Posts Tagged ‘art’

20
Nov

Art Verbage

   Posted by: admin    in Art & Technology, Communication, Sociology, Visual languages, culture

Many people associate the word art with paintings and sculptures, or perhaps performance. Art is also largely considered to be a passive luxury in our mass production society. Hand made items are more expensive to produce and own than manufactured items. The artists, themselves, are largely responsible for the shift in public perception about the passivity of art. Somewhere around the turn of the last century, artists began to become preoccupied with vain intellectualism and, truth be known, began to think of themselves in general as elitists. By the 1960’s, artists were publicly denouncing the status quo with comments like, “It’s art because I am an artist and I say it is” along with exhibitions which only inspired moral outcry (and nearly ended public funding of the arts all together in this country)

However, the word art handed down to us through the ages is a verb. By it’s very nature art is intended to actively engage, beyond the influence of communication. It is an activity which initiates change, and is intimately associated with the word ‘create’. Art, the verb, is filled with magic, metaphysics, and alchemical transformations ranging from subtle to overwhelming! Anyone having once visited with the arts of yore will attest to the very real experience of breathless wonder. Michael D’Angelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Vincent Van Gough, Claude Monet, and Frank Loyd Wright changed people’s lives… not just thier minds. These great artists had the audacity to pull the stars down from the heavens, internalize them, and turn that luminous energy into art, the verb.

The mechanics of these activities are mysterious, indeed. Not beyond the reach of anyone who aspires to it, but the artist is a rare creature who selflessly dedicates a lifetime to this pursuit. It is not an easy path, but for some, the rewards outweigh the hardships. This is the price of self Mastery, the pre-requisite to mastery of any and all mediums. It is an honorable undertaking which requires hard work, humility, meager sustenance, and above all… love. This is why artists were admired and revered.

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12
Nov

Trans- for all

   Posted by: admin    in Communication, Politics, Sociology, Uncategorized, culture

Creative activity is trans-form-ative. Yes, I said it that way on purpose. Creativity is not the same as creative activity. The form must agree with the function, if you are a seeker of the “trans-”. And, let’s face it… very few of us are not seeking the “trans-”, even if we aren’t aware of it.
TRANS- (prefix)
Across; on the other side; beyond: transpolar.
Through: transcontinental.
Change; transfer: transliterate.
Having a pair of identical atoms on opposite sides of two atoms linked by a double bond. (balance)

Translate, transfuse, transform, transmute, transition, transplant, and/or any other trans- you can think of… that’s what the “trans-” refers to. It is what happens in the process of creating, the mystery element that elevates, lifts, expands, correlates, and communicates. Trans- , takes the lines out of the box. Bring on the Trans- , and the viewer/reader/audience suddenly makes the connection. Add Trans- , and the whole world shifts on it’s comprehension axis. It’s ALL about the trans-, man.

“As much as I like religion in art, I don’t like living it and I don’t like the ugliness that it has created worldwide. I’m also not an atheist as I see God in everything and every one. I also wouldn’t like to see religion taken from people as its an excellent way to control the masses. Six billion free people scares me more than six billion semi-anethetized sheeple trying to please a book or dogma.”
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Religion and Art
~Art News Blog

Religion, guns, politics, fear and screwdrivers have alot in common… but we can add almost anything to that list. Let’s face it, words are as effective as weapons… if you just add a little “Dis-.” DIS- (The polar opposite of Dis- (a negative/divisive) would be a positive/unifier, like… PRO- or UNI-)
DIS-(prefix)
Not: dissimilar.
Absence of: disinterest.
Opposite of: disfavor.
Undo; do the opposite of: disarrange.
Deprive of: disfranchise.
Remove: disbud.
Free from: disillusion.
Used as an intensive: disannul.
and of course, the ever popular: disease.
Dis does not imply or tolerate balance in any way!

The effect of Trans- is that it reveals Dis- and it’s polar opposites in all thier insidious forms. Take religion, for example. Pro or Dis? Most would agree that it could be either. Art is the same, in any form… pro or dis, depends on the intent. Polar opposites do not exist independently. Between the poles there inevitably lies an area of CON-. Contruct, conflict, contrast, contact… etc.

Trans- overcomes polarities, and effectively neutralizes Cons.

Transend. To pass beyond the limits of: emotions that transcend understanding.
To be greater than, as in intensity or power; surpass: love that transcends infatuation. See synonyms at excel.
To exist above and independent of (material experience or the universe): “One never can see the thing in itself, because the mind does not transcend phenomena” (Hilaire Belloc).

Sorry Hilaire… but, you are wrong. Some of us are led by our heart strings, others will decide how to feel… but about a third of us will transcend the phenomena.

Humanity is not an excuse for every human weakness, but the potential for every human strength. I said that. You can quote me.

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