We met our friend and gallerist Myrtia Nikolakopoulou in New York: she was in from Athens and, although she’s quite widely traveled, it was her first time in the States. We asked about her impressions (noting that it’s quite unfair to base any experience of this country solely on NYC).
She was surprised at just how open and friendly Americans are (in the art world? really?: yes, she said, you should go to Basel if you don’t believe me). But she also noted that it must be very stressful to live in New York City, because it is so business-oriented. Although everyone’s friendly, they’re always working. In Europe, she said, people take time off to enjoy life.
Yesterday I ran across a review of some of the working habits of the world’s most successful people. Interestingly enough, most of them spent a lot of time relaxing, worked much fewer hours, took afternoons off.
There’s something to be said about the over-professionalism of the American art life. That’s how we end up with the polished, friendly work so popular at art fairs. Maybe we need to take a break, take a breather, take some long lunches, linger a bit, let our minds drift.
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