25 October 2023
With the theme, #themindisahouse, I was completely satisfied with (blog #1). I feel totally passionate about the idea that one can improve one’s life by renewing the mind. Digital as the main medium was also pleasing to my thinking. I could fuse photographs (blog #2) and use ‘spatial moments in time’ in digital software to manipulate and digitally draw or paint over.
But portraying the above in art needed some more processing and formulating so that it syncs according to my own cognitive processes. No problem. It just takes time, focus and effort. Lots. Did I mention lots of time, focus and effort?
I reckoned that the technique and content would have to be something I enjoy and would like to expand on for a long time coming. Due to the theme #themindisahouse, a photograph or drawing of sections of a house, corners in a home, large or small, interesting or dull, brand new or dilapidated building constructions is paramount in the art works.
Because I am a kinesthetic learner and thinker, I like to keep my hands busy, whether it is with sewing, crafting, fixing, upcycling, repurposing or gardening. Photographs and images of such ‘spatial moments in time’ should then be used in my work as part of my life, since my thoughts often get sorted while being physically operational.
And since hiking in the mountains is my outdoor activity excitement, capturing views during such times became part of the product. It has a major influence on my thinking process and how I apply principles to my existence. However, trying to depict such snap moments of spaces are seldom successful, as one cannot effectively portray the greatness of the landscape nor the magnificence of micro views on an average cellphone screen. The sensations or thoughts you experience get lost in translation for ‘who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him?’ But that doesn’t mean one can’t use such pictures to good effect.
The above ideas became part of what I use to represent #themindisahouse, i.e., the thoughts in the mind-house portrayed through physical images and activities.