Artist as Peregrin

Peregrinatio:
a pilgrimage into the unknown for the purpose of experiencing being and existence.

Change is all we have, it is the only constant.

With this in mind, how are we expected to make any kind of statement that can withstand the rigours of time? The very act of visual creation transcends language, perhaps this is it’s very purpose, since language is limited, especially when attempting to communicate our inner world. Poetry soars closer to the inner sun, yet as with painting, it can merely point in the approximate direction of the thing we wish to say. Giacometti expressed that he could only try, but that ultimately it is an impossible task.

What then are we left with, if only the realisation that perhaps we are missing the point entirely? Our society, and the individuals within it, scramble for self-definition, while the shifting sands beneath our feet constantly remind us of our futile pursuit. I cringe at the idea of having to write anything at all, and usually I don’t. The painting is in front of you, look at it, experience it, or don’t, it doesn’t matter.

I live in constant awareness of the transitory nature of life, people die every day, I may be next, who knows? It doesn’t matter, I have no fear of death, I never have. My only responsibility to myself is to choose to do something with my day, and manage the things I must, day by day. I choose to paint. Can I take my paintings with me when I clock my ticket? No. Would it be nice to leave them hanging on a wall somewhere for others? Only if others connect with the work in a way that is meaningful for them, otherwise, who cares? That would miss the point.

I have an inner life, we all do. Engaging in the action of painting allows me to travel without moving, exploring the inner landscape with curiosity and a child-like wonder. The end result, i.e. the painting as an object, is somewhat academic, for all perception is subjective. There is no definitive in art, thank God, otherwise surely we would be lost.

The paradox of statement:

(i) a statement may become defunct instantaneously
(ii) language does impose and imply limitation
(iii) truth in accordance with subjective reality and personal belief
(iv) spontaneity relative to action and the spontaneous idea
(v) the nature of change is change itself therefore (i)