He has a farm in Casilho about one hour's drive from the Peneda-Gerês National Park in Portugal. Amidst orange, eucalyptus and avocado trees, close to the seaside and the endless sky, Sandy Kilpatrick creates heart-touching music and leads a harmonious family life.
He takes plenty of inspiration from the natural surroundings, practices meditation, goes swimming regularly, and gives thanks for the marvel of life. In 2024, he intends to journey from the Arctic Circle to Rome, performing 21 concerts in various European towns, including Copenhagen, Hamburg, and Berlin.
Read more about Sandy Kilpatrick below, and listen to our talk on The Pointless Artist Website > ART TALK with Sandy Kilpatrick, or on The Pointless Artist Podcast on Anchor.fm, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
Sandy in a Nutshell
Sandy was born and raised in Scotland, in a place near Glasgow called East Kilbride. Sure, he has a Scottish accent when speaking English, and no, he hasn't met the Loch Ness monster yet, but he lives in hope 😉 He is a joyful and optimistic person, pretty much like the environment he lives in and the Portuguese wine he consumes. He is also a profoundly honest, modest, and insightful singer-songwriter with whom one can have a great deal of conversation and laughter.
Challenging Times
In this podcast episode, Sandy unfolds his life story, and gives us an insight into his creative process. He first takes us back into his formative years, when he was a student in Lancaster and then a Manchester-based singer in an indie rock band.
Further, he discusses the transition from a fast-paced professional life in England to a family life in Portugal. He talks about the challenges of switching countries and career paths, and of foregoing a future in the indie rock scene for his wife and his young daughter, in a small conservative Portuguese town and a very different musical climate.
The Fragrance of Orange Blossoms
One of the highlights of our conversation was Sandy’s almost idyllic description of his large wood, the lush green hues of the leaves, the dazzling variety of his fruit trees, and the wonderful fragrance of the orange blossoms.
I saw Sandy and his family in that Eden garden of theirs amongst tangerines, clementines, mandarins, chestnuts, walnuts, figs, apples, pears, peaches, plums, and passion fruit, and I thought: God, Paradise is literally on earth for a few chosen ones!😉
Listen to Sandy talk about his enchanting orange trees, take a slow look at the pictures from his Portuguese Paradise below, and I promise you’ll feel the inspirational power of pristine nature instantaneously.
Coming Back to His True Self through the Inspirational Power of Nature
What made Sandy embrace nature as his primary source of inspiration? Here is the most direct answer: two fundamental questions he asked himself about 15 years ago – "do I want to continue making music, and, if I do, why" – and the realisation that followed.
In that context, he recalled the happiest moments of his life as a free being in the middle of nature. He then began to create new songs based on emotional experiences, always under nature’s guidance. When the opportunity came to move to the farm in Casilho, he grabbed it with both hands. This is how nature became a filter for his emotions and a source of inexhaustible hope, positivity, creativity, and inspiration for him.
Nature as a Spiritual Experience & the State of Allowance and Receptiveness
Sandy likes to walk through the woods around his farm with his wife and dogs. As he confessed in his conversation with me, in such moments of pure grace, when he feels most clear and free, he becomes receptive to inspiration and he allows it to flow. If his guitar happens to be around, then he freely plays its strings, the magic occurs, and a new song is being born.
The floodgates open when Sandy silences his self-critical voice for a while. He argues convincingly that making peace with the inner demons and getting rid of the tyranny of the mind, an expression he borrowed from his wife, is essential for personal growth and creativity.
The Importance of Dreaming for Artistic Creativity
At the end of our conversation, Sandy briefly explained shortly the meaning of his last song, The Magic is You, which has recently had a profound impact on me and my 8-year-old daughter.
The act of dreaming is Sandy's way of imagining the world as a better place, as well as a prerequisite for artistic creativity. It is a way to pay attention to the essential and to avoid "falling for the world outside". It is seeing from within, like an artist, a topic I've written about in Seeing like an artist: the secret revealed, Art and the perception of reality, and Look, Observe, See. The Nightmare before Christmas. Last but not least, it is an effective way to overcome artist block and stay inspired as an artist.
I wholeheartedly invite you to listen to my conversation with Sandy, as well as to a selection of his songs on Spotify and YouTube.
You’ve been sent down here to dream.
You came with wings,
You were made to sing.
Don’t you fall for the world outside
It’s not true,
The magic is you.
(Excerpt from The Magic is You, lyrics and music by Sandy Kilpatrick)
Listen to Sandy Kilpatrick on THE POINTLESS ARTIST PODCAST directly from this website or on Anchor.fm, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
Via The Pointless Artist Blog and Podcast, I support the creative energy of life and the artists who contribute to transforming this world into a freer, kinder, more inclusive, caring, transparent, and compassionate place to live. I firmly believe in the passion for art, the importance of sharing knowledge and experiences, and the power of personal stories to bring us together.
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Recognise your pointlessness and keep creating!
From Germany with love,
Bianca Vinther