“Line up your troubles” (Post 24)

I went for an early morning bicycle ride and I was thinking about the post I had to write. I felt I wanted to say something about lines. Line is one of the elements of art. I thought about the time I spent in an Asian country under the heavy hands of expat workplace sociopaths and how I quite naturally encountered an inward shift towards a more prominent use of line. My art works took on a very linear or even clinical appearance as a result of work troubles (and other concerns); it was the only way I suppose I could “understand” or manage the mayhem at that point in time. A straight line is the shortest route between two poles and I wanted to get to the truth as fast as possible on the inside (I suppose). I resorted to using two strips of masking tape to create a straight line with acrylic paint.

Now that I look back at this time, I know that I was overcome with deep disappointment but by creating art, I was "scaffolding" my very own therapeutic rescue. I was not able to line up the issues at the workplace, but I was able to do so (victoriously) on forty canvases. I just need to have a commercial break here and hoist a flag that says not all people who use lines have some internal trouble. Think of the beautiful works of Mondrian for example.

I had used line before, but this time it was with a driven intensity and I could feel I was involved in an important self-care “battle”, I needed a life line. I created a series of 20 diptychs and I had an exhibition with a local prominent artist, and we entitled the show “Abstract Order”. It was a celebration of many lines that converged (with order eventually) and I was so grateful.

Once we have created the works and have obtained a measure of internal composure or order, other possibilities may emerge. We may start to see patterns and links between aspects we never thought were possible. Sometimes our artworks (speaking to visual artists here) are the mirrors of our inward states and we need to pay attention to the subliminal messages our works may give us occasionally. However, we need to enjoy creating art with an open mind and we should not think that each element “lines” up with deep turmoil. Sometimes it is just a fine line.

If you feel the need to create a sense of internal order, then line up those things that annoy you on a canvas, or put them into a song, or cement them into a poem, or cut them up to be collaged into your memoires and get them out of your system. Then, invite your friends and have a party!

If you are not an “artist”, I “envy” you because you can just jog around the block. Each person knows how they want things to line up. Have fun.