Michael Lowe Wright at one year old Michael lowe Wright Michael lowe Wright recently
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Sorcery of Art
What mysterious quality is it that makes a true piece of art or craft? It's not training or experience, nor is it a clever mastery of technique. An artist may have years of instruction and practice, yet may still produce works which, while they may appeal to the eye, and even to the pocketbook, are yet still somehow devoid of "life" or "spirit".

Over the course of my life, I've come to believe this is not merely a metaphor or a manner of speaking, but is, at some level, literally true. What makes a work truly distinctive, what makes it speak to us, is that when we experience it we sense that the artist is speaking to us now, in the present. No dead echoes, no metaphors; rather, a communication in real time to our higher sensibilities. The creator of the object has spun a spell, ensorcelled themselves, sung a song of enchantment and embedded a piece of their very spirit in the product of their labors. They sing, but it is up to us to hear their song.

This is not to say that all songs are happy songs, or that the artist somehow self-consciously sings to us. Many songs are tearful, or angry, or despairing. That is not the point. Whatever our romantic fantasies, a work is not embued with spirit by some conscious spell-casting, because that would be a distraction, a diversion of creative energy from the work. It is the immersion in the act of creation that is the song. It is the focus of attention that creates the ensorcellment. To self-consciously turn aside is to disrupt and destroy the enchantment. Only a purity of intent and vision can achieve this magic.
~~~~~~~~~~
If there is a lesson here, it must surely be a Zen one. If you're self-consciously "making art", then you aren't making art; you're making a statement about what you think art is. But when your soul sings through your fingertips... Ah, my friend, that is another thing entirely.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~