Ever wondered how people take chances in things they are better off not doing so? Even when they know they will get hurt?

Ever wondered why something that has been considered bad always feels good? Mainly 'cos it is considered bad?

Ever wondered how easy it to is to do things we are told not to do? And how tough it is to do what we are told to?

Ever wondered how people can change what they feel about something just to suit their needs and circumstances? Even if it seems like a forced compromise?

Ever wondered how people will take the pain for 2 minutes of pleasure? Though they know it cannot last forever?

Ever wondered why people start a blame game when something goes wrong? despite knowing that sometimes things just happen?

 

No matter how we start, I guess its how it ends that is more important. We might know everything beforehand, but we understand it much later. Because lessons are not that easy to learn. The book might have been given to us ab initio but we need to turn the pages ourselves.

 

This sprung up in a conversation and my good friend had to convert it into a debate. It's his habit from being an ace debater in school and college I guess! However, I believe this habit is very injurious when things that cant be talked about that easily tend to discussed. I dont blame him-its probably got to do with the way he sees things, ideologically based. Very left, as he would like it. And it is a well known fact that any logical thinking person with a iota of common sense can understand- ideologies make a person not only prejudiced but also intolerant and blind.

 

His main contention was that by the very fact that artists (I will b talkinig more from the perspective of a visuual artist) lilve in society, grow within it and formulate ideas living in it, everything that he/she creates as art is "social" and  socially relevant. This is considered to be more democratising for society- albeit in true socialist fashion! The idea of an individual living in his/her own space within society, to him, was ridiculous because such an idea grows out of society. Everything that an artist thinks is considered to be under the proprietorship of society!!..to me this whole notion of stealing away an artist's prerogative and making his ideas and thoughts the property of the whole society, irrespective of whether the artist wants to share them, is very dictatorial and smells of tyranny.

 

The whole debate, as most debates tend to become, is more a play of words than understanding the intricacies of the human mind or even human society. There are so many ideas that noone would have imagined before and which get translated into (possibly) understandable terms by scientists, philosophers or even artists. The main handicap of words is that they can only communicate but not express a notion, emotion or idea in its truest sense. As an artist I would struggle to use words to talk about things i see or think & feel about. However one thing is clear, society is formed by individuals, and ideas come first and acceptability and an understanding much later.

 

Its not the chicken and egg question but the funniest part is that everyone knows it but does not understand it. Everyone is an artist from inside but those who try to bring forthe artist into society can never bring it out completely because it has to be felt. Its not a romantic notion, its true. And proabably only an artist, who I define as being in touch with their true inner selves, can understand. We can think and lilve on our own within the chaos of society, and what we think neednt be what we learnt or understood from soceity cos society learns from us what we want them to learn. Because, somethings are too personal and precious to be brought out into this blind world.

 

If you cant get your blinkers out, hell we dont care... 'cos we got rid of them a long long time ago!