Art Take 3, (Take 1 was written 7 years ago and re-worked 2 years later in Take 2, both were then lost)

Appreciation of art takes one beyond the confines of frame or space; it can be a window into the topic it tackles; into the artist’s mind, and/or; into the world in which the work begins to exist, even those worlds within which it exists thereafter and throughout time, a portal for the imagination if you like, and capable not only of capturing history, but of making history, by styling and defining worlds. Like every method utilised in the documenting of history, art can be open to propaganda and manipulation, by way of the politics it seeks to represent, or its message, whatever they may be. It is afterall, left to the creator to decide what picture they wish to paint, certainly metaphorically speaking, and depending on the medium and the circumstances, it may be literally too. Sometimes swayed by commission, the audience, mental illness, blindness, syphilis, style, drug and alcohol abuse, but imperatively physical and emotive, for art must be sensed, so as to stir something within the soul, a longing, melancholy or joy, but fundamentally, thought. It is this in my view which makes art, not only does the artist make the piece literally, they make it something more than the physical, by putting a little of themselves into the piece for you to think about, filling the audience with intrigue, not just for the human element within their material piece, but more importantly an intrigue into the artist. The works of artists of every type must be good to be successful, but thereafter, it is the star behind the works that makes them special to the audience, even if we know nothing about them. We are after all human, and nothing is more exciting and interesting to us than ourselves and other humans. Thus, a little of the artist will always live on in their work, like a long term harbour for expression. Art can be influenced, then on occasion balanced, whether secretly with symbol, or within the subliminal by the rebellious artist, or, it can be balanced and beautiful from the beginning, and upon completion, thereafter subjected to distortion and turmoil. It may even be impossible to tell either way, there may be nothing there in any event, or possibly a hint, but just to spark rumour, wonder and debate. From quite simply pure truth, as far as known at the time, from impressionism to realism to surrealism, art represents every spectrum of humanity, and from its very beginnings too, even representing itself through the conceptual. Our lives are; our interpretation of a series of images every day, pictures, whether influenced by all manner of persuasions or not, the artist, like us, is simply an interpreter, a middle man, and therefore in all of us. When I in turn come to interpret a work, for instance a painting, I want a peek at what goes on outside of the frame, at the moments of the art’s creation, when life is being captured and explained from another’s perspective, it is the artist I wish to imagine and understand, for it is they who have formed a link between this world and something more spiritual, Devine even, whether from within the imagination of themselves or others, or from right in front of them. They have taken life and brought it to life, immortalising it, along with themselves. Art is to temporarily contain elements of chaos, so that they may be held for a time, observed, enjoyed even. The forming of a temporary order to the disorderly beauty of things, so that we might then own it, and/or possess it. I hope you enjoy my art, for that, I would like to think, exists in what I have just written.

Pain Relief

A technique of the mind that may allow for a little relief of temporary pain, whether this be fleeting, such as experienced after a knock, or passing pain, such as experienced with a headache. Although I am sure this is a technique honed by Buddhist Monks who set themselves on fire in protest, it is very unlikely to assist whatsoever in circumstances of extreme and/or prolonged pain. The method is simple; it requires focussed concentration on the area within the body that is causing the discomfort. Start by closing your eyes in order to get the hang of it, be aware of your mind only, then rid it of all thoughts, you should be aware of self, and of your positioning, that being within the head. It is now a matter of taking your mind from within your head, to the position of pain within your body, or if that pain is in the head, to the area at which the pain is most concentrated. If it helps, imagine your mind travelling from your starting place and through the body towards your ailment, alternatively, you can project your mind straight to the area. Once there, try to travel deep into the pain itself and put all of your concentration into that area. Now, this may sound ridiculous, but try with all of your concentration to worsen the pain. I hope that when you get this right, you should find that the pain does quite the opposite, if only for brief interludes whilst your concentration ebbs, and then lapses. Practice may very well make perfect, although I wouldn’t wish the need for that much practice upon anyone. Having thought about this technique thoroughly, I wonder whether, by sending signals from the brain, and to the area of pain, this somehow works against the signals travelling the opposite way, from the area of pain, to the brain, where it is then perceived as pain. It could also be that this technique works by simply taking the mind off the perception of pain by distracting it somewhat, I am sure this is how cannabis works in pain relief, by numbing the brain to its perception of pain.