“Il sole non se muove”, wrote Leonardo
in his diaries, 100 years before Galileo’s own profound and
brave explanation about Earth’s movement around the sun. (Anatomy
of Genius, Split Brains and Global Minds, pg. 58, by Jan Ehrenwald,
Human Sciences Press, Inc., NY, NY, paperback edition, 1986)
That the Earth travels around the Sun is not something immediately
apparent to cultures lacking astronomical literacy, telescopes,
and centuries of credible study. If the culture of the United States
were to have its scientific knowledge torn from it by global disaster,
it seems to me that it is highly likely that there would be a sizable
number of people who would resort to believing only what they see…which
is that the sun moves across the sky. Doesn’t it obviously
move while the earth remains tethered in one position?
And so it is with our limited minds and well established mindsets.
Our cultures essentially dictate to us the rules we abide by and
the norms we accept, including the field of artistic expression.
That which we have already found to exist seems to work. The status
quo keeps society functioning and stable, preventing chaos. And
within our societies there are teachers and role models who tell
us about what has gone before and what should be the norms now.
Leaders in all facets of life, religious, political, family, etc.
basically provide us the structure on which to build and live our
lives. These persons, and the general consensus, essentially offer
the models we easily accept and emulate. In fact, to stray from
the norm is to tempt punishments, to possibly become an outcast,
to be considered radical, foolish, undisciplined, too liberal or
too conservative, potentially crazy, wrong, the “other”,
and perhaps dangerous.
IN SEARCH OF THE PROFOUND
“But there never fails to come to the rescue some human being,
like ourselves in everything, except that he has in him a secret
power of vision” Wassily Kandinsky, From “Concerning
the Spiritual in Art”, ca.1914. A “eureka moment”
is known to many of us, I suspect, who have had some insight that
carries us from ordinary thought to something fresh and personally
new…beyond a previous norm. When some recognition dawns, when
we notice a material thing or idea in a different light, it can
propel us forward into the truly “new”. The important
step is to do something “with” that fresh idea to lift
our own calloused existence beyond the norm and mundane. We can
move ourselves deeper, gaining sagacious insights, and in some rare
cases we may actually aid in edging our culture a bit further along
its evolutionary trail. It is often reported that Kandinsky arrived
home one evening after walking his dog in the fading light of day.
He entered a room and saw a painting that he did not immediately
recognize propped on the floor. It took several moments for his
mind to clear, to right itself…and to recognize that it was
his very own upside down painting. But…what he saw on the
floor, that image he did not recognize, became the impetus for his
non-objective work to follow. He saw lines and movement and color
and shapes without those elements forming a recognizable image.
He had a eureka moment. He was faced with something unexpected and
his creative mind, unrestricted by expectation and requirement and
rules, transported his work to a different plane. He is credited
with the invention of non-objective painting as a result. He took
the opportunity at the moment of insight to explore a new path.
Jan Ehrenwald, psychiatrist and author of numerous books, including
“Anatomy of Genius” quoted above, uses the phrase that
there occurs in the human brain an “existential shift”,
when the two hemispheres of the brain unite to produce a condition
allowing progressive action to be taken. He follows the theory of
the “split brain”, in which the two halves of our brains
have different methods of “thinking”. Sometimes the
right brain is freed to release some insight and explores some new
uncovered treasure, while the left brain synchronizes, observes,
and participates without dominating the process. The brain’s
right intuitive hemisphere often retains images, events and nascent
thoughts in its unconscious. The left hemisphere is often thought
of as the controlling, restrictive, mathematical part of the brain.
When conditions are right these two hemispheres meld, working in
concert, with the left side of the brain remaining pliable, even
searching for a new expression, something to break a roadblock,
to find a solution. The right half is free to enter with its own
more intuitive thought process. The two halves join more seamlessly
and perhaps something creative and profound can emerge. The hold
of rules in the thought making process is lessened, partitions disappear,
and the mind flows more freely in search of satisfying solutions.
From the same book by Ehrenwald, pg. 119, a statement about Alfred
Einstein: “…Einstein specifically went on record stating
that it is courageous to use intuition ‘when there is simply
no other guide available at al – {for instance when} one has
tentatively to propose an axiom that by definition is unproven.’
He remarked to a friend, Janos Plesch: ‘When I examine myself
and my method of thought I come to the conclusion that the gift
of phantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing information’.”
OUR PERSONAL EVOLUTION
“Freshness of vision the child has, and freshness of vision
is an important element in the new movement…The child has
a direct vision, because his mind is unencumbered by association
and because his power of concentration is unimpaired by a multiplicity
of interests.” Michael Sadler’s introduction to the
1977 translation of Kandinsky’s book. Michelangelo, Galileo,
Einstein and Kandinsky, like all of us, grew up in cultures that
provided established borders, rules, methods of thought and behavior.
It appears to most of us that they were true geniuses who found
ways to leap from the established patterns and mindset of their
cultures. They may have been born with exceptional intellects that,
when compared to our own, makes us look puny and weak…or they
might just have had minds that remained “open” and flexible,
where their two hemispheres worked as one. Some of their actions
may have been the result of simply following an inclination, a hunch,
some errant thought or peculiar notion. They were willing to go
against established patterns, whether those patterns were imposed
by the norms of society or thru comfortable personal habit. To use
some clichés, they may have responded to an idea that was
“outside the box”, taking a “road less traveled
by” which had been ignored by others. That willingness to
consider change propelled them to a personal evolution that in turn
altered the course of a larger cultural history. It seems likely
that artists have moments when we are challenged to either pay attention
to or ignore some newly emerged idea. It is also likely that an
idea which seems new to us personally, is more likely an idea that
someone else, somewhere and sometime, had considered already. However,
the willingness to spend some time and effort in exploring that
fresh untested idea is what sets one apart from the “nonstarters”
who may have shared the same thought but who remained at the starting
gate.
BREAKING NEW PERSONAL TRAILS
"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there
is no path and leave a trail." Ralph Waldo Emerson, as quoted
in “The Zen of Creativity: Cultivating Your Artistic Life”
by John Daido Loori What matters to you during this brief existence
upon Earth? Perhaps accepting established norms and being comfortable
with your own personal status quo is rewarding enough. Maybe doing
only what is easily understood by the majority of the public offers
sufficient satisfaction. But beyond that comfortable state, do you
recognize the potential of responding to the mind’s internal
nudges and quirks that do not seem merely ordinary? Are you willing
and able to act upon you own unplanned hunches and unexpected notions?
There are moments when we are inspired to change and grow because
internal or external conditions are right for it. Our split brains
and minds may remain flexible and integrated. The moment appears
for some action that may lead us to new personal expression. We
do not immediately reject our new thoughts out of fear of something
unknown, nor because we seek public acceptance. We remain open and
willing to experience our own “existential shift” for
the sake of discovery, our intellectual evolution and the rudimentary
childlike joy of living. Would you today be willing to say “The
sun does not move” if the culture around you claimed that
the Earth stands still? Would you be willing to take an observation
like Kandinsky’s view of an upturned painting and have that
propel you into new artistic explorations? Do you, like Einstein,
remain open to your own flights of “phantasy”, responding
to your personal day-dreams and hunches? An artist has individual
and personal exploring to do with visual media. Each of us has our
own unique individual history and path that provides experiences
to draw from and which serves as the base upon which to evolve.
While not all of us will alter the course of human culture, we can
at least bend the future of our own personal artistic paths. If
there is even one small “Eureka Moment” in our artistic
experience, it can be the catalyst for enduring personal adventure
and expanding wisdom.
“The ordinary dies every day. The extraordinary dies rarely.”
- ANON
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