about arts personality of the day

Every day Electricka recalls and celebrates a personality or tightly-knit group of personalities in the arts.

Personalities that appear on this page are drawn from all the arts, walks of life, ways of life, and from all The Muses. To qualify for inclusion in this feature, a personality doesn't even have to be an artist per se; he can be a worker in a field that's not an art who has made a contribution that has had an impact on the arts. Or he can be someone in another field who works in an aesthetic manner or whose work exhibits an exceptional skill that's akin to that of the artist.

Electricka gives all personalities equal emphasis regardless of who they are, where they come from, what art they practice, what they do for a living, or how reputable (or disreputable) they may be. She makes no judgments about who deserves more attention or about who is shunnable. She leaves it up to you to mark the pariahs and the heroes.

However, not every person is treated at the same depth or scope. Descriptions of some personalities are rendered in lengthy prose passages; others in mere wisps of prose or poetry, with no malice or indifference intended.

Some personalities make only one appearance on this page. Other personalities make multiple appearances. They show up more than once if in life they have made multiple contributions, have played different roles, or have made different connections to the world of arts. For such personalities, there are new subjects to cover and new things to be said.

What is an arts personality?

You may be wondering about the whos and whats of arts personalities. You can stop wondering now; here are the answers in three easy steps:

1. what  is a person?

A person is:

• A human being, whether man, woman, or child; whether living or dead.
• A character, part, or role, as in a play or story.
• An abstract or fictitious construct with human qualities or onto which human qualities are projected.
• An animal or thing to which human-like qualities are attributed.

In law, a person is a human being or a group of human beings, a corporation, a partnership, an estate, or other legal entity recognized by law as having rights and duties. If a legal entity is other than a human being or a collection of human beings considered individually, it is an artificial person or a juristic person.

In this feature, a person may be any of these things.

2. What is a personality?

A personality is:

• The visible aspect of one's character as it impresses others.
• The essential character of a person.
• A person as an embodiment of a collection of qualities.
• The physical, mental, emotional, and social characteristics of an individual.
• The organized pattern of behavioral characteristics of the individual.
• A famous, notable, or prominent person; a celebrity.

In this feature, a personality may be any or all these things.

For this feature Electricka expands the definition of personality to include anything that exhibits characeristics similar to a human personality, such as the atmosphere of a place or thing, the ambiance of a rock music concert, an institution such as a museum, a performance venue, an art movement, or a philosophy of art. It could be a formative and famous exhibition of paintings, sculpture, or photography, such as Ansel Adams' wilderness project, Mathew Brady's Civil War gallery, or Roy Lichtenstein's first New York exhibit. It could be a corporation or organization such as a movie studio or an orchestra.

3. What is an arts personality?

Stated simply, arts personalities are persons (in the senses noted above) that have a connection to the arts that is other than incidental, accidental, or slight.

For example, an arts personality could be a contributing or performing artist such as a composer, painter, sculptor, or musician; or it could be anyone active or who was active in the arts, such as a critic, impresario, producer, director, cameraman, publisher, or someone in another supporting role. It could be a professional or amateur artist. It could be a celebrity—a person out in front of the camera—or it could be a person behind the scenes, such as a donor or patron. Anyone who has made a significant contribution to the arts of any kind could make an appearance on this page.

Further, a person doesn't have to make a contribution to the arts to be an arts personality. He can be an arts couch potato and still make the grade—a play-goer, opera-goer, or concert-goer. He could be a stay-at-home music lover, an obsessed film buff, a rock music junkie, a fan of the any of the arts, or a supporter of the arts generally.

Finally, an arts personality could even be a noteworthy event such as Rembrandt's birthday, the debut of Mahler's 2nd Symphony, or the advent of The Beatles' Abby Road album. It could be an instrument or device that's associated with the arts such as the printing press, the movie projector, or Heifetz's violin. It could be an arts-related technology or technique such as Todd-AO, IMAX^®, or Cinerama. And, of course, it could be a work of art such as the Mona Lisa, C. S. Forester's novel, The African Queen, or John Huston's movie, The African Queen.

It doesn't matter how old or young a personality may be or whether the personality is alive or deceased. The march of the arts is the march of time. Here, Electricka gives you their dates, places, personalities, achievements, peccadillos, heartaches, laughs, tears, failures, and triumphs. She jogs your memory; she introduces you to the present and reintroduces you to the past.

Will tomorrow be the day Electricka remembers the Siege of Troy or the golden age of radio? Or will it be the day she celebrates a book, movie, or play like Erich Maria Remarque's All's Quiet on the Western Front or Dylan Thomas's Under Milk Wood? Tune in and find out.