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Thursday, March 3, 2022

Thursday Thoughts...

“Simplicity is complexity resolved.” 

 Constantin Brâncuși 

I realise my work can at times appear simplistic; and would not be at all surprised to hear folk say of it - "I could have done that". I recall one time when my book Learning My Lines was on show and somebody from the media said to me - "so you just got an old book and put it there?"

And yet the simplicity in my work is oftentimes a real effort I make.  To make the work accessible. To take really tricky thoughts and notions and have people think about them differently.

Which I think is why this quote resonated.  My process is often one of attempting to resolve complexity - to pare something back to it essence. Not so much to reduce it; but to leave the crystal thought at the heart of it there.

Sometimes I go too far, and it seems like there is nothing and I am reminded I have to put something  in there.

But oftentimes the simplicity also offers a sense of calm, of clarity, of order that if I added more and more to it would be lost.

I sometimes think people underestimate the work that goes into producing works of great simplicity and elegance; compared to works that are simplistic in their conception and creation. 


  Constantin Brâncuși  'Birds in Space'  National Gallery of Australia.


6 comments:

  1. the word "distill" immediately came to mind, and a look at m-w.com confirmed its rightness in this context as the definitions include "to purify or transform" (albeit, referring to liquids, but I believe it applies here, too) ... and "to extract the essence of" ... which absolutely fits

    your art does indeed have a deceptive simplicity, a purity of form that cuts out the dross ... you also use repetition of singular words and phrases to such good effect ... and here I'm thinking of Turning Point in particular, but other examples are legion, including the Too Many Poppies that first drew me to your making

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    1. Thanks Liz - I like that the definitions capture it so well! On reflection I find that my ThTh are moments when I sit in front of the computer and simply respond and react to the words in front of me. Stream of consciousness perhaps? I don't do the research (sometimes I checkout who I am quoting!) as I stay true to the simplicity of pondering, so I love how you oftentimes find things that back up my instincts. Thanks as ever for your time and thoughtfulness. Go well.

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  2. This post resonated with me, it's something I work at all the time. What needs to be there and what doesn't? I had an English teacher in Grade 10 who taught us to constantly search for the best words to convey our message, that the right one could eliminate a host of adjectives and that simplicity was the key to profound comprehension. I think of it as a distillation and that has been my approach in all that I do.

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    1. Thank you Jillayne. I really like your questioning - what needs to be there and what doesn't? It seems to me a way of honouring the work; to let it be the best without clutter and distraction. And like you, the distillation, the paring back is a process done with purpose. Its so nice to meet fellow travellers along the way. Go well.

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  3. When I got to the bottom of the post and read the poem...simplicity was the last thing on my mind.
    The poem expresses exactly what that rain was.

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    1. Hi Dinah - I think he two posts ran into each other! I agree that the rain was nothing like simplicity at all. It was complex and addled and ruthless. The strangest contrast has been the quiet in the after. The blue sky, and the birds. And the devastation...

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I appreciate your thoughts and comments; thanks for taking the time.