Upon first skimming the content for this week’s assignments, I assumed that the topic of “Creative Spirituality” was going to link art and religion, but while diving into the content, I realized that it was not so much related to religion. This was my first eye-opening experience for this week. After reading Grey’s article, I returned to a statement made in one of the first pages that seemed to hold great depth and it reads the following: “In order to see the object deeply, the viewer must first distinguish it from the field of many material objects, then, fixing the attention on that one thing, the viewer senses its rhythms and harmonies both formally and conceptually, leading to complex and subtle sensations of pleasure mixed with awe as the unique spiritual radiance of the art and its subject are appreciated” (p. 74). Although lengthy in words, I found this conglomeration of ideas to envelope this subject of “creative spirituality.” Earlier in the excerpt, Grey offers a quote from Oscar Wilde, commenting “One does not see anything until one sees its beauty” (p. 71). Immediately, I found myself asking, well what if it is not a beautiful object? Grey went on to answer my question by negotiating a category of “superficial” seeing, which is only significant in the realm of survival.
I also found it interesting that Grey, too, touched on the idea that art reveals an aesthetic reaction, or pleasure, when being viewed (p. 73). In addition, she often returns to the senses when describing an aesthetic reaction, like when she remarks on the three eyes of knowing as described by Saint Bonaventure. In connection to this, Ann Hamilton’s explanations of her aesthetic experiences combined the senses of the mouth with those of the eye. She placed a small camera into her mouth that would record the world around her whenever her lips were open. This allowed for an alternate form of “seeing” the beauty in objects. She noted that this experience made her feel very vulnerable, but like she often strives for, these moments allowed her to make visible what was not visible in an “experienceable way” (Sollins et. al, 2003).
Grey, A. (2001). Art as Spiritual Practice. The Mission of Art; 1st Edition. Boston & London: Shambhala.
Sollins, S., Dowling, S., tatge, C., Shaffer, D., Ortega, E.L.M., Atlas, C., Anderson, L., PBS Home Video. (2003). Art 21: Art in the twenty-first century. United States: Art21, Inc.
I like your synthesis with the material for this week, especially the way you tied the reading into the video at the end of your post. You chose to include the quote, “One does not see anything until one sees its beauty” and I think this makes a very distinct point regarding perspective and the differentiation between seeing and looking. When a viewer looks at a work of art, there are many different thoughts or emotions that can be provoked. However, if you don’t strive to understand the “beauty” or essence of the art as a viewer, you are not doing it justice. Grey also included a quote by Ernest W. Watson that adds to this point. “There is a vast difference between looking and seeing–a difference which is fundamental to the artist’s experience” (72). When someone sees “superficially”, what do you think is going on in their mind? What makes it different from actually seeing/understanding the “beauty” in something?