The Promise - We'll Stand at the Summit. by Daniel

The Promise - We'll Stand at the Summit. by Daniel - June 2014 Scholarship Essay

Once upon a time there was an art department at a small, out-of-the way college in southern Missouri. In this art department there was a graduating class. The class was very close. They all made excellent work. They all painted, they all drew. They all created things on the computer. They knew everything about art, styles, and periods. They sculpted, they created fabric. They were prolific.

It so happened that the time for their graduation drew near. They submitted the interesting work they had created to their undergraduate thesis exhibition. The show was sublime; hailed as the best in years. The group parted ways, each with dreams of the future and a life in art.

Time passed. The class lost contact with one another. Many gave up making work. Others attended graduate school, only to be kicked out for partying too much. Time made each artist cynical. All but two.

There were two artist who endured. They kept making work. They fed off each other, and nourished each others' dreams. They critiqued one another. They were brothers. They promised one another that they would stand side by side at the summit. They would make a life in art.

It so happened that one of the artists began receiving recognition at last for his work. He was accepted into shows. It all culminated for him in winning a free tuition award to graduate school. Meanwhile his friend and brother was still striving hard to make it as an artist.

The first artist wanted his brother to stand at the summit also. Although he was not there yet, he wanted his brother to stand where he was. He wanted a companion for the journey. He keep encouraging him on.

And that is where the artists reside. They are walking onward in the dark. They are reaching towards the summit. They will make a life in art.

If the first artist were to write a book, it would be about the journey he has described. He would write about brotherhood, about striving, about overcoming the naysayers. In his book he would thank his brother for helping push him up the summit. He would try to encourage others to do the same. You can make a life in art.