Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Adaptability

Back in the city the obvious and simple fact of sunrise and sunset seem so obscure...by the sea it is so evident, opening and closing of the day, all the birds flying from one place to the next announcing the drastic change of light, passing of time, a storm, mute dialogue with an iguana, locking eyes with a giant sting ray...  back in the city this simple pleasures, which should be part of everyday life seem like a luxury, and it takes just renouncing to certain unnecessary things, still the city has a more subtle way of letting its charms reach us, instants, small reminders, a delicate scent of jasmine while strolling, like a passing caress, a sudden warmth, flapping wings, working ants, faint light, heavy drops, all somewhat overshadowed. Within all our structures of comfort, "flat" (mexico city is not distinguished by impeccable streets) surfaces, fumigated spaces, mechanical noises, we do not hear the world, we do not hear ourselves.
On the weekend I saw face painters for kids in the park, I remembered I hated it, even as a kid, the paint itches your face, it melts. But still some kids go around with tiger, panda, clown, robot, what not faces... I guess some humans are just more adaptable than others, and its visible since childhood. 

Monday, August 22, 2011

napkin doodles


I found this old napkin where I did a drawing and my father copied it...I like his better!

Ai Weiwei

"Doubtless, the tides of history are pulling this archaic ship ever nearer to the banks of democracy, as communication, identification, understanding, and tolerance have begun to supplant methods of coercion and exclusion. We have realized that cultural and spiritual totalitarianism and exclusionism have deflated people's spirits, shrunk their wills, and made them myopic. Burying troublesome opinions and evading difficult questions are nothing short of skepticism and denial of the value of life; they are the blaspheming of gods, and acknowledgment of ignorance and backwardness, and a blatant expression of support for unchecked power and injustice. Today's culture and art are still lacking the most basic of concerns - the social function of artists, social enlightenment, and independent criticism.
No manner of linguistic exploration, no possible appropriation of strategy or medium, and not even plagiarizing techniques or content could possibly conceal independent creation, thus exposing pragmatic and opportunistic style-brokers and reflecting impoverished spiritual values and a general lowering of our tastes.
When the attention paid to "trends" is shifted toward personal methods and issues, when explorations into form are transformed into explorations into the plight of our existence and spiritual values, art will thus be enlightened. What a very long road."
(from essay The Longest Road)

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Rabindranath Tagore

In the mountain, stillness surges up
               to explore its own height;
  in the lake, movement stands still
         to contemplate its own depth.

sunrise

 I love waking up at sunrise, fresh crisp light and newly awaken world...especially by the sea. In Holbox, on full moon, sun and moon overlap at sunrise and sunset. Every day my sunrise walk was accompanied by a flock of flamingos.