Staring At The Canvas – The Role Of Art

On many occasions, the process of conceiving an idea undergoes a debate, and the creative individual often waits for the magic to happen—when the idea strikes.

If one remains aware of their movements, they can establish stronger memories. If one isn’t in the present, then memories will not happen. In the state of presence, one connects with the immediate next environment. Since the mind has the tendency to remember and fantasize by itself, there is a possibility that the present moment takes you to a heightened past or a heightened future while still being aware of the present environment.

This series of events will lead to “experience”, where one present (the event of the immediate next) leads to an “experience”. The experience becomes heightened when one takes the initiative to add to the present.

In situations where one is not connected to the present, they will continue to remain in past experiences, remembering and fantasizing through the present (past experience). In this case, they miss establishing memories of this event (current present), and as a result, there is no experience.

There are life situations where the present itself can lead to heightened remembering and heightened fantasizing.
For example:

• An accident that has just happened.
• A snake that fell from a tree and just trespassed by.
• A long shadow of a tree while the sun remains hidden behind.

In these situations, it feels as if they were consciously choreographed by the almighty, making one alert and absolutely connected to their inner core.

But such situations do not occur often. Hence, the only other way to receive a heightened experience is by witnessing a work of art.

The role of a work of art is to generate a heightened experience by creating a complexity of emotions, such that one’s capacity to fantasize and remember reaches a higher intensity. It is also crucial that the artist goes through an expanded experience to offer an expanded work of art.

Now, going back to the subject—when the artist awaits an idea to produce an expanded work of art—if they have not practiced seeing things consciously, they will only wait for the idea to happen.

If, in the past, one has consciously seen a white pigeon as it is, then a white sheet of paper has the capacity to remind them of the same pigeon and inspire them to reproduce it in a newer way. This newer way is difficult to articulate, as it is an accumulation of all the experiences of seeing, drawing, reading, and traveling, until the moment when this pigeon gets drawn.

Hence, one need not just stare at a white canvas for an idea—one needs to experience consciously.