I know it's a discouraging thing in the world of art when you've topped 30 and even 40 years of age and have yet to find your true "voice" in life.

It's discouraging when the entire gothic world seems to be dominated by young people, or at least young starters...... musicians who found their gift at the age of 16, only to burn out shortly after their 30s....
There are a few, however, in the artistic world who find their voice later in life, after gathering years of inspiration and experience to approach their work with a more mature voice, and these rare beings tend to last much longer, producing quality work long into their senior years.

So use this thread to post about your favorite late bloomers..... not necessarily in art or music,but those who have inspired you in general.

I have a few.......

Dark surrealist Polish artist Zdzislaw Beksinski spent the better part of his young adult life as a student of architecture, and later a construction site supervisor..... a job he wholeheartedly hated.
Later on, he suddenly abandoned architecture for photography, and it wasn't until much later that he started getting into his trademark macabre nightmarish style with sketches at first, and later the gigantic paintings that he's most famous for. He was just starting to get into graphic design before he was murdered at the age of 75.

Japanese godfather of ankoku-butoh and renowned performance artist Ohno Kazuo was a mere farmer in Hokkaido until his late 20s when seeing a performance by Spanish dancer La Argentina inspired him to take up a study of modern dance. He was over 40 before he developed his trademark stye, and it wasn't until he was in his 60s, and collaborating with Hijikata Tatsumi that he became famous. He continued performing and teaching butoh until his death at the age of 104.

Horror writer Clive Barker was already in his 30s before he even began to become known as a short story writer. I believe he was 32 when he wrote Hellbound Heart, and the rest, as they say, is history.

into music.....

Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu was nothing more than a factory worker until the age of 45 when he developed a passion for classical music. He became a world-renowned composer at the age of 47 and is now considered one of Japan's greatest achievements.

Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister was over 30 when he quit Hawkwind and decided to form Motorhead. I believe the wild ride that was his career officially started when he was 35......

When Glenn Danzig was my age, he was still in Samhain, yet to form the seminal work that was his solo band.

Both Motley Crue's Mick Mars and Iron Maiden's Nicko McBrain were a full ten years older than their bandmates, both being around 30 when they joined, and had far to go before reaching their respective primes much later.

It's always been a mystery how old Anna Varney of Sopor Aeternus. The makeup shrouds her face in ageless mystery, but rumours say she is also a late starter....

So...... bottom line is that it's never too late to start something and succeed at it.

I'll post more when I do a bit more research.....

I guess it just goes to show you that it's really, really, not a damn race. That being said, I can easily see someone my age (almost 25) feeling like they've "haven't done enough". I know this because I feel it every day. What's worse is when I feel like I'll never "catch up" with even the Average Joe.

The key to success is to stop comparing yourself to others - especially "famous" ones.

That being said, it's easier said than done.

Yes, and we all contribute something no matter how small, even if it's only to our loved ones.

I think in a way, a sense of urgency is good to get yourself a good kick in the ass to get started on what it is you want to do in life.

However, I think it's good to slow down, enjoy things once in awhile, and let your inspiration build.....

That's my issue in life at the moment. I feel that if I haven't made a success of myself by now I might as well give up on being one. Rather sad :-/

I'd like to paraphrase Prince (of all people) who said, "I stopped celebrating birthdays which meant I stopped keeping track of time so I still dress and act the same way I did ten years ago."

Time is a concept we have to document change and its frequency. With regards to age we set ourselves targets: "things to do before I'm 30", "am I too old to do this-or-that thing at 40?" Sometimes I get myself down about the fact that I'm getting older because I look too far ahead, I turn 27 this year after which I'll soon be 30 at which point I'll be washed up and just waiting to hit 40 etc. etc. I get myself down about the fact that I've spent the last ten years or more studying music and now deciding that I want to do something else. Then I tell myself that it's okay, that I can go back to college and learn something new or watch a heap of YouTube instructional videos and connect with people who do what I want to do. Now more than ever we can learn to do new things at the drop of a hat, don't let otherwise arbitrary numbers to dictate your life.

Oh, Centurion, thank you for this thread! I find myself returning to this board at relative low points in life. This particular time, it's because I'm feeling f-ing too old to actually excel at anything.

So, by the same token, Spoken, (yay rhyme) totally with you there (though I'm *ahem* rather older, and my poison's literature).

To the topic at hand: Edward Gorey didn't start working for Doubleday until he was 28, and his first book was that same year. Hemingway published his first novel in his late 20's. Virginia Woolf was 33 when her first novel was published. And all of these people are uncontested genuises. It's especially interesting to me that our current sense of 'adulthood' has shifted--last century, most people were considered adults by conventional definition (partnered, stable jobs, families started, etc. etc.) by their mid- 20s; today it's more commonly mid- 30s. I vote that 28 is the new 17!

Most best: here's James Hampton's "The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations Millennium General Assembly," which he apparently started in his 30s, while he was working as a janitor in the DC area. He built this out of found objects, including lightbulbs and foil, in his garage; apparently, nobody else knew of its extent until he passed away--and it's absolutely breathtaking. http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artwork/?id=9897

Seconded! I feel very much the same way.

I'm 32 and have just got out of a horrible career that forced me to put music on hold.

I'm now out of that black hole and hoping to get back on track in life.

I guess a lot of people don't recommend starting late because the later in life the more you become wrapped up in other responsibilities: family, job, etc. and it's better to start doing things when you have fewer expenses and mouths to feed.
It's difficult even then though. When you're young, many people are still controlled by their limited experience and dependence on others for survival.

Athletes are also advised to do it while they're young due to health reasons. Pro-wrestler Diamond Dallas Page didn't start wrestling until he was 35, but he's definitely one of the exceptions......

Spoken: yay!

Centurion: huzzah on getting out. What are you pursuing now?

Agreed on the problems with an early start. I also think that building up a little bit of experience and, best case, money, sets one in better stead for the long-haul (as opposed to the burn-out) kind of achievement.

Yes, but athletes in their 30s are asking incredible acts out of their already-pushed-to-the-limits bodies. Which is awesome and totally admirable, but it seems to me that sinews are more prone to overuse than synapses...in my particular case, my mind works better than it did ten years ago, but my knees are much grumpier.

Then again, I look at Trent Reznor's career and all my ideas about mind/imagination/body/art are shot to hell... :p

Well..... back into music, of course. I've built many connections and friendships in various underground music scenes over the last ten years, and I think it's a good chance to take my Kanashibari project and do it as a full time, serious job now.
I also want to get back into relevant multimedia design. I've got a few opportunities in that field right now, and I'm taking the chance and seeing what happens.

Yeah, I've got an uncle who's 48 now, has been into martial arts and fitness training his whole life, and has recently started a career in powerlifting.... living his dream and being who he's always wanted to be.
He actually was thinking of starting a career as a Mixed Martial Arts fighter at first, but my dad talked him out of it...... he's got a wife and two kids now, and the last thing they need is a father in a wheelchair.

As for Trent Reznor..... I have much more respect for him now than I did in high school. Back then, I thought of NIN as one of those bands like Tool, whom everyone praised but I'd never caught the gist of. I've always been extremely cynical about hyped bands. I like his ambient work though....
I actually like his project with his wife much more than NIN...... more in that Oneiroid Psychosis/Android Lust vein.