I've come to a deep realization. It's one of those life moments you have when you've seen something your whole life right in front of you, but you never really understood it. Every once in a while, the millions of synapses in the brain line up like some set of planets, and it just dawns on you what people have been talking to you about but you were just too, I don't know, unknowing to not see it.
I was reading a book on poetry to try and improve my poetry writing. Ok, let me back up. I wrote one poem without looking at any books on how to do it and submitted it to three publications. It was of course turned down by all. No surprise. I think if I had an MFA in Poetry and submitted, it had a good chance of being rejected. NBD. Move on. So, I checked out one book from the Joliet public library on Black Road and started reading. About a chapter or two in, it hit me like a brick. There is a 4th dimension and I can see it! Let me explain.
I call the 4th dimension a deeper understanding or a "higher level" if you will, about our three dimensional world. It's like when you look at an object using a kaleidoscope (the kind with no end on it, not the one with colored things that you rotate). As you look at an object, you are seeing another dimension of the object in the kaleidoscope. By seeing something more than just 3 dimensions, you are now one more dimension deep. That is, to me, the 4th dimension.
Art is our gateway to the 4th dimension. Science tries to explain it all, and in the lab, they have been able to find evidence of many more dimensions beyond just the three we know about. But to see the 4th dimension, you have to move over to the art world. I've tried painting, but that's hard. Like, really really hard. First of all, it's usually in 2 dimensions to start with. And, you only get one image to show the world some subject you have studied, and it's just tough to do. First of all, you have to understand that object on a different level. Take the Mona Lisa for example. Old Leo understood the subject deeply, not just the woman, but the human form, and when he painted it, he's a master enough to pull all of that dimensional knowledge and skill into the painting. He takes you from a two dimensional painting all the way up to the 4th dimension. A two level jump! There are like 3 dudes in the world ever that could do that effectively. Van Gogh, Da Vinci and Rembrandt. Maybe a few others, but those are the ones who stick out to me.
At lest with sculpture, you are already at the 3rd dimension, because we readily see the world in three dimensions, and you only have to explain to the viewer, through your chiseling or other sculpture means, to get them to the lower parts of the 4th dimension.
Once I landed on writing, I found it easier because I could explain in excruciating detail what I'm talking about. I can write page after page of endless bullshit to describe my world I'm seeing. I'm currently writing a Science Fiction book, so I get to invent all kinds of stuff. It will be hard to keep this puppy at 500 pages. But, it still, even when you have masters pouring out prose, only can get you say to the middle of the 4th dimension.
Poetry is the pinnacle of the 4th dimension. It is the only medium where you can get deep enough into a subject to reach the highest point of the 4th dimension. Why is it better than writing fiction? Well, it's like when you want to make a sauce. You start with 4 cups or so of chicken stock, then reduce it down. Then, add your mushrooms and spices, or whatever, then reduce it some more. Poetry is the sauce of writing. When you get it right, you know it and it transcends you deep into the 4th dimension. From all the poetry I've read, which isn't a lot but enough, I see that it is hard for anyone to master, yet many have peaks that poke through the clouds and really grab you. I don't think we, as humanity I mean, are able to see just how high these peaks can go, nor just how to do it effectively. It may be that each of us has at least one great poem inside. There are many who write huge volumes like Whitman or Ginsberg, and I read each poem three times to try and get it. Some come through, some don't. Some are tremendous and moving, some not so much.
What's odd is that you will never get rich writing poetry. I think that's because it's hard to write high peaks into the 4th dimension. Another reason is you need to find the reader who will follow you to that peak as well, which may be more difficult.
Anyway, that's my thought for the day. Enjoy the rest of your day.
I was reading a book on poetry to try and improve my poetry writing. Ok, let me back up. I wrote one poem without looking at any books on how to do it and submitted it to three publications. It was of course turned down by all. No surprise. I think if I had an MFA in Poetry and submitted, it had a good chance of being rejected. NBD. Move on. So, I checked out one book from the Joliet public library on Black Road and started reading. About a chapter or two in, it hit me like a brick. There is a 4th dimension and I can see it! Let me explain.
I call the 4th dimension a deeper understanding or a "higher level" if you will, about our three dimensional world. It's like when you look at an object using a kaleidoscope (the kind with no end on it, not the one with colored things that you rotate). As you look at an object, you are seeing another dimension of the object in the kaleidoscope. By seeing something more than just 3 dimensions, you are now one more dimension deep. That is, to me, the 4th dimension.
Art is our gateway to the 4th dimension. Science tries to explain it all, and in the lab, they have been able to find evidence of many more dimensions beyond just the three we know about. But to see the 4th dimension, you have to move over to the art world. I've tried painting, but that's hard. Like, really really hard. First of all, it's usually in 2 dimensions to start with. And, you only get one image to show the world some subject you have studied, and it's just tough to do. First of all, you have to understand that object on a different level. Take the Mona Lisa for example. Old Leo understood the subject deeply, not just the woman, but the human form, and when he painted it, he's a master enough to pull all of that dimensional knowledge and skill into the painting. He takes you from a two dimensional painting all the way up to the 4th dimension. A two level jump! There are like 3 dudes in the world ever that could do that effectively. Van Gogh, Da Vinci and Rembrandt. Maybe a few others, but those are the ones who stick out to me.
At lest with sculpture, you are already at the 3rd dimension, because we readily see the world in three dimensions, and you only have to explain to the viewer, through your chiseling or other sculpture means, to get them to the lower parts of the 4th dimension.
Once I landed on writing, I found it easier because I could explain in excruciating detail what I'm talking about. I can write page after page of endless bullshit to describe my world I'm seeing. I'm currently writing a Science Fiction book, so I get to invent all kinds of stuff. It will be hard to keep this puppy at 500 pages. But, it still, even when you have masters pouring out prose, only can get you say to the middle of the 4th dimension.
Poetry is the pinnacle of the 4th dimension. It is the only medium where you can get deep enough into a subject to reach the highest point of the 4th dimension. Why is it better than writing fiction? Well, it's like when you want to make a sauce. You start with 4 cups or so of chicken stock, then reduce it down. Then, add your mushrooms and spices, or whatever, then reduce it some more. Poetry is the sauce of writing. When you get it right, you know it and it transcends you deep into the 4th dimension. From all the poetry I've read, which isn't a lot but enough, I see that it is hard for anyone to master, yet many have peaks that poke through the clouds and really grab you. I don't think we, as humanity I mean, are able to see just how high these peaks can go, nor just how to do it effectively. It may be that each of us has at least one great poem inside. There are many who write huge volumes like Whitman or Ginsberg, and I read each poem three times to try and get it. Some come through, some don't. Some are tremendous and moving, some not so much.
What's odd is that you will never get rich writing poetry. I think that's because it's hard to write high peaks into the 4th dimension. Another reason is you need to find the reader who will follow you to that peak as well, which may be more difficult.
Anyway, that's my thought for the day. Enjoy the rest of your day.