Hanning
Photo credit: Jon England
How can a classroom with no walls change us?
Because visiting a radio mast at the birthplace of a new form of communication reminds us that new knowledge can be found through the process of intrigue, persistence, chance, need and connections of many people. That no new knowledge is formed from one place, one understanding and one person: therefore, we must challenging the idea of egotism and individualism.
When two dissimilar ideas are combined in the imagination, new complex patterns are formed which create new ideas. This strongly resembles the creative process of genetic recombination in nature. Chromosomes exchange genes to create emergent new beings. Think of elements and patterns of ideas as genes that combine and recombine to create new patterns which lead to new ideas.
Combining the attributes and aspects of certain ideas with other ideas is to creativity and innovation as sex is to biological evolution. The new ideas are not only greater than the sums of their parts, but they are different from the sums of their parts.
Michael Michalko: Cracking Creativity (The Secrets Of Creative Genius)
Because when faced with enduring tide we are reminded of our human transience. In this we relinquish our perceived dominance over nature, and in doing so are able to recognize and unlearn our dominion with each other as humans.
We know by the moon that we are not too soon
And we know by the sky that we are not too high
And we know by the stars that we are not too far
And we know by the ground that we are within sound
Gower Wassail
Because when we use our bodies to explore the landscape we are reminded that not all knowledge is cerebral. The how we learn, understand and know things is as much though experience, through feeling, though doing than through transference of facts and information. Our bodies can impart and absorb knowledge though alternative sources and this is as valid as any cerebral learning.
Sometimes the hands think. You have to let the hands think. You don’t work it out in a pencil and work it out in your head formally and then make it like some kind of kit. You actually just put your hands in the material and see what happens. And I don’t think that’s taught anymore. I don’t think that’s even discussed.
Brian Catling: Where Does It All Come From?
Because when we work together in collaboration, we are not harmonious: we are faced with the reality of multiple truths residing in one place and we understand that no narrative is no more valid than another – that our version of what is true to us is subjective and should be examined continually.
Our view of reality (or truth) is like a map with which to negotiate the terrain of life… the only way we that we can be certain that our map of reality is true is to expose it to the critism and challenge of other map makers. Otherwise we live in a closed system - within a bell jar, to use Sylvia Plath’s analogy, rebreathing only our own fetid air, more and more subject to delusion.
Scott Peck: The Road Less Travelled.
Because when we make out in public space we realise that the person who encounters our work by chance is no less valid than the gallery viewer. And we question the prestige and elitism of a gallery, and who it benefits. When we make in public view we also expose the process of making – we are seen playing, mistake making and failing, chasing the unknown and following instinct. In doing so we make ourselves vulnerable, but we also demystify and democratize the work.
Founded on—and playing a significant role in—colonial, capitalist, and patriarchal structures, the art world undoubtedly favors those from particular demographics with influential networks and financial wealth. Although inequalities in the art world are slowly being eroded, they need to continue to be challenged and dismantled to create a space that works for all.
Touria El Glaoui: founder of the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair.
Public art is often underappreciated... But there's lots to applaud: It's free. There are no tickets. People don't have to dress up. You can view it alone or in groups. It's open to everyone.
Penny Balkin Bach: The Association for Public Art