Big apple or a big tree?

New York showed up in conversations lately. More than one gallery owners had hinted to me that artists have to be in New York for some time for their career to hit a new level. The fact of the art world is that more people are writing about art, more people are collecting art and more serious about art in the Big Apple.

Yet the fact of the real life is that most artists need to be stable in the mind and feel stable in their environment in order to be creative. A disoriented person remains disoriented wherever she or he lives.

I have been thinking about this career hit-and-run scenario for quite some time now. Artists in the US are looking at EU artists, EU artists are looking at the Chinese market, Chinese artists are looking at the Big Apple. Where should one go and where should one be?

Is career the major focus of an artist's life? Does career define an artist?

If I am my career, what happens when the career is no longer there?

Is an artist who does not sell or show a real artist?

I came to a loud NO as the conclusion.

So why is "career" so important that the thoughts of it can paralyze artists?

We are scared, I think. Way too scared.