So You Want to be an Artist?: An Interview With Poet and Visual Artist Mary Dixon

Greetings Scribblers and Book Bandits,

Recently I was honored and blessed to interview Regent University professor Mary Marie Dixon. She is both a poet and an artist with degrees in both fields (and in theology to boot. Smart cookie!). If you want a succinct description of her many qualifications, click here. After you read her interview below, you can check the bottom of this page for links to her work.

 

1.) “Professor Dixon, you studied in several disciplines. Why did you choose to study Theology, Creative Writing, English, Art and Teaching?”

·         “I was a naturally curious person! I’ve always done visual art, and I earned a Bachelor's in Education to teach it in elementary school. As I wrote poetry, my writing was naturally spiritual, so I wanted to ground it in theological study. So I studied Theology in order to understand my own writing.”

2.) “Wow! So when did you know you wanted to be a poet? Artist?”

·         “I knew I wanted to be an artist from a young age. I liked writing poetry in high school, but I just dabbled back then. I recognized early on that poetry is a kind of cleansing and healing process. It’s both expression, relief, and a method of sharing.  I was a preschool teacher for twenty years and finally went back to school for my Master’s Degree and began writing.”

3.) “You pair together some of your poetry and art. Is that usually a conscious decision, or does your work naturally begin to flow like that?“

·         “When I started at Notre Dame, I intentionally created some of my pieces together. Later on, some it naturally meshed with my poetry, but most often it is by design.”*

*Scribblers and Book Bandits, this is an interesting point by Dixon. Sometimes inspiration will hit us, but usually we must purposefully design our work for a certain effect.

4.) “I'm sure any of the readers looking at your art will wonder about your medium. What is it and how did you start using it?”

·         “Wallpaper primarily. In college, I liked to paint with watercolors, but after my twenty year break, I lost some of that skill. That was frustrating. I would like to get back to it, but I just don’t have the time right now. So instead of painting, I picked up some wallpaper scraps that were going to waste and started making pictures with my preschoolers. It was so much fun and I liked what I could do with it. Then I ran across this book about ‘scherenschnitte,’ which is German paper-cutting. That inspired my own work.”

5.) “How do you actually create your art?”

·         “I just use scissors to cut it out. I sketch a design first, then trace and cut it out, often making lots of mistakes and having to redo it. I kept working at paper cutting originally because it was easy to get materials. I just have to have paper, basically, but painting takes a lot of equipment and set up. It’s very time-consuming."

6.) “How did you first get published and for how many years did you write before you were?”

·         “When I was first in college, I published one thing in an anthology. When I went back to school in 2003, my professors told me I had a gift, so I started thinking ‘Well, maybe I should try publishing.’ My professors told me to keep working at getting published: ‘You can be an excellent writer, but if you don’t put in enough effort to get published, you won’t.’  I understand, now, why they said that. Getting published takes a lot of effort! If you don’t work at it, you won’t get published. My advice on the matter is that if you write a significant piece you think is publishable, keep sending it out there and eventually you will find someone to publish it. It’s about diligence. There are lots of great writers out there better than me (Yeah, right Professor Dixon! You’re awesome.) who aren’t published because they aren’t as diligent at submitting pieces.”

7.) “Your writings are often so spiritual. How do you find places to publish them?”

·         “I subscribe to Duotrope Newsletter*, which is very cheap and helpful, and I scour their listings once a month. They send out a huge list of publishers who are looking for themed work. They’ll say they need something on beauty and I’ll know I’ll have something, etc. There’s a lot of newer, obscure or fledging publications that provide good ways to get your feet under you. I have published a lot of stuff because of Duotrope. It’s worth the fee. It used to be very difficult to find journals that would publish overtly religious work, but it’s gotten easier. As far as overtly religious journals, one is “Relief.” Oh- and “Rock and Stream.” But you don’t have to be blatantly spiritual to be a minister. Not everyone is religious, but many wonder about religion. I believe that poetry and art are ministries of beauty- people aren’t always ready for it, but God ministers through beauty. We should use these talents that God gives us. I feel like publishing is something I have to do, though not everyone has that drive. I always have trepidation in sharing my work because, like most writers, I wonder, “Is this relevant to another person?”

*Scribs and Bandits, Duotrope.com charges $5 by month, or $4.17 per month if you buy a full year subscription. You can also follow the site on Twitter for some free info.

8.) “Do you have an opinion about self-publishing?”

·         “I know some people who self-publish. The thing is, it can cost a lot of money. There are a few places that you can do it cheaply- Smashwords, Createspace, etc. But, then, it takes a whole new level of energy. You have to do all the marketing yourself, and that’s a lot of work. Still, ‘self-publishing’ isn’t such a negative term anymore. I belong to the Nebraska Writer’s Guild, and I recently heard a speaker on it there. People used to call it ‘Vanity Publishing,’ and there are still Vanity presses, but there are also legitimate self-publishers and self-published authors.”

9.) “Who are your influences or favorite artists? Authors?”

·         “My favorite art is impressionism because of the combination of colors and vibrancy. I love how the sweeping color makes an image. Monet is one of my favorites, but I like Michaelangelo, classic art, and women’s art. The shapes of Monet and the woman form from Greek and Roman sculpture inspire me. I like the nobility in women’s features. As for poetry, I love Emily Dickinson and David Jones. Jones is kind of difficult to read, but it’s very deep theological material. Gerard Manley Hopkins, Hildegard of Bingen and Theresa of Avila also influence my work.”

10.) “Your influences show in your sophisticated poetic language. It holds up to several rereadings. How did you develop this style?”

·         “When I write, I have a purposeful approach. Sometimes I read poetry to get inspired, then I start freewriting, like stream of consciousness. Then I go back and think on it, and most of the time I’ve written some kind of spiritual perspective to pick out and develop. I usually layer more into the poem. The imagery I use in the beginning is usually set, and the spiritual emphasis comes after that. Sometimes my direction completely changes because revelation is part of poetry. It’s a spiritual exercise for me. It can take me years to finish a piece of poetry!”

11.) “Your work also reflects some agricultural influence.”

·         “Yes, I grew up on a farm picking and plucking and planting and harvesting everything you can think of. In the morning we milked the cows, then we harvested and did chores. The ecology of farm life is very important to me. Work ethic and spirituality come together in my poetry. When I wrote “Odysseus,”* my professor at Notre Dame thought it was weird that I combined those two elements. There is a disconnect, today, for most people about the food they buy from grocery store shelves and how it gets there.”

*Scribs and Bandits, “Odysseus” is one of my favorite poems by Dixon. You can check out the link below these questions!

12.) “What does a typical work day look like for you?” 

·         “I answer all my email, teach my classes, grade papers, and I might have a little time to think about planning for the next day.”

13.) “What would an ideal work day look like for you?”

·         “I would have time to think about my own self-expression. I would also have a little more time for giving feedback to students and planning for the next day. It would be nice if I had a job where I could work in these things. I like to do research—I’m doing research for a paper right now—but during the school year, I don’t have time.”

Don't forget to thank Mary Dixon in the comments section or on her Facebook page, where you can also see some of her gorgeous artwork.

Here are the promised links to her work:

-The Oklahoma Review published her nonfiction piece called "Virtue."
-The Blackbird online journal of literature and the arts published her poem, "Cinnamon Dreams," in Fall 2004.
-A Prairie Journal published her poem "Prairie Dogsology" in 2008.
-Pirene’s Fountain published her poem "Odysseus," my personal favorite, in May 2009.
-Heavy Bear published her poem "Planting Tubers" in 2010.
-Eclectica poetry published her poem "If You Are Western" in 2012.

Bright Futures: An Interview with Dr. Caramine White

     Hey Scribblers and Book Bandits!

     You probably read this blog because you love writing or reading. (Unless you're my mom or something. Hi, Mom!). If so, isn’t it fun to see how our futures could involve these things we love?

     I recently interviewed my British Literature professor, Dr. Caramine White, over the phone about her life as a professor and writer. Dr. White has written two non-fiction works:  Reading Roddy Doyle, and Reading More of Roddy Doyle. She has also written a memoir called Running Naked Through the Streets about her experiences living in Slovakia as a teacher. On top of these accomplishments, she has written several articles and interviews. She is gifted with the ability to pick stories out of people and explain them to readers.

     And, let’s not forget that she’s an avid marathon-runner and animal activist.

Please welcome, for your pleasure, Dr. Caramine White!

1.      You’ve written a number of interviews. You mentioned once that good interviewers pick stories out of people. Do you have any tips about how to do this?

-Be interested in your subjects and you’ll be a good interviewer.

-Do research on your topic before you interview, because it’s hard to ask good questions if you don’t know anything about the topic.

-Keep the person talking. It’s like when you’re on a date—keep asking questions!

2.      You wrote a memoir about your experiences in Slovakia as a teacher. Why did you choose to write a memoir as opposed to fiction?

-I had never written any fiction before, only non-fiction. The memoir just occurred to me as a true story to share.

I thought this was a cool point for us, Scribblers and Book Bandits. In this case, Dr. White took the advice to “write what you know.” She wrote about her experiences in a comfortable medium. It’s good for beginning writers to step out and stretch ourselves sometimes, but we can write things in comfortable mediums as well. (Although I wouldn't call Dr. White a beginning author!)

3.      Can you share any lessons you’ve learned about writing?

-Since I write mostly non-fiction, the biggest thing I must remember is to make sure the facts are correct. Newspaper articles must be especially clear, meticulously so. I’ve gotten calls before about extremely minor things. Once, a musician told me his record had come out “recently.” I wrote that in the article. An editor called me and berated me for writing “recently,” because the musician’s record had been out for a few months already.

4.      How do you include your Catholic faith in your writing?

-Being ethical is important. When I’m writing up interviews, I must represent people accurately. My subjects are often afraid of being misrepresented because they have been so many times before. I can’t let my biases interpret people—I have to put aside my opinions as much as possible. Although…when someone is particularly rude, I just let them form their own image on the page. I don’t edit out anything—I leave in everything they say and do, so I present the truth. That way, they look like who they are.

Clever!

5.      Are you planning to write fiction? If you did, what would it look like?

-My dream is to write accessible, best-selling novels that make people think. Serious fiction should make a person think. It should open up questions for people to think wonder about.

6.      When did you learn to write?

-Actually, when I was working on my PH.d. program, one of my professors was very tough on me when he critiqued my writing. He taught me a lot!

7.      How did you become interested in teaching?

- Originally, a high school history teacher told me that I didn’t write well, so I didn’t consider writing as a career. I was a Latin and Psych major at Duke for undergrad. Ater graduating from Duke, I served in the Navy as an operations officer. Then I went back to school to get a teaching degree. I eventually just decided to bag the Education degree and go for a PhD in English. My mentor said I was too eccentric to teach high school and suggested I teach college. I listened to her, and here I am!

 

I’m glad Dr. White listened to her mentor! I learned a lot about Literature in her class. One interesting topic that came up in our discussion about school was that Dr. White had graded AP Tests on a panel before. She asked about my experience with the AP Lit test. I said, “I don’t understand why I got a 3/5! I even wrote on Hamlet.” She laughed and told me, “Teachers should tell their students never to write on Hamlet. We graders groan every time a Hamlet essay comes up because we get so many. The essays never do the play justice, so they never get good grades.” In my essay on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, she advised me about how to cover a topic more thoroughly in an essay. “A really good Lit essay explores every aspect of its thesis. So, if you’re writing on a character, you need to study him every time he appears on stage. It’s tough to do this in a short essay.” She also told me that when you examine a piece of literature in an essay, you must examine it like a lawyer. You must know everything about it and create a solid thesis using all the evidence the play gives you. You can’t just ignore something and hope no one notices. Dr. White's advice helps me every time I write an essay.

8.      What is the publishing market like right now?

-It is SO hard to get published right now! A lot of people are just e-publishing. Actually, I’ve talked to some editors who advise just that. The big publishers don’t look at unsolicited manuscripts*, and agents don’t consider you unless you’ve already got a traditionally published book under your belt. It’s tough to break into the market

     9. What book would you recommend for writers on the hunt for agents or editors?

-I would recommend Jeff Herman’s Guide to Publishing. He publishes a new edition every few years.

* “Unsolicited manuscripts” are labeled as such because a publisher has not requested it. Sometimes, this only means that you need to send the publisher a query letter first. Other times, this means “Don’t send us anything.” Read a publisher’s “Submission Guidelines” page to find out. If they don’t have any guidelines, you can know for sure that they don’t even want to receive queries. Publishers like this usually require submissions to come from literary agents. It’s advised to try and interest a literary agent in your manuscript first anyway.

     We hoped you enjoyed the interview, friends. Don’t forget to leave Dr. White a thank you note in the comment section!

Interview Part II: The Analysis, and My Opinion

Brenda! And me, squinting at my camera phone
in my backyard.

 

     Hey Scribblers!

     If you read last week's post, an interview of my artsy neighbors, you got a treat. Marc and Brenda Hooper kindly answered some questions concerning the aesthetics of art and literature. I analyzed their interview according to my Philosophy textbook, and they gave me permission to post the results on the blog!
 

Analysis

     Marc and Brenda answered most of my questions in terms of societal ideals (how America should handle art) rather than by their personal preferences; both also favored a conservative form of "aesthetic subjectivism" by agreeing that “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” Aesthetic subjectivism says that beauty is not a real quality that something can have. Art is pleasing to some people, and not others. Marc’s answers consistently aligned themselves with this subjective assessment, while Brenda’s were slightly more conservative. For example, the artist of the urinal display was trying to show that beauty is subjective. (As a refresher: an artist displayed an ordinary urinal, turned it slightly in one direction, and called it art. Controversial much?). Marc agreed with him, saying, “Some people might see it as art,” while Brenda flatly refused that interpretation. Both of their definitions of “art” were also very open, though. Marc said any life work can be artistic, using farms as an example.  Interestingly, they both felt that the media influences our perceptions of beauty, but that perception of beauty is still truly up to the individual. Marc especially seemed to agree with an opinion proposed by Madeleine L'Engle in her book Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith & Art: that “…to look at a work of art and then to make a judgment as to whether or not it is art…is presumptuous” (L’Engle 23). Brenda disagreed slightly, thinking beauty is not entirely a matter of opinion, which leads us to our next point.

When I asked Marc and Brenda about whether there are, or should be, standards  or censorship of art, they disagreed with each other. Brenda felt that there should be some objective standards, such as with the urinal art; too many objective standards, though, could be counterproductive to the artist. Marc’s answers took an interesting turn. He said that other countries control art more than America, and that art censorship scared him somewhat. He felt very strongly that we should not draw objective standards. His words brought North Korea to my mind as a scary example of over-the-top censorship: “Information is completely controlled…art, music and literature all feed the people in a constant stream of propaganda” (Nettleton 92&95). This terrifying situation in North Korea shows a good reason for his caution. After the interview, Brenda echoed this sentiment by giving me an essay called “Freedom” by E. B. White, which she said explained her views “better than she could.” The essay held fast to freedom of expression in America. “In this land the citizens are still invited to write their plays and books, to paint their pictures…to enjoy education in all subjects without censorship…[and] to compose music.”

            In regard to the moral assessment of art, both Marc and Brenda seemed to support ethicism, a middle ground view. Ethicism says, “moral attributes are relevant to, but not wholly determinative of, its aesthetic value” (Cowan 437). Brenda said the church should assess everything, but not ban it. In other words, we need to consider (and, probably respond to) it rather than burn it. Both Marc and Brenda agreed that for the sake of children, schools should be allowed to censor art, but that adults are able filter out whatever they need to. Mostly, they challenged parents to be the moral protectors of their children, not society. Their conclusion about adults suggested a slight lean towards aestheticism, which says “art and the artist are insusceptible to moral judgment” (Cowan 437). However, their attitude was probably based more on the idea that adults can judge for themselves, rather than needing to be controlled by society.
            I think that schools and private institutions should be allowed to ban art...However, people need free expression. Art shouldn't be banned from a society or country. You may have heard about the "Banned Books" controversy. My jury is still out on this particular topic, as it relates to children. It seems to make children more curious to read the books than anything. Adults being curious, though, is a fine thing. If people are curious, and they read a book, than they'll form an opinion of it. Some (stupid) people will revel in any evils they find; others, though, will discuss and dissect it. There's no use in hiding thoughts from adults. There should be limits on explicit things--like gratuitous violence, sex, etc--to public exposure. Most people will agree with that (although not all). Free expression is important. Free exhibition is not. I asked a wise friend, once, what he thought should be done about questionable content in books. He said we should all think and discuss it. It took a few years for the wisdom of this simple answer to sink in. Now I understand it. It's a very correct way of going about it. With children, more descretion is needed, I believe. Like Marc and Brenda, I think parents should be taknig care of this, though. Parents understand the development of their children better than anyone else. It's scary to think, though, that some of the best books out there have been banned from school bookshelves--To Kill a Mockingbird, The Lord of the Rings, and A Wrinkle in Time, for a few examples.

One of the only aesthetic guidelines scripture gives us is Philippians 4:8—to dwell on whatever is true, noble, right, pure, etc. Because the Hoopers answered the questions in terms of society rather than personal consumption, their views were difficult to analyze according to biblical and  and my Philosophy book's standards. My textbook did, however, state that some subjectivism in this area is normal, so despite my neighbors’ denial of aesthetic absolutes, their ethicism seats them somewhere in the wide realm of a Christian aesthetics.

Works Cited & Resources

Chesterton, G. K. “The Ethics of Elfland.” A Chesterton Anthology. San Francisco: Ignatious Press. 1985. Print.
            -I liked the thoughts in this essay.

Cowan, Steven B., and James S. Spiegel. The Love of Wisdom: A Christian Introduction to Philosophy / Steven B. Cowan, James S. Spiegel. Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2009. Print.
            -This is my textbook. It has a wonderful section on Aesthetics, with  a great critique of
              general viewpoints.

L'Engle, Madeleine. Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith & Art. Commemorative ed.

Wheaton, IL: H. Shaw, 1980. Print.
-This book is wonderful. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Nettleton, P. Todd., and The Voice of the Martyrs. North Korea: Good News Reaches the Hermit
            Kingdom. Vol. North Korea. Bartlesville, OK: Living Sacrifice Book, 2008. Print. Restricted             Nations.

“Philippians 4.” The Bible. NIV ed. Biblegateway.com. Web. 22 Sept. 2012.
           <http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians+4%3A8&version=NIV.>

 

Sayers, Dorothy L. "Towards A Christian Esthetic." The Whimsical Christian. New York: Macmillan, 1979. Print.
           -This was a wonderful essay. I highly recommend it to Christians.

White, E. B. “Freedom.” One Man’s Heart. HarperCollins, 1982. Print.
            -This essay was very thought provoking.

Aesthetics of Art and Literature Interview Part I

     Recently, I had the privilege of interviewing my very artsy neighbors, Marc and Brenda Hooper, on the topic "Aesthetics of Beauty." They do not claim to be experts on the subject matter, but sometimes it's nice to hear the opinions of thoughtful members of the American public. The questions centered on Art and Literature. Our discussion was so enlightening, I just had to share their thoughts with you, dear Scribblers and Book Bandits. 

     The "aesthetics of art and literature" is the philosophical side of entertainment. Really, who decides what is appropriate to watch or read? Or what is appropriate to create and display? And by what criteria? Although the interview may not have all the answers you're looking for, maybe it will get you started. Next week, I'll post my analysis of their thoughts, according to my Philosophy textbook. I'll also include a list of sources which you can check out for more information. I'm still forming my own opinion about all of these things, so I'm interested to hear what anyone may have to say in response to their thoughts.

     Here is what we came up with! :

1.) I’m sure you’ve heard the saying “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” Do you think Beauty is a real quality of things, or just a matter of personal opinion? 

·         Marc: The media tries to influence our ideas of beauty, but it actually is in the eye of the beholder.

·         Brenda: At this point in my life, I recognize that it is in the eye of the beholder. Like many young people today, I might have aligned my opinion with the crowd when I was younger.

2.) What is a work of art? Can we define “art,” or just identify it?

·         Marc: A person’s life work is their art. I work in agriculture. When I see a beautiful farm, it’s like art. I’ve seen some ugly farms, too! Art is not restricted to fine arts.

My textbook includes an example of a man who displayed a urinal, turned it 90 degrees, and called it art. Would you?

·         Brenda: No!

·         Marc: It depends on your perspective. Some people might see it as art.

3.) Do you think there are standards, relative or absolute, for art? Should there be?

·         Marc: We have freedoms in America that other countries don’t have, like freedom of speech. America has relative rules, but other countries have absolute standards of what is and isn’t allowed. We need some standards, but not too many because they could get controlling.

·         Brenda: There aren’t many standards here, and I don’t think there should be.  Objective standards would take away an artist’s individuality.

Some people feel that Michelangelo’s nude statue of “David” is crude. They draw a line there. How do you feel about drawing these lines?

·         Marc: We shouldn’t.

·         Brenda: I don’t think we should go back to the Victorian Age, but I think our standards have been set too low, here. Lingerie ads like those of Victoria’s Secrets are ridiculous. I suppose we do need some standards.

4.) What is the proper relation between art and ethics? Can we make moral assessments of them?

·         Brenda: Sometimes the church needs to be woken up. The opinions of others can be hard to swallow, but we need to hear them. We can make moral assessments, and we do, but we shouldn’t always count things out. Honestly, if parents guarded their children, this might not be such a problem.

·         Marc: Moral standards are needed in order to protect children.

I see that you both feel the need to protect children. What about standards for adults?

·         Brenda: Adults can filter out whatever they need to, but children need help from their parents with that.

5.) How do you feel Christianity should manifest itself through art?

·         Brenda: There are certain things I would expect to see. I would hold a Christian artist to a higher standard; if you claim Christianity, you are claiming a higher standard.

·         Marc: Because you can teach your audience through art, we need to see their beliefs through it.

6.) Do you believe in any kind of art censorship?

·         Brenda: There should be some. Schools should be allowed to pick and choose what art goes on their walls, and what books go in their library.

·         Marc: Censorship scares me somewhat, but I think it’s important to protect kids.

7.) What kinds of differences would you expect to see in art by a Christian, as oppose to a non-religious person?

·         Brenda: There are definitely certain things I would expect to see. I would hold a Christian artist to a higher standard; if you claim Christianity, you are claiming a higher standard.

·         Marc: Because you can teach your audience through art, we need to see their beliefs in their art.

8.) How do you feel about profanity in Literature?

·         Brenda: Profanity is offensive and unnecessary in Literature and movies. I won’t stop reading or watching, usually, but I don’t like it.

·         Marc: Profanity sullies the quality.

A Christian friend of mine believes that in order to portray the truth, a writer must stay true to the speech of a character, which may include profanity. How do you feel about that?

·         Brenda: I disagree with it. We should try to understand why people use profanity, but if you want to effect a change, you can’t be drawn into it yourself. There are better ways to paint a picture of a person.

·         Marc: I disagree with that perspective. Cursing shows the poverty of their thoughts.
 

     Check out Part II for an analysis of their thoughts, and some resources. Thanks for stopping by!

Photo Credit: Engelsma, Chris. "A Sennheiser Microphone." Wikimedia Commons. 28 July 2009. 19 Oct. 2012.