“One of the writers I heard the other day said he didn’t think there was any such thing as artistic genius, which is exactly how I feel. And I do feel that art is as integral to human experience as our autonomic nervous system. I think I said, it’s like saying somebody has a talent for saliva production. You’re a genius at producing saliva! Or man, can you grow hair! “He’s brilliant!” But I do think the converse is true. I do think people can be talked out of it, or shocked out of it. It’s amazing to me how frightened people are of making their own art. Terrified.”

Lynda Barry(WHAT IT IS), from part one of a two-part interview with The Walrus.

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(Above: from Tom Neely’s THE BLOT)

Tom Neely (THE BLOT) tells 20 Questions with Cartoonists whether drawing is a pleasure or a pain:

“When I’m not drawing it’s a pain. I will spend days avoiding it. Making art is a really hard process for me because I think about it so much. I often find myself very intimidated by the act of drawing. I’ll agonize over every reason not to do it. I sometimes have weeks go by with no drawing and I start to get really depressed and listless. The longer I go without drawing, the harder it is to start, and the more depressed I get. When I start getting stressed or depressed I’ll forget why I feel that way. Then my wife will tell me “Go out to your studio and draw!” And as soon as I pick up a pencil or dip the brush in ink, I’m the happiest I’ve ever been. I love the feel of dragging a brush full of ink across a toothy sheet of paper. That’s pure pleasure.”

Posted by Aaron Humphrey

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