Category: Mindful Creativity

Mindful Creativity

Welcome to Exploratory Sunday!

Grand Providentia United

We stand on the banks of a stream of consciousness. Except that this is no ordinary stream, it is the resulting flow from the current of every stream of consciousness that has ever found its way into the one river of universal potentiality. Where we are now standing, has been the starting point of every great physical, metaphysical, and spiritual exploration ever embarked upon. We have the choice to stay here on these solid shores of security, these granite shores of little risk, or we can choose to trust in the flow. Allowing its beckoning strength to immerse us in its soulful power. For sure, there will be dark depths and shallows of light along the course of this magnificent flow. There will be risks taken and rewards earned. And knowing all of this, we will make the choice to explore or to stay here in our stasis and watch the others letting go. The entrance is by way of a shimmering trail, a pathway of light, hovering just above the surface of our shared consciousness. For some, the pathway appears to be a rickety wooden dock, for others it is as solid as a golden brick road. I am now walking just above the surface of the river, following the vaporous scales of a rainbow serpent’s body. I have committed to joining the flow. Dive in with me. As you can see, the only threats here are the ones that we ourselves are releasing.

Now, we’re releasing the rainbow serpent’s head, as it dips down and withdraws, we become one with the fluidity, two with the solidity, and three with the ambiguity. We are at once a musical note with twice the reverberation of a bull moose bellow, but we’re also a ringtone described by a cello. We wonder about stars, on Hollywood Boulevard, while we are dreaming with Costner about wolves dressed in baseball uniforms. Not old school uniforms, they’re not worn in uniformity at all, more in tune with motley crew outfits, donned by the cast of the Deadliest Catch. We all catch a chill, and we release it as well. These days there is a shortage of every fish it seems. Even white wine served at room temperature has a short fuse. Bullets and bombs should be stored in root cellars, let the roots stay connected to the tree trunks who need them. Gold crowns encrusted with white flour by star studded bakers, are eaten by preachers, leading their flocks of daily bread takers. We’ve now entered an eddy, a roundabout in the road, our way forward is spiral, ham-hocks and tick-tocks gone viral. To avoid motion sickness, we’ll watch the horizon, where every big event appears smaller, with the exclusions of waterfalls and sun rises. Back to the main flow, orientation a given, we now understand, why our lives are worth living. It’s not for the fame, the cash flow, the glory. It’s not for the pain we attach to our story. We live to experience what it’s like to be human. To experience the love and forgiveness we offer to ourselves and each other. To share with one another the joy and the wonder of this incredible journey we call Life.

Exploratory Sundays are likely to continue indefinitely. Hopefully, they will always be enjoyable, and ideally, they will encourage a smile!

Mindful Creativity

Naturally Radical

Grand Providentia United

On paths less traveled I tend to make better time. From the outer edges of the crowd, the sightline is clear to a wider expanse of the horizon. As far back as memory can serve me, I’ve been comfortable with being a nonconformist. Eccentricity is as natural to my lifestyle as conformity is to another’s. To those who occupy the central villages of societal norms, I am often referred to as part of the fringe element. I’m happy being fringy. Happier than I could ever imagine being if I were here to live the role of a centrist. Domestication, and all things mundane, remind me of the Sunday suits with clip-on ties and over-tight collars that my well-meaning mom often cajoled me into wearing as a child. Is it in rebellion that I’ve become more eccentric as others have moved closer to the center? I’ve considered this possibility often and I’ve always arrived at the same conclusion. It is not rebelliousness, or any other socio-psychological reactivity, that makes me a non-conformist. It happens much closer to the root of who I am physically, spiritually and intellectually. Having learned to love myself, after too many decades of self-deprecation, I have come to understand the beauty of irregularity, and the true value of absolute self-acceptance. I embrace the unique strengths and weaknesses that come with the whole package of being me. This, in turn, makes it easier to connect with those at the very center of normality. I realize that even the most rigid conformists must deal with many of the same inner and outer struggles that I’m dealing with, and they’re regularly experiencing victories and defeats of their own. To middle-grounders, it may seem that those of us on the fringe are failing in basic ways, but that misperception is arrived at because their understanding of our lifestyle is basic, and furthermore, that understanding is based in a common, and well-worn, viewpoint. At this moment in human history, radical ideologies are becoming increasingly counter-productive to the unification of communities, societies and civilization as a whole. Those with open minds and hearts can comprehend that there are equivalent sources of positive and negative radical ideologies attempting to change the course of humanity at this moment in history. To those who occupy the middle ground, it may appear that there are far more negative radical influences within modern civilization than there are counterbalancing forces, those forces being on the positive side of radicalism. The reason for this shortsighted perspective – the worldview that being a radical is equivalent to having a negative impact on society – is that the radicals with ill-intentions are most effective in the mainstream of society. Using fear to their advantage, they keep their collective heel on the throat of humanity by infiltrating the very core of society with their warped ideals steeped in hopelessness and desperation. Fortunately, there is a counter-balancing force out here on the fringe. For the sake of this discussion, I’ll dub them the Free Radicals – these are the ones who strive to build a better future for all (including those who are not yet in existence). Free Radicals are unifiers and peacemakers, healers and problem solvers, and they act not out of greed or a lust for power, or even from a place of self-interest, instead, they are motivated and inspired by the finest qualities of humanity. They perceive, in their brothers and sisters, parents and children, something worth living and dying for. These Free Radicals think and act according to a shared value system. Their values are grounded in good will toward humanity and gratitude for the abundance of life and all of life’s sustenance on the earth.

“The Reclamation of Manifest Destiny”

When I created the sculpture above, I failed to research the origins of the term Manifest Destiny, or to identify the negative connotations attached to the imperialistic outlook that brought this terminology into existence. In my ignorance I titled the artwork as such, thinking that it meant our ability to define and manifest our individual future lives by setting intentions that would aid in the realization of our best life stories. As I learn and grow, I uncover past missteps that I sometimes feel the need to acknowledge and correct. The term Manifest Destiny was appropriated and used in a way that is an anathema to my personal philosophy of inclusion and equality with regards to all people. Manifest Destiny originated here in the USA as justification for the colonialization of North America. They claimed that it was the European culture’s superiority over the aboriginal cultures that gave them the right claim all of the land from sea to shining sea. They committed widespread injustice and prolonged cultural atrocities all in the name of an ill-conceived western belief system. My intentions while creating the work were honorable, I was just looking at the term from a literal point of view and relying on the limited knowledge I had at the time. I stand corrected, and so does the title of this work.

Mindful Creativity

Curve Talk About Art

Grand Providentia United

If straight talk is what you’re looking for, you may, or may not, find it here. Art takes many forms. In some cases, it is formless, as it is with conceptual art when the concept is as yet unrealized. Ideas are immaterial things, and concepts are sometimes abstract, along with algebraic formulas. But an abstract acrylic on canvas can have solid appeal. Touch it with your fingertips and let your vision follow its pathways until your senses are absorbed in the two-dimensional realm of optical illusion. Eye candy is delicious, but too much of it, and you run the risk of rounding an eye tooth. Straight lines can stabilize your composition with economy. Straight lines can also derail an art critic’s ability to look straight at your art. Contemporary architecture often bends the strict rules of structural integrity in an effort to add in a curved or crooked line, an arch or a floating stairway. A stairway that theoretically leads us to a horizontal heaven, and it gets us there vertically, by way of a diagonal. In my own practice of art, I’ve heard the square folks lamenting in my ear about the inability to even draw a straight line. My reply, usually non-verbal, is ‘Why would you want to?’.

“Midlife Crisis” Drawn in pastel during my midlife crisis.

Bear with me, I promise to get to the pointillism. Then again, who wants to talk about a million polychrome dots giving the impression of three-dimensionality anyway. Nobody does. Everybody does want to talk about Leonardo DaVinci though. He was an exemplary master of all dimensions, proportions and abstract scientific concepts. Leonardo and Michelangelo often behaved like oil and water when in close proximity, but being the art giants they were, they were rarely in close proximity. There wasn’t enough space in all of Europe for that.

“Inside Outside”

Then there is sculpture. As big as David or as small as Venus of Willendorf, the contours comparable. Just this morning, I loaded a ridiculously heavy bronze sculpture on a truck and offloaded it at the studio that is serving as my temporary home. I’m ready for dinner and an evening bike ride so I’ll say so long for now. I’ll add some plane talk about sculpture sometime in the not-so-distant future.

“Salvador Seahorse” Bronze bench by sculptor Mike Elwell. Me, stranded in Saint Petersburg, Florida, for the moment.
Mindful Creativity

I’m Out Here!

Grand Providentia United

If you should find yourself outside of the norm, beyond the walls of societal systems and civilized institutions, you and I may cross paths. Together we might start a new norm. Our differences amount to strengths when they’re combined, and we’re not afraid to combine them. Out here we’re alchemists, we’re Sages, we’re healers. Some of us are redeemers disguised as disruptors, so you can bet we’re always being whatever we need to be to bring others to life. Judgements fall flat so we use them as doormats. Life is sometimes messy on the fringe, and we need a place to wipe the dirt from our souls. Desire for companionship outweighs the need for approval, so flattery falls even flatter than judgement out here. Let’s get together and contemplate the nature of existence while we’re climbing opposite sides of the same tree. There’s room enough for our whole tribe in this mighty oak. And as we transcend, above canopy and cloud, we’ll join hands and wonder about the earthlings toiling below us. Not that there’s anything wrong with toiling, mind you.

“Flight Lessons” from the Positive Infomercial Series (2011)

The Grand Providentia Projection is eventual. Change is perpetual. Reinvention is imminent. Expect the miraculous!

Thanks for stopping in to read this journal entry. Your mindful presence is always appreciated!

Mindful Creativity

Cooperation > Competition = Win, Win, Win!

Grand Providentia United

Competitors with a realistic perspective will usually admit that you can’t win them all. If their outlook is healthy, they will also recognize that one could wear themselves out if they tried to win in too many categories. Comparisons between the apples and oranges of success in any given field often leads to frustration. First of all, there are no clear guidelines separating specialties within the broader areas of expertise. As the competitor cordons off a subcategory to ‘win’, they’ll invariably wind up moving their borders inward as they concede ground to their competitor’s superior talents and acumen. This can lead to self-isolation in terms of association within a specific professional field. Another important consideration to make while deciding which strategy to employ, competitiveness vs cooperativeness, is how much real world influence you hope to enjoy when you finally ‘beat’ all of your contemporaries and take home the First Place prize within your specialty. Here is where cooperativeness breaks away from the competition and authors its own competitive edge. Cooperation allows for others to succeed in unison with your own successes. A cooperative professional can now participate wholeheartedly in the celebratory ceremonies acknowledging the successes of one’s associates in their field. Cooperation allows across the board beneficence of success; If we’re working as a team, we all get to enjoy breakthroughs together.

All ECG 2018

The whole gang of ‘cooperative of artists’ participating in the 2018 Exquisite Corpse Games, St. Petersburg, Florida.

From a personal perspective, cooperation implies progressiveness for all members of the cooperative. Generosity, acceptance of others, flexibility, intuitiveness, and open communication, are all apparently principles that form the basis for cooperation. Having met many artists who are self-declared ‘competitors’ in the field of art, I have come to the conclusion that it would be absolutely exhausting for me, if the motivations for making my artwork were locked in constant competition with the creative motivations of other artists. If I were competitive with other artists, it would also imply that every time one of my contemporaries enjoyed a breakthrough or a win, I would simultaneously experience a loss. This would fly in the face of my constant gratitude for the abundance of all things.

DRDBBs

Limited Edition bronze, “American Dream Catcher” belt buckles.

Within the nature of competitiveness, there is an undercurrent of exclusivity. It implies that there is no room for two or more #1 competitors. For one to rise, another must fall. If you are winning, I’m losing. If you’re succeeding, I am failing. The competitive strategy makes no accommodation for mutual success. Tied scores must always be broken.

BNBTeam

As a member of a ‘Bad News Bears’-style farm league baseball team, I was taught by the coaches that enjoyment of the game was more important than winning. My recently deceased father, Timothy Otto Moore, was head coach, to the left, and I am posed right of center, top row. We didn’t win very often, but we sure had fun trying!

There are so many reasons to take a cooperative approach to our careers, our relationships and our daily affairs in life, but I must confess that my favorite reason has to do with connectivity with other human beings. When I am open and inclusive toward others, more often than not, they afford me the same considerations. This approach can be risky of course. Putting yourself and your ideas out there can lead to antagonistic criticism from self-perceived competitors, getting your coat tails ridden by opportunists, and worst of all, having your successes stolen away by plagiarists and impostors. Even after an in depth investigation of all perceivable drawbacks to the cooperative approach, I still prefer it over the short-lived glory of winning the competitive way.

Demold

Fred McKenna and Christopher Moore were both hardworking members of the Moore Art Expressions production team. We produced hundreds of castings together over the years, and yet we always managed to stay focused on the mutual goals of the team. Cooperative teamwork, perhaps?

Thank you for reading this journal entry! As usual, I’d like to express my appreciation and gratitude for all of the amazing influences that I’ve been blessed with in this lifetime. From role models and mentors, to friends and family, I will always be thankful for your gracious support! Please consider following this blog to receive email notifications when I write a new post. And please remember, I will always welcome cooperative comments and constructive criticisms with open arms, but I’ll also step up to the line for a high spirited competitive debate!