Words I don't like

The terrace 30 x 42 Mixed media on paper

I often find myself reading bits of information on artist’s websites or blogs to see if we’re all on the same page or if I’m on my own struggling with this and that. It’s reassuring to read that most artists have the same highs and lows. We all have our own issues but they mostly boil down to the same thing, and that is, are we doing OK or are we just spinning our wheels? This especially true for non-objective or abstract painters.

What does this have to do with words? Not much really, but I’m always struck by how much people love a good soundbite.  While searching for meaningful examples or approaches to “living my best life” as an artist, I come across people who constantly use the word utilize instead of use. I guess utilize makes the thing they’re talking about seem more important or impressive. What’s wrong with the word “use”? I use my voice, I use colour, I use garden shears. I’d hate to have to be utilizing these things, It would make me feel like I’m doing something very technical and maybe dangerous.

The other “mot du jour” that I find annoying is “pivot”. Everyone is pivoting. There’s a pivot for everything. Pivot meals, pivot healthcare even pivot painting. Apparently we can’t just change our minds anymore, we have to “pivot”. There’s so much of it, it makes me dizzy.

And last but not least, curate. We’ve curated everything from soup to nuts. We can’t just pick the best anymore, we must “curate”, don’t you know.

My sister will probably read this—she’s one of two people that read my blog—and ask me why I’m ranting on about this. Why? Because I can.

That’s the great thing about a blog, you can say what you think. I’ve curated my thoughts and utilized all the hot, hip words I hate to get them out of my system before I pivot towards new horizons.