Pirates And Farmers - Dave Hickey

Dave Hickey

I'm enthralled with people who have lived long, multiple lives. I also love hearing from people brave enough to let go of life, take risks, do drugs, fear nothing. Life, for these people is a joy ride. And while their shoot-from-the-hip writing might be a little off balance and off-target, I tremendously appreciate them for being present and alive. Dave Hickey is this kind of writer. It's hard to say what he is, really, but right now he's mostly a professor and a writer, I guess. He was once a journalist, once an art dealer, once a songwriter. He's chummy with many of the most nefarious and interesting people from the last half-century. And he has a lot of opinions about a lot of things.

I happen to agree with so many of those opinions that I often wonder if I'm not being charmed out of my wits. I've read his other books Air Guitar and The Invisible Dragon, and now I've read Farmers and Pirates, and I think this one is my favorite. It covers a lot of ground, and has its high's and low's. But mostly it's Hickey being Hickey, and it's mostly about taste. Which is to say, there is a lot in here about having opinions, not being afraid of having opinions, and definitely not being shy about them either. I almost want to call it a motivating collection, but it's more demanding than that. More or less, this book says to you, "Have a fucking opinion. And make it count." I've often been guilty of swallowing deeply held beliefs for being inconvenient. Hickey is a good, much needed kick in the ass for combating that problem. I'll keep reading him.

In addition to this, he, above any other writer, has shown light on my soured attitude towards art. There was a time when I thought of myself as an artist. Never a very good one, but still an artist. And I loved art. But I quickly learned I did not like the art world. It seemed to me an essential spark had been extinguished, and the culture around art was very visibly rotting. I couldn't put my finger on exactly why, though -- I was only in my mid-twenties, young and naive. This is where Dave Hickey comes in for me. He put all the pieces in place for understanding what happened and why and how art creation will never really be the same. 

But still, there's taste. You're free to like what you like. You just can't change the nature of the world, so plan accordingly.