What do you get out of artwork/poetry

[Kevin]

I’m curious what y’all get out of poetry and what do you get out of staring at artwork for long periods of time. This question occurred to me because I remember when I was younger and would go to art exhibits, the people I was with would spend at least 20 minutes staring at each piece of art. Also I’ve met many people who love poetry. I’m just curious what y’all get out of it because will just glance at paintings for maybe 20-30 seconds before I want to move on. And as for poetry I honestly don’t usually understand what is being said so I don’t resonate with it.

[Mandy]

It's not about what is being said or what is being portrayed or pictured, but how. Poetry or art is like a different lens of seeing the world through, and has the power to bring us back to ourselves as creator/observer with no difference between. I think that the best way to appreciate it is to experience creating your own, then you get a lot more appreciation for what's out there. I probably wouldn't enjoy seeing still lifes in an art museum unless I'd spent hours painting and drawing my own, or else I wouldn't bother to take the time to really look at them. We overlook much of the world and much of the beauty in it because we don't connect or don't think that we have any reason to appreciate it. However not everyone is a connoisseur of everything. Is there something that you deeply appreciate that seemingly brings you joy and peace to interact with? That joy and peace is our true nature, we don't need to go through any particular means to arrive at it nor do we need to derive it from any means. Once we connect more with that inwardly we tend to start to see it shine through everywhere and everything. It certainly doesn't have to come from anything considered by others to be fine art. 

[Lotus]

It's fun to see the beauty in the details.

 

It's the same with songs. You might immediately hear the catchy bass line and drum groove. But you might not hear the subtle echos, ambient sounds, whispers, additional layers, and whatnot.

 

Looking for details is almost like a treasure hunt. It takes time to become aware of certain details, but when you catch 'em, you're at awe with the creativity of it.

 

It's the same with nature, too. Or cooking.

 

2 hours ago, Mandy said:

I think that the best way to appreciate it is to experience creating your own, then you get a lot more appreciation for what's out there.

!!!

[Phil]

It was you who created it. Feel into the experience of being ‘them’, where were they in their life, what were they feeling, thinking, saying about life, creation, being. 

[Kevin]

3 hours ago, Lotus said:

It's fun to see the beauty in the details.

 

It's the same with songs. You might immediately hear the catchy bass line and drum groove. But you might not hear the subtle echos, ambient sounds, whispers, additional layers, and whatnot.

 

Looking for details is almost like a treasure hunt. It takes time to become aware of certain details, but when you catch 'em, you're at awe with the creativity of it.

 

It's the same with nature, too. Or cooking.

 

!!!

Definitely feel you on music. I’ve never gotten that deep into paintings like I have with songs

[Kevin]

5 hours ago, Mandy said:

It's not about what is being said or what is being portrayed or pictured, but how. Poetry or art is like a different lens of seeing the world through, and has the power to bring us back to ourselves as creator/observer with no difference between. I think that the best way to appreciate it is to experience creating your own, then you get a lot more appreciation for what's out there. I probably wouldn't enjoy seeing still lifes in an art museum unless I'd spent hours painting and drawing my own, or else I wouldn't bother to take the time to really look at them. We overlook much of the world and much of the beauty in it because we don't connect or don't think that we have any reason to appreciate it. However not everyone is a connoisseur of everything. Is there something that you deeply appreciate that seemingly brings you joy and peace to interact with? That joy and peace is our true nature, we don't need to go through any particular means to arrive at it nor do we need to derive it from any means. Once we connect more with that inwardly we tend to start to see it shine through everywhere and everything. It certainly doesn't have to come from anything considered by others to be fine art. 

I definitely agree. if you paint then looking at other peoples paintings is probably more fun. I used to play guitar and after a while I noticed I started to pick out the sound of the guitar in music. I get joy and peace from jiu jitsu. Practicing it, watching videos on it, competing, etc. I’ve tried drawing and painting but I’m beyond awful at it.

[Kevin]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

It was you who created it. Feel into the experience of being ‘them’, where were they in their life, what were they feeling, thinking, saying about life, creation, being. 

I’ll have to contemplate this one further because experientially it does not seem like I created any art or poetry. This Kevin body I’m being can’t draw or paint. Children often are able to draw better than me.

[j3w3lsth3l1zardw1zard]

7 minutes ago, Kevin said:

I’ll have to contemplate this one further because experientially it does not seem like I created any art or poetry. This Kevin body I’m being can’t draw or paint. Children often are able to draw better than me.

I run a library program every Thursday for kids and teach them DnD. We’re collectively world building right now, and part of that includes drawing. One of the kids has a passion for drawing, but he’s always down on himself. “I’m trash. This is the worst drawing ever made. I’m never going to draw as good as the cartoons in Calvin and Hobbes.” (his favorites) I told him: it’s not about how good you can draw. Don’t compare yourself to other people because it’s all relative, what’s good and what’s not. And importantly: as long as you’re focused on the outcome or how good/satisfied you’ll feel if or when it’s “good” you’re never ever ever going to be full. Enjoy the act of it- as long as you worry about how “good” it is based off of these shoddy, half-baked, so called Rules of art…. Well, just try enjoying the act of it! Drop the expectation. Drop the illusion of good and bad.

[Indisguise]

It's just about beauty - and love.

Staring at a painting for 20 minutes or listening to the same song 10 times in a row, reading the same poetry, whatever. It's about loving beauty.

Beauty is love, we say "YES!! That's what existance is all about! That's it!!"

That's what love and beauty are. To utterly embrace and appreciate what is. 

A child will pick up a pebble laying at the side of a river and stare at it, carry it around for hours and when you try to take it away and say "throw that thing away, stop collecting nonsense!", the child will be upset because it loves the stone. Because the child, unlike you, hasn't yet forgotten the beauty and weirdness of existence.

The funny shape, lines, dots and marks on a pebble. 

 

[fopylo]

@Mandy

11 hours ago, Mandy said:

It's not about what is being said or what is being portrayed or pictured, but how.

It's funny how most of the time you hear that what and why are more important than how, haha. In this context it is different so it is kinda ironic reading it.

 

11 hours ago, Mandy said:

we don't need to go through any particular means to arrive at it nor do we need to derive it from any means. Once we connect more with that inwardly we tend to start to see it shine through everywhere and everything. It certainly doesn't have to come from anything considered by others to be fine art. 

Could you please explain this?

[Phil]

@Kevin

You created / are creating a Kevin. That is amazing. You created / are being the universe. Your attention is literal inexplicable magic and anything you give it to grows, develops, expands, becomes. 

[MazE]

When you are creating you are giving birth to some magic. Try to find what artform you like by experimenting and then create some stuff. It's deeply fulfilling. Some days i wake up excited to see what song will be created today. 

[Mandy]

11 hours ago, fopylo said:

 

Could you please explain this?

Things, objects, circumstances don't cause happiness. They don't have the inherent power to cause you to feel good. 

[fopylo]

12 hours ago, fopylo said:

Once we connect more with that inwardly we tend to start to see it shine through everywhere and everything.

@Mandy This

[Mandy]

@fopylo What was previously over-looked, unappreciated, because we thought we knew how it related to us is seen and fully appreciated. Boring literature you were forced to read in highschool and barely slogged through might suddenly fill you with rapturous joy, recognition and insight. Stuff like that. You become aware that you are not separate from the "stuff" outside you, but are loving it, appreciating it, creating it, attracting it all. It's not something you attempt to do, it just happens of its own accord as you start to truly look at things without thinking you know what they are and appreciate things without thinking about what they mean to you. A dropping of assumed meaning or discordant meaning means that a direct meaning (love/recognition) will flood in to fill in that gap. The light that you you are shines back to you from everything. You are the light and so the sun seems to shine light on you. 

[almond]

On 7/21/2022 at 9:03 PM, Kevin said:

I’m curious what y’all get out of poetry and what do you get out of staring at artwork for long periods of time. This question occurred to me because I remember when I was younger and would go to art exhibits, the people I was with would spend at least 20 minutes staring at each piece of art. Also I’ve met many people who love poetry. I’m just curious what y’all get out of it because will just glance at paintings for maybe 20-30 seconds before I want to move on. And as for poetry I honestly don’t usually understand what is being said so I don’t resonate with it.

 

It's okay if you move on from a painting but if you reevisit it some other moment it might be different. I think.. it's not fun watching paint dry but the artwork in that might resonate after awhile. inspiration in art or poetry arrives when you aren't looking sometimes. or when youre feelings aren't named because it's in one place.  

we don't get much out of starting at artwork but what it says.

It might say something or nothing. and nothing is also nice, and okay. 

[Kevin]

On 7/22/2022 at 9:29 AM, j3w3lsth3l1zardw1zard said:

I run a library program every Thursday for kids and teach them DnD. We’re collectively world building right now, and part of that includes drawing. One of the kids has a passion for drawing, but he’s always down on himself. “I’m trash. This is the worst drawing ever made. I’m never going to draw as good as the cartoons in Calvin and Hobbes.” (his favorites) I told him: it’s not about how good you can draw. Don’t compare yourself to other people because it’s all relative, what’s good and what’s not. And importantly: as long as you’re focused on the outcome or how good/satisfied you’ll feel if or when it’s “good” you’re never ever ever going to be full. Enjoy the act of it- as long as you worry about how “good” it is based off of these shoddy, half-baked, so called Rules of art…. Well, just try enjoying the act of it! Drop the expectation. Drop the illusion of good and bad.

i feel that. It’s interesting how artists are often most critical of their own work. 

[Orb]

This thread ties really well with the "What is Memory?" Thread 🙂.