The Search for Clarity and WisdomIn the last five minutes of a free public critique of photographs, a person asked me about whether we can trust the responses of others. We come (especially in Hawai‘i) from differing cultural backgrounds, experiences, and circumstances. Don’t we bring our own baggage to a response, any response? Can we actually believe that someone is talking about the work, or merely themselves? I answered him […]
In Defense of Books
I recently visited my local library, for the first time since its expansion and renovation, during which it was transformed into an adequately sized, aesthetically pleasing space. However, I was disturbed to find there were few books on the shelves and even fewer people browsing. The books now only fill 25% of the available shelves. I was told by a staff member that the library has “room to grow.” Good… […]
Deep Perception
Cultivating the Art of SeeingWhy must we learn to see? Can we learn to open the gates of perception? We have lost something very special: the ability to engage life richly and fully through a concentrated, directed awareness. I believe that the one of the most dangerous elements of modern life and of our contemporary educational system is found in the rapidly decreasing attention span in our selves and our […]
Longing for Light: Into the Heart of Vision
A month ago, I wrote an essay on this blog, Personal Stories in Word and Image, about my concerns and questions in attempting to write a memoir. Now, a month later, I have completed six chapters and integrated an older manuscript into a book. The writing flowed; I felt in a white heat as the words spilled on to the page after thirty years of gestation. Never before has a […]
Mirrors and Windows
Finding Wholeness through ArtTruth is found in paradox. Nature seeks balance. Where there is a push, there is a pull. We cannot come to a mature point of view without entertaining the opposing side; we cannot stand for something without standing against something else. As we know from many conflicting positions, truth often lies in the middle, partaking of both sides and fully embracing neither. Our perceptions and thoughts are […]
Personal Stories in Word and Image
I look at a great deal of art. And have read my share of books over a lifetime of inquiry. When I was young, I was fascinated with reading about the civil war. That quickly led to reading biographies of the heroes and heroines who shaped our country and our world. When I was ten years old, my parents conceded to my well articulated whining for an adult library card. […]
Intersecting Currents: The Artist and the Community
We live in an increasingly interdependent world that compels each of us to take responsibility: for ourselves, each other, and planet earth. Beyond our individual creative efforts, there is a world out there—that we interact with, that provides the material for our work, and that we communicate with through the results of our creative efforts. We are in debt to the society and the people who have informed us, shaped […]
Greatness and Humility
The Art of the GameI have been reading a marvelous essay on Zen swordsmanship by D.T. Suzuki in the book Zen and Japanese Culture. Swordsmanship teaches coherence, elegance, and purpose. Like most sports, it can—at its best—be employed as a powerful tool for human development. As we approach the Super Bowl, what might we expect from sports that leave lasting injuries on its participants and feed the national ego as […]