Blog From A Hermit Dot Com

Most hermits we actually know about are not hermits absolutely.  For the memorable hermits list, I look to individuals who experience solitude deeply, report back and return to solitude, having discovered solitude’s value to them as a desired state. Those, like Agnes Martin, who speak of solitude as part of the creative process have a special attraction for me.

So abstract expressionist Agnes Martin will grace the Most Memorable Hermits list even though one article I read about her insisted she was “not really a hermit.” (Hmm, “not-really-a-hermit” is exactly how I like to describe myself.)

Agnes Martin (1912 – 2004):

“To discover the conscious mind in a world where intellect is held to be valuable requires solitude, quite a lot of solitude. We have been very strenuously conditioned against solitude. To be alone is considered to be a grievous and dangerous condition.

“So I beg you to recall in detail any times when you were alone. You will find the fear that we have been taught is not one fear, but many different fears. When you discover what they are, they will be overcome. Most people have never been alone enough to feel these fears. But even without the experience of them, they dread them.”

“I often paint tranquility. If you stop thinking and rest, then a little happiness comes into your mind. At perfect rest, you are comfortable.”

“The best things in life happen to you when you’re alone . . . all the revelations.”

“I used to meditate until I learned to stop thinking . . .”

“I gave up all the theories.”

Special thanks to Deborah Barlow and her blog, Slow Muse.  Deborah has done a number of posts about Agnes Martin.  Deborah is a painter herself and her energetic, intelligent, and insightful blog never disappoints. I highly recommend Slow Muse (and Deborah’s other blogs) to anyone with an interest in art, poetry, the art world, the creative process, wisdom and art, the wisdom of art, the art of wisdom and . . . coincidentally, solitude as part of the creative process.