I have rarely read such a deeply moving, thought-provoking and 'prone to put one into a philosophising state mind' book without being pretentious about it since Sophie's world.
The prose flows like melted ice cream. You simply want to hold on to it, your hand so keen that its warmth melted its chilly sharpness and, one gobbled it up all at once but at the same time I also wanted to prolong the reading of it somehow but despite myself, I had to finish it in such a few delightful hours. Even now my tears hardly dried up from the tragedy of the ending (I won't spoil it for you and I won't tell you).
If one has an excuse to mention obsure words like onomatopeia, this book has it all. Surprisingly, it did not have the usual line-up of suspect such as murder, sex and money in it (at least for the main protagonist).
If you are Nipponophile, you would simply relish (double-entendre included) this book, as though it was an array of delectable sushi on the carousel. For me it was a feast for both my inner culture snob as the author who is clearly passionate about art, music and literature.
I would dearly love to meet my own Kakuro (not in a salacious way) but in a detached communion with a soul with such refinement. I doubt that such a character does exist, which is to me somewhat reassuring.
I humbly urge you to read this book even if only for curiousity's sake because it is not a bestseller for nothing. This review could not do justice to its uncompromising explosion of hypocrisy and pretension but if you tend to be the latter yourself and a bit of a prejudiced either leaning to the right or left person, steer well clear off it, you will be depressed and unhappy after reading it. Be warned!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
New Shop
I have opened my new shop for a new range of earrings. Check it out http://www.etsy.com/your_shop.php
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Flora by Jo Gibbs-
These earrings are available from $24.95 at Drews Pharmacy, North Sydney Australia.
http://drewspharmacy.wikispaces.com/Flora+by+Jo+Gibbs
or here at Etsy http://www.etsy.com/your_shop.php
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
About creativity
About creativity
The points below seem to define what art means or the definitions of aesthetic, leaning more towards art philosophy than about creativity to a person with an artist’s background like me. You ask what it is, or the motivations of creativity personally:
• I feel compelled psychologically and that not making art is detrimental to my sanity.
• It is what I do best so, it is both a pleasure for my ego (Freud) and its is the highest on my ‘Maslow’s hierarchy of needs’.
• It is essential to how I operate and how I engage with other people around me.
• It is God’s mandate that I share my talents according to his will.
• I have used it as the force of good in educating young minds.
The above points are relevant to me only but creativity or art is defined by non-artists and scientists like anthropologists as the measure by which a civilization's mettle is tested in time, including the dot points below.
-legitimises an institution's and society’s nomothetic & idiographic frameworks ifor vocational purposes (Article: Culture and assessment: nomothetic and idiographic considerations from:Career Development Quarterly Article date:June 1, 2009 Author: Diemer, Matthew A.; Gore, Paul A., Jr..
-functional, pleases the eye and stimulates the mind all at once.
-expression (nothing to do with the Expressionist movement).
-representation 'memesis'-imitation (Plato).
-significant form, (Bell & Fry).
-frozen emotion (Tolstoy).
-pleases the divine nature of man, elevation of crude Phillistines into men of culture and refinement (Hegel)
-an organic whole and made from complex (early Weisz) disparate parts that would not have made sense if taken apart.
-too complicated to define (late Weisz).
-exercises the free play of the imagination (Kant).
-pure intuition (Croce)
-polemical in intention (Wittgenstein)
-intertextuality (Foucault)
-satisfies the imaginative need for social harmony (Parker) and 'group think' (Orwell).
The points below seem to define what art means or the definitions of aesthetic, leaning more towards art philosophy than about creativity to a person with an artist’s background like me. You ask what it is, or the motivations of creativity personally:
• I feel compelled psychologically and that not making art is detrimental to my sanity.
• It is what I do best so, it is both a pleasure for my ego (Freud) and its is the highest on my ‘Maslow’s hierarchy of needs’.
• It is essential to how I operate and how I engage with other people around me.
• It is God’s mandate that I share my talents according to his will.
• I have used it as the force of good in educating young minds.
The above points are relevant to me only but creativity or art is defined by non-artists and scientists like anthropologists as the measure by which a civilization's mettle is tested in time, including the dot points below.
-legitimises an institution's and society’s nomothetic & idiographic frameworks ifor vocational purposes (Article: Culture and assessment: nomothetic and idiographic considerations from:Career Development Quarterly Article date:June 1, 2009 Author: Diemer, Matthew A.; Gore, Paul A., Jr..
-functional, pleases the eye and stimulates the mind all at once.
-expression (nothing to do with the Expressionist movement).
-representation 'memesis'-imitation (Plato).
-significant form, (Bell & Fry).
-frozen emotion (Tolstoy).
-pleases the divine nature of man, elevation of crude Phillistines into men of culture and refinement (Hegel)
-an organic whole and made from complex (early Weisz) disparate parts that would not have made sense if taken apart.
-too complicated to define (late Weisz).
-exercises the free play of the imagination (Kant).
-pure intuition (Croce)
-polemical in intention (Wittgenstein)
-intertextuality (Foucault)
-satisfies the imaginative need for social harmony (Parker) and 'group think' (Orwell).
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Roseville workshop 2010
Hello, I've just had a satisfying all day workshop teaching clay handworking techniques to different ages from years 5-16. I also had a few doing trash to treasure (jewellery). I must thank Gwynn, Warwick, Helen and Jackie for helping out plus the older kids who helped with materials distribution.
The clay workshop had over thirty kids and without these fantastic adult helpers, I'm sure i would not have been able to cope. Noone had pointed out the fact that I forgot to demonstrate the coil pot making technique. That was very embarassing. Also the fact that I only had a few about 8-9 in each class at the trash to treasure jewellery making was a bonus in the afternoon. Even the boys were very keen to keep making things to wear. I bet they really are going to wear those pieces and not give them to their Mums. It was such a pleasure to teach kids who want to be there and keen to learn. There were no issues at all. Each child actually did an average of 4 pieces each. We only had 20 mins solid work time. It never ceases amazes me how creative and imaginative these kids can be, every time.
My admiration to the organisers of the day as well. I think it went very smoothly. It was by far better than October last year's workshop. the attendance was twice the size of last years.
The clay workshop had over thirty kids and without these fantastic adult helpers, I'm sure i would not have been able to cope. Noone had pointed out the fact that I forgot to demonstrate the coil pot making technique. That was very embarassing. Also the fact that I only had a few about 8-9 in each class at the trash to treasure jewellery making was a bonus in the afternoon. Even the boys were very keen to keep making things to wear. I bet they really are going to wear those pieces and not give them to their Mums. It was such a pleasure to teach kids who want to be there and keen to learn. There were no issues at all. Each child actually did an average of 4 pieces each. We only had 20 mins solid work time. It never ceases amazes me how creative and imaginative these kids can be, every time.
My admiration to the organisers of the day as well. I think it went very smoothly. It was by far better than October last year's workshop. the attendance was twice the size of last years.
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