Hints from Childhood

(Source: Nathan Sawaya)

Due to my ongoing existential crisis, I'm fascinated my individuals who have broken away from social norms to pursue something more interesting -- their actual desires.

At the ArtScience museum today, we saw Nathan Sawaya's exhibit, The Art of Brick, which is a collection of amazing LEGO structures.  I liked the art.  I was far more captivated by the quotes lining the exhibit's walls and the artwork descriptions.

"When I was a lawyer I quickly came to realize I was more comfortable sitting on the floor creating sculptures than I was sitting in a boardroom negotiating contracts.  My personal search for overall happiness paved the way to becoming a full-time working artist."

"There is no idea that cannot be expressed with LEGO.  As an artist, LEGO is a great medium to create anything I can imagine.  I still use the same rectangular plastic bricks that I had as a child, but now I try and use them in a way that hasn't been seen before."

"No matter where your heart wants to lead you, there will be hands that try to hold you back.  Life's challenge is to find strength to break free.  I created this sculpture in response to so many people telling me 'No' in my life.  I wanted to break free of those people." (2007)

"When we're born, we're all given a shell to live in.  And one of the joys of living is being able to fill it in any way we like" (2008)

Nathan loved building as a child, but eventually went down a more traditional route of obtaining a law degree at NYU and then practicing at Winston & Strawn in NYC.  In 2004, he decided to make a GIANT career jump and create LEGO structures full-time as an artist (just imagine his exit interview).

Awhile ago, I read that your early childhood interests are a glimpse into what you really desire to do -- whether that's painting or building or teaching.  It's what you liked before you were influenced by the world.  Likewise, Alan Watt's poses a similar idea with the question: "What would you do if money was no object?

Rather than looking at what our friends are doing or what job ratings claim to be the best career, perhaps we should take a step back and think about what we liked as a child (and, I'm pretty sure that was never an actuary).