one of her serigraphs for many, many years. Love her work.

    ReplyDelete

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