Posted by: Jim in Egypt on
Sep 22, 2008
Several years ago there was a live TV show from the Giza Plateau that revealed a new chamber beneath the Sphinx. I will discuss the contents of this chamber in a later blog but this one I will dedicate to the underground structure itself. What amazed me was the quality of the chamber and its construction. It was fashioned from solid rock, and was for stories deep. While it was fairly soft material the walls appeard to be completely square and in a finished or polished condition. This again begs the question as to the origin of the knowledge and tools that would be required to construct something so perfect. And to have done so 4 to 6 thousand years ago seems unlikely if we are to believe that mankind has made slow but consistent progress from that time until today. I have also been waiting for a follow up program or article on this find but to date none seem to be forthcoming.
Why do we spend so much of our time exploring the material aspects of space when they represent so little of the Universe? I think it is because the variety and evolution of the material part of the universe is evident to our five senses. But if all is an integrated whole then one could hypothesize that space(the void) too has more variety and is evolving although beyond our limited sensory perception. Perhaps the 'void' is more than just a stage on which the material universe plays out the story. Scientists have said that there is more zero point(potential?) energy in a small(several cubic centimeters) area of space than that contained in all of the material bodies of which we are aware. Do we need to begin to expand our search and look deeper into exploring the stage instead of focusing all of our efforts on the players?
Posted by: Jim in Pyramids, Mystery, Engineering, Egypt on
Sep 06, 2008
As reported by Petrie, in his classic book from the 1800's on the Pyramids, the equisite detail and painstaking pursuit of perfection make these constructions both inspiring and enigmatic. A quote from the book.
" Hence the mean thickness of the joints there is '020'; therefore the mean variation of the cuttting of the stone from a straight line and from a true square, is but '01 on lenght of 75 inches up the face, an amount of accuracy equal to most modern opticians' straight edges of such a lenth."
It is inspiring because it shows what can be achieved with care and attention to detail. It is enigmatic when one wonders why it was considered necessary to dress the stones to this degree of accurracy and how it was done on a such a large scale over a prolonged period of time. Working with businesses today, as a consultant, I can report that to have employees apply themselves consistently over a period as short as one day is an issue. So as we go deeper into the mystery of these monuments we find even more unanswsered questions.
The idea of coherence relates to an instant tuning together of all of the parts of a painting. Nature as we know is not automatically coherent. It is chaotic at the visual level. It is therefore one of the key objectives of the watercolor artist to use the concept of coherence to create a 'whole' unified painting. Therefore to create a 'forever painting' the idea of choerence must necessarily play a dominant role. Many paintings seem coherent on one level but fail to meet that standard on all levels. It is not enough to merely use technique to force coherence at the painting stage. It must be built in at the design, story and painting levels. These to me represent the three most important areas for a watercolor painter to use. It is much like the design build concepts used in the construction industry. First we design and then we build or render. To have too little thought on the front end(design/ story leaves too much to chance. While chance plays an important and much recognized role in watercolor painting it should not be the principle design strategy in an intentional painting. In a non intentional spontaneous painting one could lauch forth with 'chance' as the key strategy but in the end the artist must bring coherence into play if the painting is to succeed.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Aug 26, 2008
You can't start with nature and end up with a forever painting. You will not find that 'something more' in nature as it is only a symbol for beauty that you seek. As a symbol it can point toward the higher but does not contain it. That is why so many watercolor paintings fail to reach the 'forever painting' level. They are nice renderings but contain less and not more than nature. They become of a symbol of the symbol. They are lower and not higher because the artist started with the wrong point of view. To reach the higher level requires a differnt point of view. This is a point of view that comes from within the artist and is imposed upon the subject matter. Therefore don't look for or expect to find your 'something more' in nature, or for that matter any part of the material world. Look within and there you will find the hidden treasure that you have been seeking.
Carrying the message 'strongly' in a painting is one of the key goals of a watercolor painter. One should never struggle too long over a weak depiction. The key is to begin over if the inital attempt appears to be too weak because in painting the stage must be set early for success.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Aug 11, 2008
Rodin once said that the artist had to recognize and point out things of significance. Some think that the artist selects them, points them out and reveals the inner truth of the 'significant' to the world. Some think that the artists job is to show the significance of all things to the world. I agree with the latter and think it is a far greater challenge but more rewarding in the end.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Aug 08, 2008
As C.S. Lewis once put it, "Nature is only the sketch." It is what we see as an image of the beauty that lies behind it. It points to the far off territory beyond from whence it all arises. It is the beauty of this far off territory that the watercolorist seeks to point toward. To suggest in some poetic fashion that true beauty lies beyond the surface of nature is possible in watercolor and the painting structures utilized by the watercolorist.
Posted by: Jim in Astronomy on
Aug 07, 2008
The new Large Synoptic Survey Telescope will be creating a new picture of the entire heavens every 3 days. In the past the space artists, such as Bonstell, lead the way with intuitive renderings that helped to promote and popularize space. How will this role change in the age or tera and petra bytes of information? . Will the artists continue to lead or merely to render likenesses in dramatic fashion? I prefer the idea of leading and transparent watercolor to me is the best medium to do so
Posted by: Jim in Painting Technique on
Aug 06, 2008
For an audience to believe that you have created a forever painting you have to build in complexity. This is somehting that was, not only known, but widely utilized in past centuries. When painting was a primary mode of entertainment it was imperative that the artist build in levels and depths of meaning in order to have a painting stand up to the scrutiny of repeated viewings. If the viewers always felt that there were more hidden meanings than could be comprehended in an intial viewing, they would be drawn back to the piece again and again. Today we seem to have lost the ability and desire to build such complexity into our watercolor paintings. While design and color can contribute to feeling and meaning they do not allow the viewere to continually explore and find new and different meanings hidden within the framed work. They are significance is primarily emotional. We need to begin once more to explore this idea of complexity as a part of the design process in order to create more memorable works.
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