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August 2nd, 2017
If you could alter the famous speech of Hamlet to fit the title theme of this blog, how would you? Also what is your response to the title?
Below is the original Hamlet speech. You can tell us your version of either individual lines or the whole poem if you so choose!
Below the speech I have included my own alteration of the first half of the poem...
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? to die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep, to say we end
The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to? 'Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die to sleep,
To sleep, perchance to dream; Ay, there's the rub,
For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause. There's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,
The insolence of office, and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscovered country, from whose bourn
No traveller returns, puzzles the will,
And makes us rather bear those ills we have,
Than fly to others that we know not of.
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all,
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er, with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pitch and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.
Now my version:
To see, or not to see, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous illusion,
Or to take arms against a sea of deceptions,
And by opposing end them? To lose sight ; to become unaware ;
No more; and by a being unaware to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That vision is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To lose sight , to become unaware;
To become unaware : perchance to hallucinate : aye, there's the rub;
For in that blind state of unawareness what hallucinations may come
When we have shuffled off this veil ,
Must give us pause...
August 2nd, 2017
Shepard Fairey is an American artist known for his artworks mocking propaganda posters. In his work there are often hidden messages or visual contradictions that the viewer may not notice due to the appeal of the image and idealistic slogan. In the image above, for ex., upon first glance one is impressed by the pleasant, peaceful face of the woman and the phrase "MAKE ART, NOT WAR". However, upon a closer look, one notices that the words are highlighted in such a way as to also read "MAKE WAR, NOT ART". The Andre the Giant face in the star is a comedic mascot Fairey uses to tag his "OBEY" series of such related works.
Here is what Fairey has to say about his philosophy, the philosophy behind this mascot as a sticker he placed alone on street signs, lampposts, etc., and the philosophy of the art it accompanies, such as the poster above:
The OBEY sticker campaign can be explained as an experiment in Phenomenology. Heidegger describes Phenomenology as "the process of letting things manifest themselves. Phenomenology attempts to enable people to see clearly something that is right before their eyes but obscured; things that are so taken for granted that they are muted by abstract observation."
August 2nd, 2017
Yet only a few people seem to notice. Most are so often distracted by mundane concerns and hypnotized by the mass media, that they mostly fail to see just how surreal it can be. We are wrongly taught that the best way to find surrealism in life is by paying for some kind of show, when in fact, the surreal is waiting for us wherever we are.
We in the arts fields (music, writing, theater, dance, etc.), however, are generally more aware of the stranger side of life; observation is integral to our professions. We can help people become more aware of their world as a playground for the imagination. We are more like the children, to whom an awareness of the surreal feels natural.
Such interesting sights and happenings become noticeable when one is willing to see magic in the everyday. We are drawn into the greater depths of experience when we are open to the element of surprise.
So the next time your neighbor starts looking like some creature from the Alaskan tundra, your front lawn starts looking like a jeweled paradise, or if you feel as if you just stepped into a movie, just think...you are in a state of mind where great discoveries are often made and a great deal of fun is to be had! :D
July 25th, 2015
As a visual artist striving to be true to my creative intent, I am particularly aware of the anally compulsive nature of our increasingly money and tech obsessed world. For example, artists are forced to use digital editing programs originally meant for those in the advertising fields. Some of the greatest artists made a point of using very simple and unsophisticated mediums so that their true ability could shine through; for example a famous photographer used a pinhole camera (a box with a tiny hole through it and photographic paper inside) to show the world that great photography doesn't need a sophisticated and expensive camera, and that sophisticated technology often creates a shiny facade hiding a poor artist.
We have to be careful not to sacrifice the unaffected/spontaneous aspects of art due to the increasing demands for a focus on technicalities, economics, and minutia. We have to remember our original soul intent, what drove us to achieve in the first place. If one loses sight of this in favor of technical perfection, what is the point?
July 19th, 2015
Have you ever looked at some person, place or thing which you have looked at many times before, but suddenly you notice all these things about it that you never noticed before? So that it appears as if you are seeing it for the first time? Why do you think this happens? Perhaps much of what we "see" is actually a reflection of ourselves, a projection of our experiences, thoughts, desires, etc. onto what we are looking at? So that as we change, what we "see" changes also? With this in mind, might we then enhance our ability to see through cultivating an awareness of our projections?
July 19th, 2015
July 19th, 2015
They exist in the here and now, fully present and responsive to the life and beauty in them and around them. We humans have many special abilities that they don't have, but we often misuse them due to our capacity for imagination which can both help and/or lead to a destructive sort of irrationality.
July 19th, 2015
July 19th, 2015
July 19th, 2015
I realized that this painting could have been an omen of the misfortune that has descended on the world since around the time the painting was done (2000). The hieroglyphs on the green area were taken from the book "Crop Circles : Harbingers of World Change". Note there is more color than black, signifying hope and positive developments perhaps. I did the painting in Valley Forge State Park, the site where George Washington stationed his troops and saw visions of America's destiny.