2/28/14
Elevators can be wonderful oases of quiet. I love the peaceful solitude as i wait for my floor. Sometimes you can smell the traces of previous occupants. Scents of food, smoke, perfume, new clothes and chewing gum are left in their wake, as necessity forced them to pause for a moment.
In my experience, i have found that people riding elevators tend to quietly look forward, as if attending a church service. Often when people are in pairs or groups, their conversations will be hushed or cease altogether.
Of course overzealous cologne application, cell phone conversation, and piped in music can easily dissipate this almost reverent atmosphere.
Friday, February 28, 2014
Thursday, February 27, 2014
a year of silence
2/27/14
I am more aware in almost every aspect of my life now. Noises feel amplified, while fleeting moments of quiet have become more noticeable.
I can be anywhere, in the city, a suburban neighborhood or in a public building, when suddenly i'll realize that it's actually "quiet". These instances usually last mere seconds, and i use the word quiet in a relative way.
Now that i have shut my mouth and the clamor in my head has settled, these ephemeral moments have become much more apparent. I am able to listen to the breeze, hear the birds and enjoy the rhythmic padding feet of the dogs i walk. I'm becoming more attuned to "quiet" sounds.
Sudden noises or loud machinery have become almost unbearable, however. They startle me and i have an immediate urge to get away from them as quickly as possible. They have the same effect as large boulders dropping into a still lake.
Ideas for new art projects are coming into my brain at an ever increasing rate. Solutions to problems are occurring to me without the usual tumult. The trivial is now quickly recognized and discarded. My patience level for things (other than noise) has increased dramatically.
A lot of the noise that has always bothered me all my life, may very well have been in my own mind.
I am more aware in almost every aspect of my life now. Noises feel amplified, while fleeting moments of quiet have become more noticeable.
I can be anywhere, in the city, a suburban neighborhood or in a public building, when suddenly i'll realize that it's actually "quiet". These instances usually last mere seconds, and i use the word quiet in a relative way.
Now that i have shut my mouth and the clamor in my head has settled, these ephemeral moments have become much more apparent. I am able to listen to the breeze, hear the birds and enjoy the rhythmic padding feet of the dogs i walk. I'm becoming more attuned to "quiet" sounds.
Sudden noises or loud machinery have become almost unbearable, however. They startle me and i have an immediate urge to get away from them as quickly as possible. They have the same effect as large boulders dropping into a still lake.
Ideas for new art projects are coming into my brain at an ever increasing rate. Solutions to problems are occurring to me without the usual tumult. The trivial is now quickly recognized and discarded. My patience level for things (other than noise) has increased dramatically.
A lot of the noise that has always bothered me all my life, may very well have been in my own mind.
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
a year of silence
2/26/14
At this point, i'm fully committed to my pledge of silence. Even though the obstacles i'm encountering are steadily growing in number, their effect is lessened by my firm belief that this endeavor is worthwhile.
In the back of my mind, the feeling that there is no all encompassing meaning to life is ever present. It's very possible that the best you can hope for is to accumulate as many anecdotal moments of happiness, any way you can, before your inevitable oblivion. It doesn't matter whether it's by pursuing an idea you deeply believe in, raising a family, or indulging in every hedonistic pleasure that comes your way. As long as you're not harming anyone else, there is no "bad" or "good"... there just "is".
Some believe that becoming involved with something greater than yourself is the best way to experience life. That having a single all consuming passion, is living life to the fullest. But what if this is just a rationalization created by us compulsive types in order to validate our tunnel vision way of living?
Never follow anyone's ideology to the letter. Many people people are filled with sage advice on how to live, while their own lives slide into a state of entropy. Pick and choose your wisdom carefully. Living for something you perceive as being greater than yourself could just be a form of thinly veiled masochism.
At this point, i'm fully committed to my pledge of silence. Even though the obstacles i'm encountering are steadily growing in number, their effect is lessened by my firm belief that this endeavor is worthwhile.
In the back of my mind, the feeling that there is no all encompassing meaning to life is ever present. It's very possible that the best you can hope for is to accumulate as many anecdotal moments of happiness, any way you can, before your inevitable oblivion. It doesn't matter whether it's by pursuing an idea you deeply believe in, raising a family, or indulging in every hedonistic pleasure that comes your way. As long as you're not harming anyone else, there is no "bad" or "good"... there just "is".
Some believe that becoming involved with something greater than yourself is the best way to experience life. That having a single all consuming passion, is living life to the fullest. But what if this is just a rationalization created by us compulsive types in order to validate our tunnel vision way of living?
Never follow anyone's ideology to the letter. Many people people are filled with sage advice on how to live, while their own lives slide into a state of entropy. Pick and choose your wisdom carefully. Living for something you perceive as being greater than yourself could just be a form of thinly veiled masochism.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
a year of silence
2/25/14
Art is my heroin. It has emptied my pockets, induced me to break the law, and alienated those around me. I am ever willing to sacrifice anything for its narcotic effect.
As the deleterious financial impact of my year in silence grows deeper and more friends discreetly pull back, i am left wondering where i will be six months from now. While i don't foresee myself running afoul of the law as i have on other projects, apparently just the act of being quiet can have a detrimental effect on one's every day life.
Art is my heroin. It has emptied my pockets, induced me to break the law, and alienated those around me. I am ever willing to sacrifice anything for its narcotic effect.
As the deleterious financial impact of my year in silence grows deeper and more friends discreetly pull back, i am left wondering where i will be six months from now. While i don't foresee myself running afoul of the law as i have on other projects, apparently just the act of being quiet can have a detrimental effect on one's every day life.
Monday, February 24, 2014
a year of silence
2/24/14
I am sacrificing a lot more than my voice in order to follow through with my year of silence.
I live in the basement of an apartment building that is somewhere between fifty and three thousand years old. Outdated wiring, cracked walls, unreliable heating and jurassic plumbing are just a few of its antiquated charms. Last night the kitchen sink backed up for the millionth time, with what appeared to be some other resident's bathwater.
I could easily have called the emergency number provided on the lease for help. But since this was not an emergency situation that involved the safety of another living being, and i alone was being affected by this fountain of sewage, i didn't make the call.
On my knees, rubber gloved, with rags in hand, i cleaned up the mess. Why is it that the things we most love and deeply believe in, inevitably bring us to our knees?
I am sacrificing a lot more than my voice in order to follow through with my year of silence.
I live in the basement of an apartment building that is somewhere between fifty and three thousand years old. Outdated wiring, cracked walls, unreliable heating and jurassic plumbing are just a few of its antiquated charms. Last night the kitchen sink backed up for the millionth time, with what appeared to be some other resident's bathwater.
I could easily have called the emergency number provided on the lease for help. But since this was not an emergency situation that involved the safety of another living being, and i alone was being affected by this fountain of sewage, i didn't make the call.
On my knees, rubber gloved, with rags in hand, i cleaned up the mess. Why is it that the things we most love and deeply believe in, inevitably bring us to our knees?
Sunday, February 23, 2014
a year of silence
2/23/14
Some people i have come in contact with have assumed that i am on some kind of religious or spiritual quest. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have about as much spirituality as a styrofoam coffee cup.
While many religious organizations are responsible for a large amount of charity work, i feel they are basically just businesses. They seem designed to perpetuate themselves and go to great lengths in order to ensure their individual survival. Some things done in the name of religion such as great Art, and the preservation of important texts during the middle ages, have been hugely beneficial to humankind. Other more malicious acts committed with religious fervor throughout history, seem almost misanthropic.
I have read the Bible, the Qur'an, and many other religious writings. There is a lot of great wisdom in all of them. But the two main messages they all seem to have in common are: #1, Don't be a jerk. and #2, Appreciate everything.
I don't think any organization or individual has a right, religious or political, to force their beliefs on anyone else. I truly believe in putting ideas and beliefs out there by themselves, and then walking away. If they have merit, they will survive. If they don't, then they'll fade away.
Some people i have come in contact with have assumed that i am on some kind of religious or spiritual quest. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have about as much spirituality as a styrofoam coffee cup.
While many religious organizations are responsible for a large amount of charity work, i feel they are basically just businesses. They seem designed to perpetuate themselves and go to great lengths in order to ensure their individual survival. Some things done in the name of religion such as great Art, and the preservation of important texts during the middle ages, have been hugely beneficial to humankind. Other more malicious acts committed with religious fervor throughout history, seem almost misanthropic.
I have read the Bible, the Qur'an, and many other religious writings. There is a lot of great wisdom in all of them. But the two main messages they all seem to have in common are: #1, Don't be a jerk. and #2, Appreciate everything.
I don't think any organization or individual has a right, religious or political, to force their beliefs on anyone else. I truly believe in putting ideas and beliefs out there by themselves, and then walking away. If they have merit, they will survive. If they don't, then they'll fade away.
Saturday, February 22, 2014
a year of silence
2/22/14
Should i expect people to take the extra time and effort needed to communicate with me? Absolutely not. This piece, and art in general, are my priorities. They are not necessarily anyone else's.
No one in this world inherently owes us anything. If you ask someone a question, they are not required to answer. If you make a phone call or send a text, no one is obligated to reply. Response is a courtesy not a requirement. Many of us think that the simple act of asking a question (whether verbally or through an artwork) entitles us to a response.
Feelings of entitlement are often misguided, and usually annoying.
Should i expect people to take the extra time and effort needed to communicate with me? Absolutely not. This piece, and art in general, are my priorities. They are not necessarily anyone else's.
No one in this world inherently owes us anything. If you ask someone a question, they are not required to answer. If you make a phone call or send a text, no one is obligated to reply. Response is a courtesy not a requirement. Many of us think that the simple act of asking a question (whether verbally or through an artwork) entitles us to a response.
Feelings of entitlement are often misguided, and usually annoying.
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