Loving Art
Above all, it is a matter of loving art, not understanding it.
- Spencer Tunick
Children are artists
All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.
- Pablo Picasso
Look Afresh
To think creatively, we must be able to look afresh at what we normally take for granted.
- George Kneller
A Woman from Inside Out
I wish I could draw (and erase, and draw and erase and draw) like the magical artist in this cool video. Check it out: http://www.pelourinho.com/movies/c003702/
I am a buddha; I am an artist
Zen, and by extension the Zen aesthetic, shows us that all things are perfect and complete, just as they are. Nothing is lacking…. In Zen, we say that each one of us is already a buddha, a thoroughly enlightened being. It’s the same with art. Each one of us is already an artist, whether we realize it or not….
If I was asked to get rid of the Zen aesthetic and just keep one quality necessary to create art, I would say it’s trust. When you learn to trust yourself implicityly, you no longer need to prove something through your art. You simply allow it to come out, to be as it is. This is when creating art becomes effortless. It happens as you grow your hair. It grows.
-John Daido Loori in The Zen of Creativity
The Zen of Creativity
I’ve been on vacation. Did anyone miss me? The web stats show my blog gets lots of traffic, but comments are so rare. I wonder if I am writing solely for myself (which would be fine by me, I don’t mind) and perhaps the web statistics are incorrect.
I packed a pad of paper and a box of markers in my suitcase, in case I felt the urge to make art. I didn’t touch them. I spent time with the family. I did a lot of reading. Sometimes I just sat and enjoyed the sunshine. It was enough.
I read John Daido Loori’s book “The Zen of Creativity; Cultivating Your Artistic Life”. John is a Zen Buddhist - a monk, in fact, as well as a photographer. I’m interested in Buddhism and was eager to learn more about Zen, as well as having an obvious interest in “artistic life”. I loved what he had to say about wabi sabi:
Wabi is a feeling loneliness or solitude, reflecting a sense of nonattachment and appreciation for the spontaneous unfolding of circumstances. It is like the quiet that comes from a winter snowfall, where all the sounds are hushed and stillness envelops everything. Sabi is the richness of ordinary objects, the basic, unmistakable uniqueness of a thing in and of itself.
John describes the Japanese tea ceremony. Once the tea has been ceremoniously consumed, the tea bowls are washed by the host and handed back to the guest for inspection. The guest’s role is to take pleasure in the simplistic beauty of the bowl. You might think a ceremonial tea bowl would be highly embellished. In fact it is not and it often has obvious flaws in the glaze. You see, it is that wabi sabi quality that is to be appreciated.
Since reading this I confess I’ve developed a new attraction to handmade pottery - especially the pieces that are purposely distressed and worn looking.
John goes on to say more:
Two other qualities used to describe the feelings that Zen art evoke are aware and yugen. Aware is a feeling of nostalgia, a longing for the past, for something old and worn. It’s an acute awareness of the fleeting nature of life, its impermanence. Yugen is the mystery, the hidden, indescribable, or ineffiable dimensions of reality.
This made me think about shabby chic style. You wouldn’t usually associate shabby chic with simple Zen art, would you? Zen calligraphy and pottery - they are stark and plain. Yet in coming to know the meanings of wabi and sabi and aware and yugen, I had a sudden understanding of why I find shabby chic appealing! I have a framed spoon on my wall. The white paint on the frame is crackled and the spoon, too, is old and has obviously seen a lot of use. It is an everyday, utilitarian object that now evokes a sense of nostalgia. And it evokes a sense of mystery. Who used this spoon? What is its history?
Wabi sabi. It just sounds cool, doesn’t it?
