James Kearns, Resident Artist Lecture 1961

James Kearns gives a lecture talking about his experiences over the years being an artist. Kearns explains to the participants that art is a search of positive values to predicate what will be the next act in an artistic practice. He urges them to reject indifference, stating that it is a negative force in art, and instead cultivate love which will always be a positive force in art. Kearns states that art from any period of time is not the work of one man or attitude but rather the character of any time which is the sum total of many artists working in a variety of ways; often contradictory, often merely differently, and often alike. Kearns also believes in responsible freedom and personal commitment which are necessary for orders to succeed. Kearns ends his lecture telling the participants that art is vitally important as a practice. It will allow them to always interpreting reality, and that sometimes it takes one style and not two individuals or styles working in various ways-often contradictory- to vitally and effectively interpret today’s reality