Artists are too often confined to the terms of success. Van Gogh died impoverished and without fame. Though his works became some of the most highly regarded in the world after his death, he would have been considered a failure all of his life. Artists are rarely judged for what they produce, but rather on their popularity. Yet in Dana Spiotta’s novel, Stone Arabia, one of the main characters, Nik, rejected the notion of an audience, by creating a fictitious archive of his successful career as a rock star, which he called the Chronicles. The novel comments on the paradoxical nature of curation (particularly in regard of the self) in that it both connects and isolates, reveals yet conceals. However in literary reviews of this novel,…show more content… At this point in the novel, the reader is finally able to see Nik uncensored, unable to control every aspect of the situation. But even though he was out of his comfort zone, there is still acknowledgement of the control he has exerted: “Any wall space is covered with notes, photos, charts, drawings. There are empty spaces, but it looks highly organized. It has look of systems and purpose” (204). This contrasting between the pinned up archive and Ada’s camera forces Nik to finally reveal himself in a way that he was not able to at any other point in the novel. He is finally able to admit that he is his “own biggest fan” (208) as well as his own audience. Nik doesn’t even consider Denise as an important factor as she is just his sister. However, he considers the Chronicles to be an “accumulations, like memory but better. A thing to look forward to every day” (210). They became his art, more so than just his music, since the documentation allowed his creativity to flare in a way that no other medium had. This would explain why the archive became as extent as it did. While literary critics blame Nik’s want for fame, it was actually his want of continuous passion. Most intriguingly was how his archive allowed him to develop as an artist, who “grew to like not having an audience.” This “freed [him] from sense and only having to pursue pure sound,” and gave him “total freedom” (211). The Chronicles allowed Nik to become an artist without restraints. He could do and create whatever he wanted, without fear that the world would mock him for it. Simply because he removed himself from the world. Therefore in an act of concealment from most, he was able to truly reveal himself to the few that were allowed to see the
