Momus makes an interesting point about the relationship between art and politics. Using the metaphor of textures and talking of an anti-war noise band he disagrees with the efficacy of their work in saying “I disagree with this. Two quotes here: Susan Sontag said that rock music was “aggressive normality”, a loud noise on behalf of the status quo. And Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see in the world”. (Not “angrily demand it from your representatives”, note: be it.)”
This is an important point for both activists and politically minded artists. At a certain level it is simply a matter of contrast.
Scenario 1:
Person A yells.
Person B yells back.
Outcome:
No difference.
Scenario 2:
Person A Yells.
Person B replies quietly deliberately and forcefully
Outcome:
Person A looks like a bafoon.
This is a simple principal in acting. If everyone yells we lose the drama. If there is variation, the texture in the writing comes out more strongly. It is a good and solid technique. It is also a good way to live life. To get ‘angry’ and flustered and start yelling is to already lose. You are no longer in control. AND you are no longer peaceful.
The same thing is true of fear. If you allow yourself to be consumed by fear you can not be brave, you can only endure. If nothing else this is simply exhausting. But the expenditure of willpower to overcome the fear and the anger and live with peace and stability is ultimately something that can feed your soul much stronger than nearly anything else. It is not about ignoring emotions and being cold. It is being in full touch with your emotions and knowing that like thoughts they are part of the illusion. The necessary illusion of human existence.
Yesterday I had been surfing the internet looking for audio clips of speeches by Che Guevara. I found one and while I was waiting for Quicktime to load the rather large file I pressed play on my iTunes. A Tibetan prayer chant came on and as I went back to work listening to the chant I almost totally forgot about the audio clip I had set for download. Several minutes later the forceful and powerful voice of Che mixed into the prayer for peace. A whole amazing new layer to both emerged from the juxtaposition of the two. An accidental Fugue.
A soft melodic prayer for peace was underscoring a UN speech about how ‘Peaceful Co-Existence’ can not just be between the superpowers. But rather, for peaceful co-existence to be an authentic value it must extend to all peoples of the world. And yes I understand that these words of his exist within the same man who was more than willing to execute any opposition to the Cuban Revolution. And perhaps that is the point. Perhaps his inability to find peaceful co-existance on the micro level contributed to a world where it was not possible on the macro level.
Be the change you want to see in the world
When you live with a set of values deeply rooted in your Self, no matter what language you use or styles you employ, those values will come forth. The radical intellectualism of Beckett for example, holds within it some of the most tender and human emotions. I found the style of the film Derrida rather dull and self conscious. However, a number of the interviews were absolutely fascinating. At one point he is sitting with his wife, in the kitchen I believe, and is asked about why he never writes about love. He gives a wry smile to his wife and says something to the effect of ‘everything I write is about love.’
When you open yourself up to authentic experience there is no part of You that is left out. When you create from a place of total openness and ‘self’-less-ness, the whole of your non-ego Self is allowed to come forth and aid in the creation. Just as a play could not happen without the director, actors, designers, stage managers, riggers, carpenters, PR department, janitors etc. so too is it impossible for an action to happen without the entirety of experience behind it.
So when you create or when you simply act in the world, how you act is as important as what you do. Are you coming from a place of violence and control? Or rather are you acting from a place of calm and peace. Are you the still point around which the chaos of life whirls or an aggressive agent forcing change on an already tumultuous Earth? Perhpas you understand that these dichotomies do not really exist and are nothing more than linguistic constructs.
Be the change you want to see and you will see the world changed.
We must approach creativity as a collaborative process of mutual exploration. There is no end goal, no ideas of progress or success or failure. There is only motion, interaction, curiosity and play. The idea is not to “change the world” ; the world is in a constant state of change. The idea is to direct this change in a way that allows human beings to recognize the reality of their freedom, creativity, and collaboration in the whole process.
