Everything Comes to an End

I read this a couple of weeks ago, and it has been haunting me. When he was 22, Stieg Larrson wrote this letter to his girlfriend, to be opened in the event of his death. 27 years later, it was. It is beautiful, haunting and bittersweet for me.

Stockholm,
February 9, 1977

Eva, my love,

It's over. One way or another, everything comes to an end. It's all over some day. That's perhaps one of the most fascinating truths we know about the entire universe. The stars die, the galaxies die, the planets die. And people die too. I've never been a believer, but the day I became interested in astronomy, I think I put aside all that was left of my fear of death. I'd realized that in comparison to the universe, a human being, a single human being, me...is infinitely small. Well, I'm not writing this letter to deliver a profound religious or philosophical lecture. I'm writing it to tell you "farewell." I was just talking to you on the phone. I can still hear the sound of your voice. I imagine you, before my eyes...a beautiful image, a lovely memory I will keep until the end. At this very moment, reading this letter, you know that I am dead.

There are things I want you to know. As I leave for Africa, I'm aware of what's waiting for me. I even have the feeling that this trip could bring about my death, but it's something that I have to experience, in spite of everything. I wasn't born to sit in an armchair. I'm not like that. Correction: I wasn't like that...I'm not going to Africa just as a journalist, I'm going above all on a political mission, and that's why I think this trip might lead to my death.

This is the first time I've written to you knowing exactly what to say: I love you, I love you, love you, love you. I want you to know that. I want you to know that I love you more than I've ever loved anyone. I want you to know I mean that seriously. I want you to remember me but not grieve for me. If I truly mean something to you, and I know that I do, you will probably suffer when you learn I am dead. But if I really mean something to you, don't suffer, I don't want that. Don't forget me, but go on living. Live your life. Pain will fade with time, even if that's hard to imagine right now. Live in peace, my dearest love; live, love, hate, and keep fighting...

I had a lot of faults, I know, but some good qualities as well, I hope. But you, Eva, you inspired such love in me that I was never able to express it to you...

Straighten up, square your shoulders, hold your head high. Okay? Take care of yourself, Eva. Go have a cup of coffee. It's over. Thank you for the beautiful times we had. You made me very happy. Adieu.

I kiss you goodbye, Eva.

From Stieg, with love.

From Letters of Note

10 Rules of Writing (but let's pretend it's about art)

Zadie Smith's 10 Rules of Writing, but I'm telling you, this can apply to art as well.

1. When still a child, make sure you read a lot of books. Spend more time doing this than anything else.
2. When an adult, try to read your own work as a stranger would read it, or even better, as an enemy would.
3. Don’t romanticise your ‘vocation’. You can either write good sentences or you can’t. There is no ‘writer’s lifestyle’. All that matters is what you leave on the page.
4. Avoid your weaknesses. But do this without telling yourself that the things you can’t do aren’t worth doing. Don’t mask self-doubt with contempt.
5. Leave a decent space of time between writing something and editing it.
6. Avoid cliques, gangs, groups. The presence of a crowd won’t make your writing any better than it is.
7. Work on a computer that is disconnected from the ­internet.
8. Protect the time and space in which you write. Keep everybody away from it, even the people who are most important to you.
9. Don’t confuse honours with achievement.
10. Tell the truth through whichever veil comes to hand — but tell it. Resign yourself to the lifelong sadness that comes from never ­being satisfied.
    

More at Thought Catalog

Met Publications offers online viewing

You can read at least 293 different fully online texts from the Metropolitan Museum. This makes Carolyn very, very happy.

Metropolitan Museum Online Publications

Here's the first one I'm digging into:

The Care and Handling of Art Objects

Modern Mondays and me at the Bechtler Museum

Visit the museum November 5 for the Modern Mondays program Living With Art. Carolyn Jacobs, studio faculty member at Central Piedmont Community College, and Karen Derksen, Director of Winthrop University Galleries, lead a discussion on how to incorporate art into your life and home, and offer practical tips to properly maintain it. Participants will also learn how the Bechtler family incorporated art into their professional and personal lives. 

Cocktails at 6pm. Lecture at 6:30. Tickets are $8 for non-members. Free to members.


Modern Mondays at the Bechtler Museum

Collaboration with Charlotte Symphony

Carolyn Jacobs, (in progress and untitled) 24x18"
acrylic, starch, pastel on Stonehenge paper

October is a busy, busy month!

My Drawing II class has been asked to create images to be projected while the Charlotte Symphony plays in Tate Hall on October 25.

This is a little sneak peak at one of my contributions, which is in progress....

November is my museum month....

I've got two exciting events coming up!

Monday, November 5, Karen Derksen and I will give a talk at the Bechtler Museum on the idea of looking at art versus living with art. It's part of the Bechtler's Modern Monday Series.  We'll talk about subjective things like what draws you to purchase a particular work, and then about more practical issues like installing it and maintaining it.  We'll also talk a little about how the Bechtlers incorporated art into their daily life.  Fun in the 4th floor gallery should be had by all!
Cocktails at 6pm
Lecture at 6:30pm
Scheduled to last 45 minutes to an hour.
The Bechtler site isn't updated with it yet, but here is a link for more info:


Bechtler's Modern Monday Series

Then, on November 13, I'll be leading a figurative session at the Mint Museum exploring expressive color. This is in conjunction with Beverly McIver's exhibition, and part of a class with master educator Rita Shumaker.  Fasten your seatbelts, we're going to be flying high! This is scheduled for 6-8pm.  Come early, stay late....the museum is free and open to the public on Tuesday nights.

Here's the info on the Mint session:
Hand and the Eye

See you there, my friends :-)