Remembering the Artist
By Andrea Magder
After a loved one passes away one of the most difficult tasks we’re left with is sorting through their possessions and deciding what to keep and what to give away. This becomes even more challenging if the person was artistically gifted and left behind creative work. Since most of us lack the knowledge to evaluate a painting, music composition or a piece of literature, we have no way of knowing if we’re getting rid of the next Picasso, or tossing away the next great symphony.
According to the National Endowment for the Arts more than half of the population is creative, and leave behind various types of creative work when they pass. Take Arthur Pinajian, a contemporary artist who achieved fame only after his death in 1999. Before his passing, he left instructions for his art to be disposed of in the local dumpster, but it never happened. In 2007, two investors who bought the artist’s Long Island home discovered a treasure trove of thousands of paintings and drawings in the garage. Unable to discard a lifetime of a man’s work, they took it to auction where it was later valued at $35 million. Eva Cassidy is another great example: She was barely known outside of Washington DC before her death from melanoma at age 33. Yet, two years after she passed her album Songbird sold over 5 million copies. While success of that magnitude posthumously is rare, it is always a possibility.
The art world has never been an easy one to navigate, and now with the advance of digital technology there has been an influx of creative people, who in the past, may have been lost to the 9-to-5 grind. Since 2021, the online art market has seen an immense surge in sales of visual art, reportedly raking in 13.6 billion dollars in just the US alone. That number doesn't take into account those who have never shown their art publicly, or the emerging artists who have passed recently to overdoses, suicide, and Covid 19. As more distribution channels continue to surface, it stands to reason that more art, music and literary work will be created. What will happen to it all?
The Artist Lives, a newly formed organization, recently launched a virtual platform to celebrate the work of artists who passed without recognition. In lieu of a traditional memorial site, families can honor their loved ones by showcasing their creative work on the site. Each page is an abiding testament to the artistic talents of each individual, showcasing their art, music, and writing that would otherwise remain confined to memory. While some families are hopeful their loved ones may find recognition posthumously, most take comfort in knowing that they are simply honoring them and preserving their legacy.
When we lose someone it is up to us to hold onto the memories our loved ones leave behind, so that little by little, as new generations rise up, our loved ones are never forgotten. As one woman who had recently lost her mother to Covid said, “At first, I thought who cares about seeing my mom's hand-painted ceramic vase, but then I realized I care, and that's all that matters.”