Last week, I had intended to conclude a previous blog topic that I opened — what draws us to art and have you ever examined your own art evolution and interests over time, their patterns and cycles. Well, it started as a blog about why I was drawn to watching documentaries so much but it grew into a much larger topic. Click here for a link to part one of this blog which ponders our art cycles and evolution over time. I had mentioned at that time that there would be a part 2 and last week, confessed that I was not where I wanted to be in drafting up that conclusion. (Here’s that apology of sorts for not delivering what I promised yet.) But I’m back for part 2. Finally!
After I blogged about my love for documentaries and a few hints of my own art preferences in general terms, I wanted to get more specific. And I knew exactly what I wanted to do but I also knew that the first blog was long enough and was not the place to introduce yet another offshoot of that topic. Aha! The reason behind a part 2. Not only can I get more specific, I can invite you to join me in the fun with a little activity if you would be open to participating, too.
I talked about how it would be really nice if we had something like medical charts for tracking our own artistic “health” over time — let’s call them art charts.
| DECADE | FILM | MUSIC | TV | BOOKS/PUBS |
| current | Documentaries, Sci-Fi/Fantasy | 60s rock, 70s, 80s, no artists in particular, still loving Broadway soundtracks – old and new | Sitcoms, reality-competition, sci-fi/fantasy drama, reality-relationship, news programs, PBS, late night TV, Late Night with Stephen Colbert, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, Modern Family, Young Sheldon | None as of late, Variety online, New York Times online |
| 2010s | Documentaries, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, all of the Marvel films, Star Trek (the latest films), The Hunger Games series, The Shape of Water | 60s rock, 70s, Alternative, Broadway soundtracks, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Josh Groban, Hamilton! | Sitcoms, reality-competition, HBO dramas, news programs, PBS, late night TV, Veep, Modern Family, Game of Thrones, The Big Bang Theory | Contemporary Romance, YA fantasy series, local business magazines |
| 2000s | Oscar Buzz, Blockbusters, Drama-Suspense, Memento, Love Actually, Avatar | 60s rock, 70s, Pop, Alternative, Dance, Kelly Clarkson, The Killers, Green Day, The Black Keys | Sitcoms, HBO dramas, reality-competition, Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Grey’s Anatomy, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Glee | Nonfiction -financial, time management, personal development, travel |
| 1990s | Indie Films, Romcom, Oscar Buzz, Michael Moore, Titanic, Rain Man, Dances with Wolves, American Beauty, Shawshank Redemption, Jerry Maguire, Pulp Fiction, TARENTINO! | Soft Rock, Pop, Soundtracks, Modern Country, Sheryl Crow, Faith Hill, Shania Twain, Comedy | Sitcoms, Daytime Soaps, Game Shows, talk shows, Seinfeld, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Everybody Loves Raymond, Simpsons, Oprah! | Biographies – entertainment primarily, political, the daily paper -Tampa Tribune, Entertainment Weekly |
| 1980s | Classics, Brit Flicks and Foreign Films, Oscar Buzz, Marlon Brando, Clark Gable, Hepburn and Tracy, Cary Grant, A Room with a View, On the Waterfront, Harrison Ford, Amadeus, Christopher Reeve as Superman, John Hughes anything | 50s and 60s rock, classical, Pop and New Wave, The Beatles, The Monkees, Duran Duran, Madonna, Hall and Oates, Janet Jackson, U2, REM | Sitcoms, Nighttime Soaps, Game Shows, Daytime Soaps, talk shows, MTV, Oprah, Late Night with David Letterman, The Monkees, Monty Python’s Flying Circus | Horror, Classics, Philosophers, EM Forster, SE Hinton, John Steinbeck, George Orwell, Edgar Allen Poe, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Edward Albee |
| 1970s | Comedy, Drama, Horror, Animal House, Rocky, American Graffiti, The Way We Were, The Exorcist | Pop, R&B and Disco, Elton John, Bee Gees, Chicago, Steely Dan, Earth Wind & Fire | Sitcoms, Nighttime Soaps, TV Movies, late night TV, Saturday Night Live, Midnight Special | Judy Blume/ Hardy Boys, Cracked Magazine, Dynamite! magazine for Kids |
What you see above is a rough summary charting the kinds of genres or artists I was obsessed with during different periods of my life. Once I started reviewing the information that first came to mind when I thought of a time period, I started to detect some correlations between the arts and what was taking place in my life at the time or patterns. For example, one thing that I noticed when I analyzed the films, music, TV and books that I sought out and enjoyed during my very impressionable years of ages 10-19 in the 1980s was my attraction to classics. Look at the list. That’s when I fall in love with old movies and found Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift, that’s when I discovered the Beatles and other classic rock that I didn’t always hear in my house growing up, that’s when I was not only assigned to read a lot of the classics because of my school English curriculum but also began to seek out books by the authors I was uncovering like John Steinbeck, George Orwell, Edgar Allan Poe, and others. That’s also when I found Monty Python and The Monkees classic TV shows that had left a legacy that I was not even aware existed. So I find it interesting that in some of the most formative years of my life that is when I was researching the classics, finding out about everything that came before me and savoring every morsel of it. That time of my life had a major impact on me and my tastes for years to come. I’ve always said I’m an old soul that happened to be born in the age of Sesame Street. And that is true as ever. On my drive into work, I listen to the 60s on 6 with Phlash Phillips on Sirius XM and all of the music I’m singing along to was released before I was born. On my drive home, I listen to CNN News. How old am I again— 83?!
As I began to use my creativity more in my career and also in my exploration of writing novels and other fiction in the 2010s, you see that my taste in both television and film moves toward more of a nonfiction realm with exceptions like the Marvel Universe, Star Trek and other fantasy or sci-fi films and TV shows. It is as if I invested so much of my creativity into my work for me and for my clients, that when I turned to art, I either wanted them to all of the work for me or completely remove anything creative from it so I began to get focused on more reality-based TV and news programming. I find that really interesting. Another observation I made was that it isn’t surprising in the slightest that I was reading lots of books about finance, budgeting, career checklist and skill building during times when I was transitioning in my career or working toward buying a home.
I’ve always believed this but had not seen it on paper this way before — I believe we turn to art for whatever nourishment we need, whether it’s something missing in our life or something we feel we need to understand better, we return to our art in the format, with the artists, in the genre or style, that speaks loudest to us and helps us answer questions, make decisions and take action. Art heals the soul, nourishes the mind and helps us become whole. Our search for our favorite artists in whatever world they may perform is never-ending and as you can see from my art chart, ever-changing.
But it is cyclical. You may often return to old favorites and find a new kinship with it or greater understanding than you did the first time around. I really hope if you have a few moments that you copy and paste this little table below into a Word document or notepad, somewhere that you can populate at yourself. Feel free to borrow and share as much as you want — share with anyone you think will enjoy taking a closer look at the art that has impacted their life.
Chart your art over the years and see where it has taken you academically, aesthetically and maybe even spiritually. I really hope you enjoyed reading this blog series and will go forward and explore your own path through art through the years. Enjoy the journey! And as always, thanks for reading. ~ Chris K.
P.S. And just because I dig all of you folks reading… a tasty treat! Click here if you’re in need of a smile today.
MY ART CHART BY DECADE
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DECADE |
FILM |
MUSIC |
TV |
BOOKS |
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current |
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2010s |
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2000s |
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1990s |
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1980s |
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1970s |
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1960s |
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1950s |
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1940s |
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