6 Matching Annotations
  1. Aug 2023
    1. Granted, an artist does not owe anything to anyone, but it is painful to see how, by withdrawing into self-created worlds or into the realms of subjective whim, he can surrender the real world into the hands of profit-seekers, of nonentities, or even of madmen.

      As an artist myself, this is very important. Just because someone is talented or in some way exceptional, doesn't mean they are obligated to share that talent with the world. For example, people expect artists to create things for them without the expectation of payment, simply out for the sake of creating art. An artist should feel inspired to share and create for others, not obligated. This also applies to gifted children.

    2. If the tops of these three trees do converge, as thinkers used to claim, and if the all too obvious and the overly straight sprouts of Truth and Goodness have been crushed, cut down, or not permitted to grow, then perhaps the whimsical, unpredictable, and ever surprising shoots of Beauty will force their way through and soar up to that very spot, thereby fulfilling the task of all three.

      Perhaps all three overlap: There is beauty in truth and goodness. Beauty and truthfulness are inherently good.

    3. Archaeologists have yet to discover an early stage of human existence when we possessed no art.

      Art is the expression of the human experience. That's why it exists in every period, in all parts of the world, in every culture. Art has no language barrier.

    1. It makes our recognition of our equal humanity difficult. It emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar.

      This is why education and interaction is so important. It results in the spread of culture and experience, creates connections and shows similarities where we might initially only see differences. We are all human.

    2. Farafina Trust, and we have big dreams of building libraries and refurbishing libraries that already exist and providing books for state schools that don't have anything in their libraries,

      This is so important! The spread of information and stories to people is essential to the human experience.

    3. Stories matter. Many stories matter. Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign, but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize. Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity.

      Reminds me of an expression: "there are two sides to every story, and the truth falls somewhere in the middle". It's human nature to tell stories because it reveals the differences in human perspectives.