Sacred time

hell bent on reflection

a crescendo of wind brings the welcomed distraction of leaves

darting like birds throughout the yard

From my plateau the horizons

both real and imagined

secure in their corridor, fade in the distance

flash paper nuance attached to my every thought

renewal

artifice

conditions

reproach

reclamation

perseverance…

All swept up in the wind’s history

I don’t separate myself from my art. It is a revolving summation and continuance of what I am, what I was, and what I hope to be. Some years ago I wrote a song, “Fighting the Mosquito Wars,” that encapsulates where I’ve arrived as an artist, and as a person: “Say what you will, is what I see what others see, say what you will, this is my territory now.” The uniqueness of how we see the world and how we express that through our art is what gives weight and substance to our voice. Maintaining and developing that voice is an arduous task and involves commitment to the process of discovery along with a disciplined regimen of learning the subject (which involves trial and error), and ultimately, once you have the tools in place, the art of simply letting go.

Over the years my expression has come through in my music, my writing, my poetry, and my photography. The creative tools I incorporate are trusting the instincts of exploration, commitment, determination and discipline. My belief is that hard work can pay off if intelligently applied, and can serve as a guidepost in how I arrive at my choices and decisions. I also don’t want to downplay the aspect of having fun. The worst we can do as artists is to acquiesce to conventions that tie our hands.

If art is the reflection of society, then we owe it to ourselves not only to be aware of what we are doing but why we are doing it. As a classically trained musician, I use that training to elevate my artistic voice, not to restrict it. Freedom of thought, and the attendant ideas spawned from creative thinking, are paramount not only to growth and development but critical to thinking through the myriad challenges, either self-imposed or by restrictive circumstances. Being inquisitive is the key. Over a lifetime, my tastes have been defined—whether in music, photography, art, literature, movies, politics, architecture, and food— and they continue to expand because of my predisposition to investigate the connection between things.

The arts are invaluable to our sense of humanity and our compass to tolerance and understanding. Without them we are lost.

Bill Payne