The Art of Art

Here's a thought provoking quote that's worthy of sharing:

"The image cannot be dispossessed of a primordial freshness, which idea can never claim. An idea is derivative and tamed. The image is in the natural or wild state, and it has to be discovered there, not put there, obeying its own law and none of yours."
John Crowe Ranson - as quoted in Writing the Natural Way by Gabriele Rico, Ph.D.

Our art does seem to have a mind of its own... If we follow the lead of the image, the piece we are creating will be satisfying in ways that elude us when we are trying to control the image into what we think it "should" be.

The book is about writing, but it can be applied to any art form. I find myself slipping between words, images & emotions as I read a chapter here or there. My mind begins to play with word forms, rearranging them with images overlaid by emotional experiences related to the images, words, ideas. The author provides interesting short essay assignments & encourages one to write as one experiences, remembers, & feels, not solely as one thinks.

Rico differentiates the processes of the two sides of the brain as the Sign Mind and the Design Mind. Others might say the Literal Mind and the Intuitive Mind, or Left Brain/Right Brain. She's an advocate of childlike spontaneity with word/images and its actually been quite fun doing her assignments! They're all short, quick, and spontaneous - she sets a good stage prior to each assignment.

Life is like art, is it not? It has a "life" or direction of it's own. How we appreciate/experience life comes down to our personal responses to the events that occur throughout our lives. We have the unique ability to re-design how we see/interpret life experiences at any time. Isn't that how forgiveness works - it reframes a past event, taking the acidic pain and reformulating it into something life-giving, rather than life-depleting...

Or so it seems to me.