An artist, whether a poet, a painter, a photographer, a singer, or anyone who is involved in a creative endeavor, shares a very special place in this world. She is involved in an activity (her work of art) which attempts to create something beautiful. In that effort, she tries to bring perfection to the physical world, which otherwise is non-existent. That perfect beauty, that divinity, that Godliness, that perfection which is otherwise invisible to the world of mortals, comes up in its full grandeur through the creativity of the artist, either in form of that beautifully written poem, or an impeccably carved out sculpture. An artist enjoys that very unique opportunity to be able to attract the divinity to the world of mortals. She contributes to increase the sum total of beauty in this world. Life becomes a beautiful journey, not only for the artist, but also for others who happen to observe and appreciate her art.
Certainly it is about creation of novelty, which gives a good feeling to humanity. Yes, it even has a utilitarian applicability. Yes it adds up to the aesthetics of existence. It definitely increases the happiness quotient and well being for the people who are surrounded by beauty and magnificent works of art. It for sure adds lots of meaning to the life of the artist even. But there is another more profound relevance of a work of art. Keats had beautifully put it in his famous poem Endymion:
A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams and health, and quiet breathing.
Yes, beauty is eternal.
There is another very interesting aspect of beauty and art. It is fundamentally non-physical in nature. It belongs to the realm of non-form. For example the beauty of a flower does not belong to the flower, or the plant, or the petal or its color. It is a holistic arrangement of the petals in that golden ratio, which in its entirety conjures up a sense of awe and appreciation in the heart of the beholder. If the petals are taken up separately and analyzed under the microscope to look for the source of the beauty, nothing physical will be realized. The beauty of a well made painting cannot be analyzed and the individual aspects separated which gives the immense aesthetics to the painting. The work of art in its entirety is much more than its individual constituent parts. The process that went in creating the art, the inspiration involved in conceiving the art, the intercourse of the emotions, thoughts, skills and expertise of the artist and the materials involved, holistically creating the work of art in synergy, certainly belongs to a non-physical realm. All these go beyond the artifact of art itself. It is correct to infer that an artist cannot be judged just based on her work of art. There are aspects beyond the artifact.
It appears that this ethereal nature of a work of art was known to mankind since the earliest artwork excavated, which dates back to earlier than 30,000 BC!!! These were in forms of cave paintings. The later artworks from the Egyptians, the Greeks, and then those of the Renaissance, have time and again tried to bring forth this unique and special aspect of art. Art had always been an expression of perfection in this otherwise imperfect world, and artists – the bridge between that celestial perfection and the physical world. Aristotle has succinctly expressed this as –
“…All the arts always have in view some good that we desire to achieve.”
The concept of God is also something that belongs to the realm of non-form. Through a work of art, which tries to portray perfection, God can be experienced. There is no way to really touch, see or experience God through the human senses. It solely belongs to the domain of experiencing that bliss indirectly though a vehicle of art and creativity. It might not be incorrect to conclude that the only way to appreciate, understand and know God, is through the eyes of an artist. Creativity and imagination appears to me the first step to know God. Being a psychological zombie, being drugged by material pursuits, being solely busy in the transactional chores of every day existence, lost in the world of sensual gratification, a person loses his opportunity to know God. It is simple. Having a limited psychic energy (attention) that we are endowed with as humans, and given the limited time we have in a day, when we allow ourselves to be totally occupied with things which are gross, we lose out the opportunity to experience something which is higher, finer and more beautiful. It is just that we have limited resource of time and energy.
When I call for being an artist, it does not necessarily mean that the person is occupied in a profession or a hobby particularly into fine arts. A person can be an artist doing what he does for his living. Einstein was a clerk in a patent office. He chose to be creative at his work being a clerk, which led to creation of things as profound as the Theory of Relativity. Same was the case with Pythagoras, Archimedes, Kepler, Euclid, and later Newton, and series of scientific creators of the modern world, who apparently did not have any creative vocation to start with. But they scooped out being artists in their own respect. Art and aesthetics was part of their everyday life, even when they were apparently involved in things which appear so very dry and “scientific” on surface. The problem is that, most of the post industrial society today feels art as a prerogative of poets and painters. If you want to do something to earn your living, and something meaningful or worthwhile, you have to give away being artistic, and start putting on the hat of analysis, rationality, scientific investigation, and a well defined sequential process to achieve something material. There is not much place left for imagination and creativity. The state of affairs appears more farcical when we see those “consultants” who come up with their superficial weekend workshops on “creativity and innovation.” It is similar to the new age hypocrite gurus, who promise you enlightenment if you attend their week long workshop, shelling out a big share of your hard earned money.
As society flocks more and more into instant gratifications, sensory adventures, one night stands, weekend nirvanas, more is the need to remind oneself of art and being an artist.
Certainly it is about creation of novelty, which gives a good feeling to humanity. Yes, it even has a utilitarian applicability. Yes it adds up to the aesthetics of existence. It definitely increases the happiness quotient and well being for the people who are surrounded by beauty and magnificent works of art. It for sure adds lots of meaning to the life of the artist even. But there is another more profound relevance of a work of art. Keats had beautifully put it in his famous poem Endymion:
A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams and health, and quiet breathing.
Yes, beauty is eternal.
There is another very interesting aspect of beauty and art. It is fundamentally non-physical in nature. It belongs to the realm of non-form. For example the beauty of a flower does not belong to the flower, or the plant, or the petal or its color. It is a holistic arrangement of the petals in that golden ratio, which in its entirety conjures up a sense of awe and appreciation in the heart of the beholder. If the petals are taken up separately and analyzed under the microscope to look for the source of the beauty, nothing physical will be realized. The beauty of a well made painting cannot be analyzed and the individual aspects separated which gives the immense aesthetics to the painting. The work of art in its entirety is much more than its individual constituent parts. The process that went in creating the art, the inspiration involved in conceiving the art, the intercourse of the emotions, thoughts, skills and expertise of the artist and the materials involved, holistically creating the work of art in synergy, certainly belongs to a non-physical realm. All these go beyond the artifact of art itself. It is correct to infer that an artist cannot be judged just based on her work of art. There are aspects beyond the artifact.
It appears that this ethereal nature of a work of art was known to mankind since the earliest artwork excavated, which dates back to earlier than 30,000 BC!!! These were in forms of cave paintings. The later artworks from the Egyptians, the Greeks, and then those of the Renaissance, have time and again tried to bring forth this unique and special aspect of art. Art had always been an expression of perfection in this otherwise imperfect world, and artists – the bridge between that celestial perfection and the physical world. Aristotle has succinctly expressed this as –
“…All the arts always have in view some good that we desire to achieve.”
The concept of God is also something that belongs to the realm of non-form. Through a work of art, which tries to portray perfection, God can be experienced. There is no way to really touch, see or experience God through the human senses. It solely belongs to the domain of experiencing that bliss indirectly though a vehicle of art and creativity. It might not be incorrect to conclude that the only way to appreciate, understand and know God, is through the eyes of an artist. Creativity and imagination appears to me the first step to know God. Being a psychological zombie, being drugged by material pursuits, being solely busy in the transactional chores of every day existence, lost in the world of sensual gratification, a person loses his opportunity to know God. It is simple. Having a limited psychic energy (attention) that we are endowed with as humans, and given the limited time we have in a day, when we allow ourselves to be totally occupied with things which are gross, we lose out the opportunity to experience something which is higher, finer and more beautiful. It is just that we have limited resource of time and energy.
When I call for being an artist, it does not necessarily mean that the person is occupied in a profession or a hobby particularly into fine arts. A person can be an artist doing what he does for his living. Einstein was a clerk in a patent office. He chose to be creative at his work being a clerk, which led to creation of things as profound as the Theory of Relativity. Same was the case with Pythagoras, Archimedes, Kepler, Euclid, and later Newton, and series of scientific creators of the modern world, who apparently did not have any creative vocation to start with. But they scooped out being artists in their own respect. Art and aesthetics was part of their everyday life, even when they were apparently involved in things which appear so very dry and “scientific” on surface. The problem is that, most of the post industrial society today feels art as a prerogative of poets and painters. If you want to do something to earn your living, and something meaningful or worthwhile, you have to give away being artistic, and start putting on the hat of analysis, rationality, scientific investigation, and a well defined sequential process to achieve something material. There is not much place left for imagination and creativity. The state of affairs appears more farcical when we see those “consultants” who come up with their superficial weekend workshops on “creativity and innovation.” It is similar to the new age hypocrite gurus, who promise you enlightenment if you attend their week long workshop, shelling out a big share of your hard earned money.
As society flocks more and more into instant gratifications, sensory adventures, one night stands, weekend nirvanas, more is the need to remind oneself of art and being an artist.
______________________________________________
Copy Right © All rights reserved - Samrat Kar
No comments:
Post a Comment