Amazement. Perhaps it's the ideal condition in which to experience art, whether in the act of creation or beholding. Maybe it's not a condition at all, but being lifted out of condition.
One might behold even one's own artistic creations with amazement, discovering that one's work exceeded one's expectations of oneself.
Perhaps the enemy of Amazement is Expectation.
I just looked up the word Amaze in the dictionary, expecting (...EXPECTING) to confirm that the root of Amaze was Maze, but, NO!
*Old English āmasian, of unknown origin.*
I peer into etymologies, and Old English and Old Norse dictionaries when writing, looking for words with power.
And is it not amazing that we are not in fact "lost in a maze" when we transcend ourselves in astonishment and awe.
Maybe this is a key insight for me.
Or maybe it's not that amazing... the prefix a- is common in Old English...
drifting off here into thoughts about the thing-ness of nouns and conditioned-ness of our souls... our ways of seeing/being.
I love listening to your newsletters, Leslie. I can hear in your voice the very thing you are describing and it feels like a true beckoning. I think as I’ve grown older more and more things amaze me. And since you are talking about spring, I will just say that one thing that really amazed me this year was how the silence of winter one day just broke into birdsong. To me it feels like a response to the question you’re asking about whether we need winter to have spring. It seems like the answer is yes. The hope and even joy that welled up in me when I heard the birdsong I think could only arise after such a long period of lack.
So thank you as always for your invitation, you’re beckoning. And I love your painting. 🙏
Amazement. Perhaps it's the ideal condition in which to experience art, whether in the act of creation or beholding. Maybe it's not a condition at all, but being lifted out of condition.
One might behold even one's own artistic creations with amazement, discovering that one's work exceeded one's expectations of oneself.
Perhaps the enemy of Amazement is Expectation.
I just looked up the word Amaze in the dictionary, expecting (...EXPECTING) to confirm that the root of Amaze was Maze, but, NO!
*Old English āmasian, of unknown origin.*
I peer into etymologies, and Old English and Old Norse dictionaries when writing, looking for words with power.
And is it not amazing that we are not in fact "lost in a maze" when we transcend ourselves in astonishment and awe.
Maybe this is a key insight for me.
Or maybe it's not that amazing... the prefix a- is common in Old English...
drifting off here into thoughts about the thing-ness of nouns and conditioned-ness of our souls... our ways of seeing/being.
I'm brain-fried right now, but I do agree. The paintings are deeply luscious.
thanks Lesley!
I love listening to your newsletters, Leslie. I can hear in your voice the very thing you are describing and it feels like a true beckoning. I think as I’ve grown older more and more things amaze me. And since you are talking about spring, I will just say that one thing that really amazed me this year was how the silence of winter one day just broke into birdsong. To me it feels like a response to the question you’re asking about whether we need winter to have spring. It seems like the answer is yes. The hope and even joy that welled up in me when I heard the birdsong I think could only arise after such a long period of lack.
So thank you as always for your invitation, you’re beckoning. And I love your painting. 🙏
excellent, Valerie, I appreciate your thoughts!