Mona Lisa - Solo

ML - Welcome to Mona Lisa. A weekly newsletter for artists with timeless quotes, ideas and light bites for curious & wandering minds.

Lite bites

⌚️ “Do better if possible, and that is always possible” - François Constantin 

⭐️ If all the mined gold in the world were stacked, it would roughly equal a 22m squared cube.

🏎️ “Sometimes you’ve just got to lick the stamp and send it” - Daniel Ricciardo

Mona’s notes

The vision of an artist working in isolation—a lone figure, doubled-down over a canvas or workbench, consumed by their craft is a vibe. The ‘lonely artist’ stereotype is as old as time, and as I mark the final month of my residency, I have been considering the balance between solitude and community in the creative realms.➗  

The artists who lived and worked at Coenties Slip in Lower Manhattan during the 1950s and ’60s is where I fly to in my dreams 🗽 This little-known area became a thriving artistic hive, where artists like Agnes Martin, Robert Indiana, and Ellsworth Kelly were all working in what was a formerly deserted waterfront neighbourhood. These artists, though known for their distinct styles, found inspiration in the collaborative energy of the place. Coenties Slip wasn’t just about proximity—it was about the messy coalescence of ideas, materials, and perspectives, occasionally blurring the line between individual and collective work. 🌆

There’s something very addictive and powerful about the creative charge that emanates from like-minded people. It’s the real reason why I returned to college for my MA following an isolating few years practicing my craft at home. Conversation, shared experience, frivolities, irritations, and observations of each other’s spaces can be seismic — sometimes accelerating the process or altering it altogether. However, boundaries need to be set and recognised, as they are chiefly working spaces, and focus can be a fragile 🧚

Solitude has its own magic. For many, the quiet is where the real work happens—the deep focus and introspection that bring out something more nuanced, intimate and authentic. There’s a power to having guaranteed isolation for experimentation, devoid of external influence. Some ideas need to grow in the dark before they can be shared. 🌙

Is it even reasonable to ask what should be prioritised for artistic progression—solitude or community? The artists of Coenties Slip thrived upon both. I suppose it was a shared respect for each other’s space and peace. Maybe that’s the sweet spot: seeking the company of those who value the greatness of their own solitude, and yours. 💜 

With love

Mona x

“if you could say it in words, there would be no reason to paint” - Edward Hopper

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