I saw the movie THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA this weekend.
I've been fuming ever since. Finally, I realized I should write about it, and maybe I'll be able to move on to something else.
The plot is simple: Nice girl (Ann Hathaway) with a promising career in journalism ahead of her lands a plum job under uber-bitch boss (played brilliantly by Meryl Streep) who heads the top fashion magazine in the world. She eventually "buys in" to the bitchy world of high-fashion, loses her wonderful self along the way, but recovers with the help of loving friends and boyfriend. And finally lands her dream job in journalism.
Why am I fuming? Let me count the ways. I promise to relate them to the artistic life and biz. Mostly, it's about double standards.
1. The Boss
If Meryl Streep's character were a man, no one would bat at eye at her...um, his...behavior.
She is demanding, she is sarcastic, she does not suffer fools gladly.
BUT...she is also hard-working. She isn't asking anyone to work any harder than SHE does.
She is intelligent. Her decisions may seem capricious, but she didn't get to her position of power by being wrong or silly. She knows exactly she's doing every inch of the way.
She's made sacrifices along the way. Granted, they are not ones you nor I might make. But she is fully aware of what she has given up and why. (And the movie suggested that not all of it is on her.)
2. The Boyfriend
Let's see, he aspires to be a world-class chef, and all he ever cooks for Andy (Ann Hathaway) is burnt grilled cheese sandwiches.
Oh, wait, burnt grilled JARLSBERG cheese sandwiches. Whatta guy!
Andy tells him the job is only for a year, and then she can write her professional ticket to anywhere. But less than six months in, he's ready to bail. All I can say is, thank goodness she didn't decide to become a doctor.... And we all know that chefs only work 9-5 five days a week, right? NOT.
3. The Friends
They love, love, LOVE Andy when she shows up with wonderful presents from the magazine's sample room (including a $2,000 purse for one girl friend) but two minutes later are in a snit when she has to take a call from work.
At the end of the movie, Andy has her dream job as a reporter at a major newspaper. Oh, yeah, and I'm sure she will now be home in time for dinner every day, she will never have to work with difficult people again, she will never miss another birthday party, her cell phone calls will never interrupt another evening out with her friends and deadlines will never raise their ugly heads again in her life.
Wait for it....
bwah hahahahahahahahah.
How will I relate this to art?
1. It's not always easy to make, market, promote and sell your art.
It takes time and hard work to refine your techniques, develop viable work, find your audience.
There are many wonderful things about this biz, and many perks--especially the great people you meet.
But don't ever think it's "easier" than the world of business, medicine, etc. It just may SEEM easier because you love it.
2. We are ALWAYS being judged.
The art world is full of rejection. I can honestly say that for each time I've been juried in to a show/exhibition/magazine, I've been REJECTED ten times. Easily. And it never gets easier.
But you can't take it personally. You must see it as a process to go through before you finally find out where your art belongs.
A friend once told me that a certain world-reknowned artist applies to ten top shows a year, hoping to get into FOUR of them.
3. The hours suck.
There will be times where you have to work late, work hard, work weekends (those shows are always on weekends--dang!), in short, you will be working when everyone else is on vacation and having a good time. Your time may be FLEXIBLE, but you still have to invest it in your business to get anywhere. If your friends and family cannot be supportive of you, get new ones.
JUST KIDDING. Anyone who knows me knows I'm all about accomodation and balance in my life. (Or trying to, anyway.) But if you are surrounded by people who do not understand that what you do is a real business, it may be time to add to your life a few people who DO.
4. Success in anything takes TIME.
This may be the hardest thing I've had to learn. You can do everything right (and even though I try, I cannot say I've done everything right) and still need patience.
Yes, there are exceptions--we all know someone who made a nice widget and was catapulted into success. But for most people, it takes years for them to become an overnight success.
5. What's wrong with nice clothes??
In this movie, the fashion world is considered frivolous, and could never be worth the personal sacrifices needed to be successful in it.
At the beginning of the movie, Andy is a schlep. She sneers at fashion. Her boss soon sets her straight. The fashion industry may seem trivial and superficial, but it is actually just that--an industry, a MAJOR industry with worldwide scope that permeates every aspect of our lives. In fact, the delicious scene where Meryl Streep explains this is itself worth the cost of the movie.
Along the way, Andy learns how to pick great clothes and wear them with style. At the end of the movie, she moves with grace and confidence. She's learned she can handle anything, and she looks it.
There are people in the world who think art is frivolous, too.
Yeah, right.
All those paintings that incite passion, the fabulous jewelry made for queens, the silk roads that united Europe with the far east, the "trivial" beads that were traded around the world, the pottery that allowed people to store precious food items and water, the sculpture that didn't really add anything important to buildings like pyramids and temples but make them so much nicer to look at, The colored glass in cathedrals that are so breathtakingly beautiful that visitors are transcended, the paintings of Lascaux that shamans prayed to, asking for spiritual guidance in difficult times... Yeah, trivial.
There. I've gotten that off my chest. The next movie I want to see is the new Superman movie. Who knows what topic will spring into mind about that one??
