The Ritual Master An Artist Date with Julia Cameron on the Champs-Elysées
We all have many different reasons for reading. I for one, am motivated firstly by the escapism, the feeling of living many different lifetimes through books. But I also enjoy learning new things. Not like in school, but more in a subtle, miraculous way. As if the precious information I’m getting is transmitted through delicate systems of capillarity, and all of a sudden, when I realise it’s there, my life is just a little bit better. So I decided to start a series called What I learned from books, so that I can share with you some of the readings that had a significant impact on my lifestyle.
And I am starting today with a famous book that has changed many lives and brought a bit of clarity into the madness of creativity : Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way. I have touched on it before, but today, I wanted to focus on the one thing that has helped me the most, and that is the concept of an Artist Date.The Artist’s Way is a guide book structured as a 12 week program, a course in discovering and recovering your creative self. Through her own experience or the careful observation of human behaviour in relation to our creativity, Julia Cameron guides us step by step in recovering our sense of safety or identity, our sense of power and possibility, finding balance between compassion and self-protection, and finally recovering our faith. Every chapter has somes tasks that should be done in the course of the week, and while I was following the program, there was one particular exercise I enjoyed tremendously. Allow me to quote :
An artist date is a block of time, perhaps two hours weekly, especially set aside and committed to nurturing your creative consciousness, your inner artist. In its most primary form, the artist date is an excursion, a play-date that you preplan and defend against all interlopers. You do not take anyone on this artist date but you and your inner artist, a.k.a. your creative child. That means no lovers, friends, spouses, children – no taggers-on of any stripe. […] Spending time in solitude with your artist child is essential to self-nurturing. A long country walk, a solitary expedition to the beach for a sunrise or sunset, a sortie out to a strange church to hear gospel music, to an ethnic neighborhood to taste foreign sights and sounds – your artist might enjoy any of these.
I have been testing out this concept for almost 6 years, so I’ve pretty much adopted it, even if I can’t say I am consistent, I sometimes find excuses to not do it, or claim that this book is just so good it should count as an artist date. But all in all, I can attest to the value of the principle. I have tried visits to the museum, music concerts, shopping in creative inspiring boutiques (or simply window shopping if I’m not in a spending mood), free literary events either in book shops or the public library, and one of my favourites is going on a perfume hunt, simply smelling different perfumes and discovering brands since I am particularly in tune with my sense of smell. Coming home after an Artist Date, I feel more myself than any other time. It’s like I’m more optimistic, the world seems a better, more beautiful place, my senses are awake and I feel lucky to be able to experience all of this.
My latest Artist Date was a special one. It started with a subtle signal from the Universe, an invitation that popped up on my Facebook feed, to a meeting with writer Perla Servan-Schreiber at the flagship store of Guerlain on the Champs-Elysées. Now one thing you should know : Parisians hardly ever go on the Champs-Elysées. It’s seen as the universal meeting spot for tourists, so chances to see a true Parisian when coming to visit are very slim. I think it’s been more than 2 years for me, so when I saw the event, I registered out of curiosity, not even thinking about the Artist Date ar first.
On a cold Thursday evening in February, I went straight from the office to the luxurious Guerlain flagship and somehow, standing in front of this historic building, I managed to pass through the modern marketing, and connect to the story behind it. As a child, I used to hear my mother quote a poem about Guerlain and his famous perfume dedicated to actress Sarah Berhnardt, so in my mind, from very early on, Guerlain was part of that mythical Parisian life, where elegant ladies would go to have their facials every week, where the perfume bottles were engraved with their names, and store managers would know them by name. And here I was, many many years later, at the source, the Guerlain Institute.The brand was founded in 1828 by chemist Pierre-François-Pascal Guerlain, and quickly became an international success, providing perfumes and makeup for royalty across Europe, and making breakthrough innovations in skincare and makeup. The store has a historic front room that transports you in time, with antique cabinets for all the base ingredients, and the iconic perfume bottles with 69 bees symbolising the French Empire, since Guerlain became the official imperial perfumer in 1853 when he designed the Eau de Cologne Impériale for Empress Eugénie.
In the reception room, everything was set for an evening of elegant conversation with Perla Servan-Schreiber. Successful journalist, writer and cookbook extraordinaire, Perla Servan-Schreiber is one of the few public persons to promote a healthy and joyful old age. She has shared her life story in many interviews, and in previous books, and now, at the age of 77, she published a small booklet of inspirations called My 77 life secrets. From the importance of financial independence for women, to the people we surround ourselves and the way we deal with frustration or sadness, here lie the 77 life lessons of a woman that has an inspiring life motto : living the joyful acceptation of reality. The conversation started with a few questions from journalist Louise Aubery and then turned to the audience. It was inspiring to see her unveiling more of her life philosophy, she represents an old age (she likes to call herself old and hates the word senior) not only for natural beauty, but for natural acceptance of the ever changing world, an old age that observes and does not want to keep things as they were at any cost, an old age where keeping in touch with youth works both ways, since each generation can learn something of value from the other.
Her luminous presence made the evening a success, and I am now reminded of that special moment every time I open the book. I actually got myself in the habit of choosing a random number and reading a little secret to inspire or uplift me. If you want to, give it a try. Leave a number between 1 and 77 in the comments and I’ll tell you Perla’s secret for you.
By the time I left Guerlain it was almost 9 o’clock, not much going on on a weekday evening. Except… for the unique experience that is Publicis Drugstore, right next to the Arc de Triomphe. Here you have a miniature version of a department store, that keeps the essentials. Books, leather handbags, tea, perfume, some food and a pharmacy. Frankly, I could survive on this diet, hell, I could even thrive on this diet ! What fascinates me is that in a city where everything closes by 8 pm, you have a bookshop open until 2am every day. And we all know that book emergencies have the potential to ruin a good night’s sleep. So at least here, in Paris, we’re saved. I smelled a few candles, marvelled at some caviar chips and other emergency items of the sort, bought myself a little something and then went home.
How to end the perfect Artist Date ? I went to a marvellous place, listened to inspiring conversation, did a little window shopping, and now, cosy on my couch, I am ready to reveal one of my embarrassing guilty pleasures. Whenever I want to treat myself with hardly any money, I go to a fancy department store and buy myself a bottle of special tonic water, and thanks to the fashion phenomenon of gin&tonic these last few years, you can find some pretty original blends. Then come back home, get out a fancy glass, and enjoy it as if it were the most exceptional champagne. It’s ridiculous, I know, but in the end, it completes my Artist Date with something unusual, that awakens my senses and ultimately stimulates my creativity. Not to mention the immediate satisfaction of my tastebuds.
So here you have it, my first episode on lessons I learned from books. I’m curious to know your own aha moments brought on by books. You can leave me a comment about it, or maybe make a video of your own. It’s not a tag format, but if you feel inspired, by all means. We could all benefit by sharing our precious reads.
Until next time, enjoy your reading, and your rituals !
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