An Infinite Language

I am talking about the human intellect with a capital H and capital I… the larger existing oneness of human intellectual ability… to exult it is to profoundly revere the power of what we are capable of, as human beings, if we delve into this parameter called the intellect. And what does that mean? It means that we profoundly revere the complexity, the nuance, the illuminating admixture of clarity...

Some ideas considered: The infinity symbol as a way to understand the question In what ways do figurative communication and explanation share features and approaches? Why do we have language at all? Is language precise? The role of opposition and dichotomy The confluence of duality

Why do we need fiction?

What is the purpose of speculative fiction?

What does it mean when a writer creates a character?

A poetic-essayistic exploration of the idea of what if no one listens, reads, sees the art? And its opposing notion: what if audiences truly listen?

What do you write about when you have nothing to say?

From Scrooge to George Bailey, to the modern comedic and heroic stories (including Elf, National Lampoon’s Christmas, and Die Hard), a consideration of the lessons that Christmas stories can teach us about the creative process.

Is generational affinity good for the artist? Is it good for creative work to have some sense of an affinity towards one’s generation? The disparate cohort and a sense of connection to various creatives from various times. The milestone occurrences and crossovers of concentric aspects of life, these might be valid as commonalities.   A sense of grouping together of periods, works, and individuals...

Notes on a dream, pulling a spaceship out of a swamp Powerful dream. How do we bring a creative work into existence? Sleep dream. Dream come true… You know the whole thing… You’re trying to catch it. Will the notes look like the thing?   Explains an aspect of the creative process.   We are walking in the woods and we see what looks like a half-sunk spaceship in a swamp. The strategies we use to ge...

an exploration of the common grounds of three questions: Why the self portrait? Can we create art and not reveal who we are? Should we do commissioned work?

Can you perform with just a notion of technique and without a sense of sincerity? Working with purity: either just passion or just technique… as a comparative structure to inquire into the question. Is it better to have feeling or a technical sense of the work? We can find examples of great performances of both. Sometimes as we learn more effective techniques in creation, we might get more of a re...

Can we separate content from technique? What is the meaning of the lighthouse? One question here is the technique. One is the content. Perhaps they are one in the same. What is the meaning of the lighthouse? Symbolism: pre-figurative plus derivation of figurative meaning. The lighthouse is a structure that allows for people navigating to know that there is a place. A lighthouse is located in publi...

What is a mask? Literally and figuratively. Do creative pursuits construct a truer self? Or do they allow for a mask to be constructed? Or perhaps another persona? What is a mask? Masks that we can see. Masks that are hidden. A mask conceals important parts that we rely on in order to identify a person from the outside. The mask hides the face but creates a new face. Recognizability is both obscur...

We can view Halloween as a festival of creative participation. Anyone can participate to any extent or no extent. It allows for a creative way of engaging across genres. The levels of participation can be judgment free. Freedom of acquiescence It’s about the idea enacting the representation of beings that don’t exist in this world or are looking to invade the living world. And we come to this with...

What is a ghost? Something that has the visual semblance of a human being, but not all aspects. Sometimes it can create sound. Not fully formed visually. A ghost can manifest as a visually present enough version of a human being. Ghost stories are often in houses. House is a central human symbol of comfort. The ghost is a disruption to the norm. Why does the ghost scare people? The ghost represent...

Sometimes we need to pursuit a question more within our range. Sometimes a question is too bold for the now. How is a creative question situated within a comfortable reach from where you are working from today? Shifting from one approach to another. Within creative pursuits you place yourself in control. And you are sometimes in a predicament where you choose something that enables you to get some...

Consider the nature of the question. Consider what it all means. What is a mission statement or statement of purpose as a creative individual? Often with words. An articulation of where you stand and where you’re coming from in why you create what you create and what you anticipate the effects will be, perhaps. It’s another way to add a unique signature to who you are as someone who is involved in...

There’s so much already done, why make my art? It is possible to have a sea of doubts in the creative process. Among such doubts, are there legitimate and illegitimate ones? Whole other topic. In the life of creating, we will doubt. Why does the world need what I’m going to create? What can I possibly offer given the great works that already exist? Everyone lives in a context. In the game of human...

Why we love an idea: wonderful simultaneity. We have it but don’t. What is the difference? Is there a difference between an illustrator and a painter?   Illustration: the line tells us where one thing begins and ends. Critically and extremely important… we have to know what we’re looking at. Or do we? Another topic for another day. What is painting? We do use the line in painting. Color and value...

What is the value of the humanities and the arts? An acquiescence to the norm of a clear-cut value system is often behind such a question. There are modes of asking the question. Because we can’t see what you do in the humanities, we don’t know if it’s worth anything. The economy of straightforward worth.   Frequent answer given: studying the humanities has a derivate value. Employs practices that...

How do we derive value for a work of art? Monetary value Meaning value Pattern in these inquiries: Understanding how the question and supposed answers are built rather than chiseling out one defined answer. The question is always: when considering such a question, what can be taken into account, and how so? This show is like interpreting maps and discussing the terrains of a region. The inquiries...

There are some ways that offer advantages, perhaps, but not necessarily a “best.” So why phrase it this way? A question can be regarded as a precise linguistic inquiry or as an inquiry that has a heart and many implied inquiries surrounding it. It is not about linguistic exactness. It exists as a conceptual feeling. Like a work of art, where we move in various ways to get a point of view, this inq...

What are the differences between teaching a creative practice and doing the creative practice?   This topic has many branches. The goal of this talk is to chisel out the general considerations. Creative practice as in painting, writing, dancing, singing, playing an instrument, composing music. The verbal phrase is explored too: compared to, along with, as opposed to.   What about when a teacher ha...

This is an exploration of the parameters of the question, the mapping of where we can go. Yes, no, maybe: is fiction a kind of communication? All three possibilities are explored.   The subconscious finger-wagging, let’s avoid.   None of the fictional worlds would have existed had the original writer not created those potentialities to carry on in that way… as if you are, as a writer, inventing in...