Thank you so much for this post. Speaking as an artist, this is by far the most powerful, profound, and insightful thing I've ever seen written about art.
"You can fill a bucket to have a neatly defined portion of seawater to scrutinise, but only a fool would think this is a satisfying summation of the ocean." Beautifully put! (Though Aivazovsky might have been the one to prove otherwise: nobody painted the oceans quite like him!)
I've thought a lot about the state of the arts in the West and its impact elsewhere: and I couldn't agree more with your critique. I would say that literature does require underlying symbolism: Aesop was a storyteller first and foremost, but the underlying moral was also a part of it. And it is worth noting that the West's cosmopolitan curiosity did develop organically: at least it used to have an organic and meaningful aspiration before it became this nauseatingly shallow popularity contest of "I know more cultural stuff about [x] country I actually don't really care about than you do!" By people who wouldn't know the face of the globe without a smartphone.
But the pseudo-intellectualism is reprehensible, and I want other cultural spheres to do their own thing and maintain what makes them special. (My partial focus, as I'm sure you've noticed, is the part-Western but still distinct Slavosphere, + neighbors; I hate the consumerism destroying the local character) That's what's awesome about your Substack.
It actually reminded me a few years ago about a protest a few years back where a bunch of student protesters in Cambridge, MA protested a temporary exhibition of Renoir. Why? Because "Renoir sucks because he's only a decorative artist." Maybe Renoir isn't the most accurate comparison to Madagascarian architectural woodwork, but it seems to stem from the same place in the intellectual brain that generates the misunderstanding you talk about here. (the woodwork is incredibly beautiful, I must say, it doesn't look like anything I've seen before: I'd love to visit Madagascar someday!)
I like to focus on literature's deeper, philosophical content for that very reason. The stuff that makes stories powerful and meaningful, rather than the "proper" interpretations academics impose upon other people's reading experiences. Is that my Western perspective? I don't know, I would have to see how I fare when I review, say, stories from A Thousand and One Nights. But if perspective is inescapable, then at least it can be as pure and honest as possible.
By the way, is it cool if I cross-share this post next week? It really resonates with what I'm doing over at Timeless.
Thank you so much Jumana 🙏🏼🧡 As an artist i can feel totally and share your approach to the subject! Thank you also for the beautiful trip to the villages on the mountains of Madagascar 🌱🧡
I really enjoyed this. Reminds me of some of the old Jungian essays that respected the historical art and refused to put it into a box but rather revere it. What an experience you had. As an artist I can only imagine it filled your cup so to speak!
Thank you, so much to think about yet not try and make sense of as that would spoil the whole. I always say that the muse calls and I have to play. I dip my toe in the creative swamp and wait to see what emerges
Thank you for posting this and giving me clarity on how beauty for beauty is lost in society’s reductionist attitude towards culture, art and creativity.
Thank you for sharing. Beautifully understood and articulated.
Such a perceptive post. Sadly we love shoehorning our tastes and prejudices onto things that are alien to us.
Thank you so much for this post. Speaking as an artist, this is by far the most powerful, profound, and insightful thing I've ever seen written about art.
"You can fill a bucket to have a neatly defined portion of seawater to scrutinise, but only a fool would think this is a satisfying summation of the ocean." Beautifully put! (Though Aivazovsky might have been the one to prove otherwise: nobody painted the oceans quite like him!)
I've thought a lot about the state of the arts in the West and its impact elsewhere: and I couldn't agree more with your critique. I would say that literature does require underlying symbolism: Aesop was a storyteller first and foremost, but the underlying moral was also a part of it. And it is worth noting that the West's cosmopolitan curiosity did develop organically: at least it used to have an organic and meaningful aspiration before it became this nauseatingly shallow popularity contest of "I know more cultural stuff about [x] country I actually don't really care about than you do!" By people who wouldn't know the face of the globe without a smartphone.
But the pseudo-intellectualism is reprehensible, and I want other cultural spheres to do their own thing and maintain what makes them special. (My partial focus, as I'm sure you've noticed, is the part-Western but still distinct Slavosphere, + neighbors; I hate the consumerism destroying the local character) That's what's awesome about your Substack.
It actually reminded me a few years ago about a protest a few years back where a bunch of student protesters in Cambridge, MA protested a temporary exhibition of Renoir. Why? Because "Renoir sucks because he's only a decorative artist." Maybe Renoir isn't the most accurate comparison to Madagascarian architectural woodwork, but it seems to stem from the same place in the intellectual brain that generates the misunderstanding you talk about here. (the woodwork is incredibly beautiful, I must say, it doesn't look like anything I've seen before: I'd love to visit Madagascar someday!)
I like to focus on literature's deeper, philosophical content for that very reason. The stuff that makes stories powerful and meaningful, rather than the "proper" interpretations academics impose upon other people's reading experiences. Is that my Western perspective? I don't know, I would have to see how I fare when I review, say, stories from A Thousand and One Nights. But if perspective is inescapable, then at least it can be as pure and honest as possible.
By the way, is it cool if I cross-share this post next week? It really resonates with what I'm doing over at Timeless.
Thank you so much Jumana 🙏🏼🧡 As an artist i can feel totally and share your approach to the subject! Thank you also for the beautiful trip to the villages on the mountains of Madagascar 🌱🧡
I really enjoyed this. Reminds me of some of the old Jungian essays that respected the historical art and refused to put it into a box but rather revere it. What an experience you had. As an artist I can only imagine it filled your cup so to speak!
Thank you, so much to think about yet not try and make sense of as that would spoil the whole. I always say that the muse calls and I have to play. I dip my toe in the creative swamp and wait to see what emerges
Thank you for posting this and giving me clarity on how beauty for beauty is lost in society’s reductionist attitude towards culture, art and creativity.