Once you have chooses a purpose, a theme, a focus and to pursue it obsessively, that is when the happy accidents are triggered. I consider the happy accident an important part of the creative process, perhaps the most important. Of course it won't do you any good if you are not prepared to accept it. So, open wide and say "ahhhhh."

For me it started with an interest in Franz Xaver Messerschmidt, an obscure German sculptor who produced some remarkable heads in the 18th century. The heads are about life size and appear to be the astonishing result of a scurrile psychoses, or so the historians would have us believe. My own interpretation as an artist is somewhat different. I believe he actually created the ultimate act of defiance against the powers that surrounded and aimed to destroy him, by ridiculing the very art that made these people immortal (there is a movie script in there somewhere). Since the English speaking realm is sadly lacking adequate literature about the subject I ended up translating the definitive book about the man; all of about 300 pages (a nine-month proposition).

One thing lead to another and here I am, a citizen of Berkeley, California, in the city of Vienna, Austria. I have uprooted and set up studio in this city on a shoestring. My purpose has since gone multifold. I am still involved in the translation of the book; I cooperate with the original author who is adding two new chapters to the story as new discoveries have been made while I was translating. I left for Vienna with an internet-ready computer, an electronic camera, a few art supplies, a few drawings and suitcase full of clothing. That was pretty much it. My purpose is to find inspiration and to accelerate my creative output while getting the book finished and published before the major Messerschmidt exhibit in October 2002.

Going to another country is not as easy as one might think: the language, the culture, and the authorities; as an American one isn't always welcome. The perception is that one is a representative of the US and necessarily in agreement with all US policies. The lines are immediately drawn and the subsequent trashing is always fierce. Be armed with facts and figures and be knowledgeable about the host country as well. Most of what gets levied against you is patent cliché, some end product of a long-standing rationalization process having to do with a collective inferiority complex that stems back to the 18th century (Maria Theresia's time) or even further. The Moslems still talk about the victories of Saladin; the Austrians talk about their Austro-Hungarian empire.

Setting up studio was greatly aided by a happy accident. I jumped at an apartment full of light and space with view of the city; it was a five minute decision even though it took a little more rent than I had budgeted for. I would rather not eat as much. Furniture was gracefully provided for cheap by an accounting firm that went belly up. Miscellaneous items can be extracted from the inordinate amount of dumpsters that can be found on just about every other block. For example a very large intact window together with a large oak panel plus the purchase of two hinges made for an excellent light table. A great many things can be had just for the asking or for very little money. It is amazing what people want to get rid of.

Vienna is in the heart of Europe and does drown in history and culture, at least thousand years of it. It is a source of income and pride for the locals. The inner city and the surrounding countryside is trenched in it. Sculpture, paintings, graphics, ceramics, glass, architecture, etc., etc., etc., plus a population of art critics.

Among all this glut of artwork your work will be analyzed, improved, derided, perhaps loved or hated; but it will not be ignored, no matter what it may look like. This is an advantage. Attention is a powerful motivator. Of course nothing speaks of appreciation as much as a purchase.

To aid the creative process, surroundings provide fertile ground for derivation, another useful device among the creative tools. Cross pollination occurs when the ideas from one discipline, from the onset of thoughts, migrate to another set, where they are applied in a similar or different manner. As the impressions collect in my sketch book, many new ideas fall out. It helps to be connected; well, sometimes it does. Fear and infighting are a common thing in the art scene where people guard their images with fierce defenses. Personally I believe in the free and broad distribution of ideas. The resulting creative return is so vast that nobody in the loop needs to worry about knock off.

So what is the upshot you ask? Do it, uproot, break the boundaries of convention no matter what the cost. The time is now, the place is any other place of your liking. Break the chains of convention and forget what they programmed you with. Write your own algorithm. The return will be rewarding.

Herb Ranharter's home page at Art2u -- http://www.art2u.com/artist/ranharter.html

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February 26, 2002
updated September 24, 2004