i love art. No i'm not coming out of the closet. No, i'm not picking sides on the Simon & Garfunkel split. i find it difficult to think of a life without art in it. A day without music, movies, sketches, paintings, or photographs seems unimaginable.
Art represents the best of our human-ness (sure it may be a made-up word but i despise the word humanity). It IS us, yet something bigger, something better than we can hope to be. It reminds us where we come from and what we are when we dream. It's how i escape but also how i make it through the day.
For me it's the art of optimistic depression that does it. The writings of Jack Kerouac. Any of Walter's bands: Gorilla Biscuits, Quicksand, Rival Schools, Walking Concert. 50's bebop jazz. My favorite Star Wars movie: Empire Strikes Back. Favorite Weezer album: Pinkerton. Elliot Smith and Verve albums. Movies like 'The Last Time I Committed Suicide' & 'Big Fish'. Fight Club could even fall in this category. Why?
There's something about depression that i find comforting, like putting on a worn-in pair of skate sneakers. Buddhists say life is suffering. Just being aware of what's going on around us is enough to cause anyone to be depressed: war, starvation, disease, a democracy turning into a fascist regime. Compassion quickly turns to sadness with open eyes.
The acknowledgement of this state of emotion is to reveal the often hidden root in all of us as human beings. Dwelling on this without a sense of optimism, without the belief that things can be improved, might lead to a lot more Cure album sales but it won't get you out of bed in the morning. This belief in potential is what keeps us going, what keeps us looking. It's the carrot dangling at the end of a stick that keeps us asses moving forward, progressing.
Even complaining in and of itself shows some sense of hope. You wouldn't waste your breath unless at some level, in that grey matter swooshing around in your skull, you believed that you could change things. It displays that deep down (sometimes VERY deep down) you have some sense of hope that change can occur.
Art does all of this. It gives us hope and reminds us who we are when our everyday lives give us a sense of amnesia. It re-charges our batteries on car rides home. It lulls us securely to sleep. It can change the entire mood of a room. This is why i love art.
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