# Creative courage and letting your guts out Source: https://metalabel.substack.com/p/the-courage-to-let-your-guts-out Kiwi News: https://news.kiwistand.com/stories/Creative-courage-and-letting-your-guts-out?index=0x6657863f16dbb03612c38b787cd91d6a10a2328b8a732da93934462a8ea048f6b0395bef Submitted by misha on 2024-05-29 UTC, 1 upvote, 0 comments ## Summary Painters Paul Waters and Jamie Nami Kim argue that making and releasing art takes courage, and that each release helps others do the same. They describe "comaglacia," a Wachapreague word Waters learned from his grandmother, as meaning "let your guts out." The newsletter also cites Kim Gordon's 1981 Art Forum observation that "People pay to see others believe in themselves," and highlights recent releases, including Hard Art's book Drawn Without Looking, limited to 100 editions and currently available to UK collectors. ## Article A guest meditation from the painters Jamie Nami Kim and Paul Waters (Twins): Waters and Kim in their shared studio My [Paul’s] grandmother was a Wachapreague woman. There was a Wachapreague word I learned from her — ”comaglacia” [spelled phonetically – it’s not a word that was written, only spoken]. The word translates to “let your guts out.” Meaning let your deep, inner expressions out. Let what needs to come out – out. We were talking about this word in our studio recently. Comaglacia is what we do when we make and put out work as artists. We let our guts out. It takes courage to make and release work as an artist. It’s a risk. You’re showing people what’s inside. It isn’t easy. But it’s worth it. The more you release, the easier it becomes. The more you release, the closer to your truth you get. The more you release, the more you see who you really are. The more you let your guts out, the more you shine a light for others to do the same. Comaglacia takes courage. Courage is something we all need. As artists, our work can inspire courage in others. Create. Release. Be courageous. Let your guts out. — Paul Waters and Jamie Nami Kim This meditation reminds us of an observation by Kim Gordon (later of Sonic Youth) writing in Art Forum in 1981 about the power of performance: “People pay to see others believe in themselves.” When we believe in ourselves as creative people, we inspire others to do the same. That’s what this week’s new releases do. Participatory art-making. Collections of stories. Personal work expressed with care. Be inspired by their courage. What do you need to release? Hard Art — the UK-based collective of artists, activists, and community leaders who debuted with us earlier this year — are back with their fifth release: a physical art book featuring drawings of 100 members made through a participatory art practice. Spearheaded by the artist and musician Ian Bruce, Drawn Without Looking features the members of Hard Art drawing paper–and-ink portraits of each other without looking at what they were doing. When they finished, Bruce painted the sketches (while looking) to bring uncannily Picasso-esque portraits to life. Drawers and sitters include Brian Eno, Es Devlin, Jeremy Deller, Love Ssega, Cornelia Parker, Gavin Turk, Louis VI, Olivia Douglass and Fred Again.., among many others. The project is an exercise in creative courage, from asking people to make portraits of one another on equal footing to creating a document that uniquely reflects who Hard Art is and funds future work. Limited to 100 editions. Currently available to UK collectors. Collect Drawn Without Looking We invited Anika Jade Levy (Forever Magazine) to review the first book from the independent publisher Black Lawrence Press on Metalabel. MONARCH: Stories is the debut collection from Emily Jon Tobias and the first of a series of books from Black Lawrence Press debuting on Metalabel. MONARCH is a love letter to America, a book about getting high and getting sober, about running away and coming home. What makes this book extraordinary is the way in which it deals with daily life, the author’s “average abuses and abandonments, traumas no more or less severe than anyone else’s.” As Chris Abini writes in his foreword, the beating heart of this collection is “a belief that all things can be turned toward an uneasy yet earned grace and an unsentimental redemption.” As the title suggests, this is a book about the basic human capacity for metamorphosis, written with the faith that a work of art — a book, a song, an experience — can leave you better than it found you. — Anika Jade Levy Collect MONARCH: Stories The artist Rebecca Clark blessed Metalabel earlier this year with Book of Hours, a digital artist book of drawings, poems, and meditations reflecting on the anthropocene. The work was a hit among the Metalabel audience, with more than 100 people collecting a copy. Now Clark returns with her first physical release on Metalabel: a physical art book of her drawings of the natural world. The work is delicate, intricate, and splashed with color. We celebrate Rebecca and the places that inspire her to release such wonderful work into the world. Collect For Every Purpose Love Metalabel and have skills that would add to what we’re doing? We’re looking to make two additions to our small team: Creator Liason We’re looking for someone (preferably NYC-based) to join us in identifying, nurturing, and supporting creative work. Learn more about what we’re looking for here. Product Engineer We’re looking for a senior front-end engineer with a sharp eye for design to join our small but mighty build team. Learn more here. Every two weeks we come together to explore Metalabel, what’s happening in culture, and have an open discussion and Q&A. Join Metalabel Director Yancey Strickler and other members of the Metalabel diaspora next Thursday, June 6, at 12pm EST: RSVP