Zestful Blog Post #269
I picked up a copy of National Geographic magazine a couple
of months ago, interested in the cover story on Pablo Picasso. A curator of his
work was quoted as saying that Picasso’s greatest talent was “assemblage”—or synthesizing,
if you like. From the article: “to sift through layered memories—a conversation
with a poet, the haunting expressions in an El Greco painting, the medley of
sensations from Malaga, a pot of paint in his studio.”
The curator mentioned the French expression, faire feu de
tout bois: to make fire of all wood. In rural Washington state, where Marcia
and I lived for seven years, most people heated primarily with wood harvested
from their own property. I once commented to a neighbor that I wished we had
more madrone on our property, because it was so dense and burned so well. He shrugged
and said, “You burn what you got.”
I guess that’s just another way to say, quit wishing things
were different and use the brains you have to make the most of the materials at
hand.
Like a homesteader, Picasso sure did make the most of what
he had. Although reportedly he wasn’t such a nice guy to everybody, he was one
of the most productive artists who ever lived. I admire that deeply. Lessons? You
keep going, you don’t resist change. You throw things together; you stay open to the relationships between people and things. If one well runs dry, you dig another. If you
get bored of one crop, you plant another. You’re open. You trust the process
blindly.
Go, us.
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Nice painting. The great painters lived to paint and pursue the insights it gave them. That's what many of us can do with writing, especially after retirement. Write a few stories, try a novel, write an article for a magazine. No need to hurry, no obligations, just pursuing the art that we chose for our own expression.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Pat, and yes!! You've got the right attitude.
DeleteLove your thought -- if one well goes dry, dig another. Wonderful.
ReplyDeletexo
DeleteNice painting Elizabeth! My response to this week's blog is this: perseverance pays off.
ReplyDeleteYeah!!!
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