Friday, June 19, 2009

Should Everyone Sell Potatoes?

Bollywood Film Actor, Mithun Chakraborty in the mirror, amidst hundreds of onlookers at a film shoot in West Bengal, India


In a vegetable market, there is a row of potato stalls. So, everyone is content eating just potatoes in that town. One day, a man starts selling oranges in the market. Now, the town has two options: reject the oranges or start eating them on special occasions.

As an artist, your primary aim is to create a label and market for your work. To sell potatoes and oranges are both intelligent. Yet, we cannot gauge how the market would react. In markets, if every formula can be right, then which one do we choose and execute? This entirely depends on one’s relationship with their art.

Art, personally, is my interpretation of the world. My photography is what I wish to keep of this world and what I wish to give back to it. The smartest thing is probably to be entering the mainstream market, because it is secure, and filled with brilliant people. It is also a market an artist cannot ignore, due to survival and interest.

So, I do work for my work, with all interest. But, independently I try to carve out my niche, my language of images. Because, as a photographer, if I fail to do this, how would I discover the artist within!

Before, one wants to create and sell, the choice between niche markets and mass markets have to be made. One can sell the potatoes quite comfortably. And, one can struggle to make oranges popular. Both are different, but to be confused and regret a choice is a big mistake. To grow as an artist, one must know where his art works, whatever be his objective – to disturb, to comfort, to start revolutions or to sell. So, sell potatoes if you have to and don’t ridicule it, but if oranges excite you more, then don’t give up your chances of finding a way to sell them too.

1 comment:

Kaushik said...

a nice read... very well written.