The drive to thrive in art, in a city
I have moments – usually when I’m sweating in September or craving a good wing and the comfort of truly knowing a place and its people – where I miss Buffalo. And after reading Brian Mihok’s essay Things American: Buffalo, I was filled with the urge to root for my former city, and believe in the fact that art will aid us all. Mihok believes in this as well and is definitely the most honest and passionate cheerleader for the arts that I have encountered in a while.
Below, Mihok talks about the inspiration behind his essay, his belief in the growth of a city, and what art can do for us all if we truly become a part of the devotion.
Q. Your essay, Things American: Buffalo, was recently published on American Short Fiction. As a former Buffalonian, the short film and essay made me miss more than just chicken wings. What prompted you to have such faith in a city that so many forsake?
A. I’ve always felt like an outsider in Buffalo. This may be a little contrary to the Buffalonian way because it is known to the locals as the City of Good Neighbors. Truth is I don’t have family here and only a small number of friends so the city for me has been four years of observation, reflection, curiosity, and sometimes frustration. Ultimately I want nothing but good things for Buffalo. I mean, I want nothing but good things for any place that I have lived. I grew up in Jersey, but have lived all around the country and I hope the people of all those places are thriving. Buffalo is no exception to that hope, but it may need it a little more than other places.
Q. In your essay you mention the artists and writers that have begun to call Buffalo home. This seems to be one of the threads that has started the growth in the city. Do you think the artists create the essence of ‘if you build it, they will come’?
A. I believe artists and art (in which I’m including all art: painting, literature, photography, film etc.) are really a key to substantive rejuvenation for cities like Buffalo. It’s painful that the arts are what get cut in schools. They are seen as a luxury, which I think is because what art achieves can’t be seen or measured easily so it may seem to some that art is a fun time waster or an alternative to television. Expendable. But I see art more as food. Actually almost more important than food.
The consumer who thinks art is expendable benefits greatly from art but just doesn’t think of it that way. Art allows people to explore their place in existence in a fundamental way. It doesn’t necessarily make sense of the universe, it doesn’t provide answers, but it allows you to feel deeply and make the leaps in understanding that logic isn’t able to. It raises a person’s consciousness. I think when people experience art and build a relationship with it, not even as artists, just as people going about their lives, they can feel more connected to something larger than themselves. It’s a shame politicians and a lot of folks are quick to give up on art because its effects don’t fit nicely on a ledger. The reality is we need its effects just as badly, if not more, than anything else on the ledger.
So, I think if cities like Buffalo invest in the culture of its people, it helps lay a foundation that isn’t easily shaken. People connecting with people, exploring their lives, questioning things, creating, adding instead of taking away–these are what incubate the vibrancy of a place. Artists are risk takers. That’s what Buffalo needs. That’s what Cleveland needs. That’s what Detroit needs.
Q. There is something about Buffalo that even in the hardest times of the city, people stood by and believed that better times would return. What do you think causes such devotion that goes beyond the Bills, the history, and the food?
A. There are people who have been here for a long time and whose families have stayed. They are the minority but they are a proud minority. I recognize that pride in other places in the country. Everyone has pride for their hometown, but those who have a hometown that has taken a beating tend to have that pride ratcheted up. They can even get defensive about it. I think it’s because they themselves deep down feel conflicted about their home and feel guilty for feeling conflicted. I wasn’t in Buffalo twenty years ago but from what I can tell Buffalo was not a great place to be then. There’s a lot of grass roots organizing and economic development now. A lot of art and creation. A lot of excitement and architecture. Those are things to be proud of. When a place doesn’t have that upswing people are left to feel pride for the sake of pride and that can look strange to outsiders.
Q. I currently live in the south, the land of hospitality. And yet, I had more hospitable neighbors when I lived in Buffalo. What do you think it is that makes Buffalo so friendly?
A. I’m not sure. I think people are generally friendly here. Maybe it’s geography. Buffalo could be affected by the culture of the Midwest, which is one of friendliness. Buffalo doesn’t feel like the east coast I am from. Just spit balling, though.
Q. As a writer in Buffalo, what inspires you about the city? And does your writing gravitate outwards, or does it stay in the land that you know?
A. My writing is definitely influenced by where I am. I have written stories, a novel even, set in Buffalo. Though writing about my surroundings would probably happen any place I live, Buffalo is rife with history, commotion, poverty, and culture, and that all makes for a fascinating backdrop. I’ve written a novel set in Buffalo but it is dystopian. It more reflects my feelings from when I first moved here. Honestly, I’ve shelved it and am tossing around an idea I got from another Buffalo-area writer, R.B. Pillay, who suggested I write a utopian Buffalo novel. Have to say that sounds more exciting and I look forward to starting it.
