Today, I watched this short animation called Alike. This is my response:
‘Technically- accomplished artists are two a penny in any period.' G.P. in John Fowles 'The Collector'.
One can’t be taught how to become a ‘great artist’; it has to come from within. In the novel, The Collector by John Fowles, Miranda takes some of her work to show her lover. His reaction was that 'they're not much good'. He stated that a ‘picture is like a window straight through to your inmost heart. And all you’ve done here is build a lot of little windows on to a heart full of other fashionable artists’ paintings. You’re saying something here about a Nicholson or a Pasmore. Not about yourself. You’re using a camera. You’re photographing here. That’s all.’ What I interpret from this is that Miranda builds her work for the desire for it to be 'liked', by founding it on 'fashionable' work, by following the trend, the rules. The outcome might be technically good, but it's not original and it's not true to herself, it doesn't show a 'sense of wonder'. It feels as though Miranda has forgotten how to truly express herself without a 'Pleasing Others Mask'. This amnesia stems from years at art school, learning from the 'masters' and perfecting the techniques of others. She can now either 'unlearn' or carry on as she is, living under the shadows of others.
This leads back to the animation where we see, literally, the spark of life being shepherded out of the child. We see the father enabling this, enforcing even. He's not happy about it, but follows the rules. I don't think he's even sure what he's unhappy about. Almost too late, it takes looking through the eyes of his child to finally 'see'. To remember. To 'unlearn'. We see his colour, his 'spark' return. What if this spark was never lost in the first place? What would the world look like then? How can we enable our children to keep this 'spark', this 'sense of wonder'? How can we relearn our own 'sense of wonder'? The answer is obvious when you think about it- the children- we need to stop, slow down and look through their eyes. Trust.
