Hey, everyone. It’s Jonathan. While I haven’t been here quite as long as Lauren or Patrick, and I’ve been here just a little longer than Brittany, I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we are e x t r e m e l y thankful for all of you, our strange, weird, and new age writers and artists. For some, it may be your first time in a literary magazine, others may be in billions of them, but we appreciate you all the same. Our little corner of the literary and artistic world wouldn’t exist without your ideas and your work. I personally love reading through our social media and seeing the little community that has been developed with everyone, both our participants and the followers of their work.
This post isn’t necessarily just about that. This post is about the other things I’m thankful for in art. I was in Chicago over the weekend, visiting the Art Institute of Chicago museum (one of my favorite art museums). From art of the earliest civilizations, to contemporary work, you’re seeing history and opinion presented in a visual, tangible way. More importantly for artists and writers, you’re seeing years, decades, centuries of successes, progress, and failures. I’m thankful for everyone that paved the way before me, that carved a path with all these different media, to learn from, to study. Without their successes, and more importantly, their failures with the media, we’re able to learn from them to avoid making those same mistakes.
I’m thankful for the community of artists and writers that are connecting each day, both in person and through the internet, and the friendships and relationships that blossom as a result. I’m thankful for the creatives that hold you accountable, that give you criticism, feedback, and uplift you when you’re feeling uninspired or unconfident.
I’m thankful for newer creatives who are experimenting, excited, and hungry to be creating and learning . You keep us inspired with fresh ideas, breaking from the mold, with a young, uninhibited passion for making your art. I’m thankful for all of the creatives who leave their day job to come home to create, to sacrifice their time, their sleep, and their energy to make the world a little more beautiful, weird, and strange. Your dedication and passion keeps this community as vibrant as it is, and I’m glad we’re able to be a small part of it. Thank you all.
Keep making things, and keep sharing it. Everything’s a little better with good art.
-Jonathan
thegingercollect.wordpress.com 