Adam Yauch, a.k.a. MCA, was an Artmonk; Beastie Boys’ “Bodhisattva Vow”
[update: good context for this, a Salon post on Yauch, "From brat to activist: Adam Yauch's transformation from hooligan to human rights figure paralleled a generation's coming-of-age," here.] I’ve started to notice recently how the vows we’ve taken this year (of gratitude, fidelity, and resourcefulness), as well as the midnight Vigils Ritual we’re investigating as part of ...
Winner of Otherhood’s “The Artist’s Rule” Comment Contest: Cole Matson
For his comment on Otherhood Podcast: Episode 1 with Christine Valters Paintner, Cole Matson is hereby awarded a copy of Paintner’s book, “The Artist’s Rule.” The comments were all great, and the decision was a hard one. The passion and devotion Matson offers in his poetry really captured my attention, though. And I’m a sucker ...
Laura Riding was an artmonk
“The mercy of truth – it is to be truth.” In reading Paul Auster’s fantastic collection of essays, The Art of Hunger, I came across Truth, Beauty, Silence, a stunning look at Laura Riding’s life and work. As the poets she influenced (Auden, Ashbery, etc.) are among my favorites, I have read a little ...
Otherhood, the Podcast: Episode 1, Christine Valters Paintner and “The Artist’s Rule”
Meet Otherhood, the Podcast. In this, the first episode, I interview Christine Valters Paintner about her new book (the Artist’s Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul With Monastic Wisdom), the oblate life, and what it means to be both an artist and a monk. BTW, we’re giving away a free copy of the Artist’s Rule to ...
Peter Zumthor is an artmonk (don’t tell him, though)
Two things to notice in this Guardian profile of artmonkish architect Peter Zumthor: 1) what it takes to be called a monk by the architecture world, and 2) that it’s an insult, synonymous with “otherworldly” and “arrogant.” You would be wise not to call Peter Zumthor a monk. He may be white-bearded and dark-clad and ...
The force of gravity
A new job and a series of events more art than monk have kept me from posting much here lately. There will be time soon, I hope, for more of the interviews, reviews, articles, and other things that give modest life to this project. For now, something from Jerzy Grotowski, whose work attracts me more ...
Coming soon: “The Artists Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom”
From the author of the Monk Manifesto, Christine Valters Paintner. Pre-order yours today. Amazon.com: The Artists Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom 9781933495293: Christine Valters Paintner: Books
5/5/11 in Berkeley: “Artmonk Sangha: the Bay Area’s Ritual Laboratory for Artmonks”
Based on practices that we have been developing at the January 2010 & 2011 Artmonk Retreats in the Mojave Desert, these weekly (or semi-weekly) meetups will provide an opportunity for anyone in the Bay Area who is interested to explore the path of the artmonk. DEFINITIONS: “Artmonk”: someone who dwells (alone or in community) at ...
Immanence
I’m heading off the grid for a week, but I really look forward to giving this more attention when I get back: ”artmonks: children of Thoreau & Whitehead,” a post by Adrian Ivakhiv. If Thoreau’s quest to “live deliberately ... and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived” were cross-bred with ...
Theophane the Monk was an artmonk
Next week I’m heading to the Vedanta Society’s Olema retreat center in Marin County. One thing I’m definitely bringing is Theophane the Monk‘s Tales of a Magic Monastery. Here’s one of his tales: There’s a monk there who wears a red robe. I was wondering why, but it was my little son who dared to ...
