Last night I went to see a conversation between Brian Eno and Jon Hassel at the Southbank - London. It was part of the Ether festival. I am a great admirer of Eno and this was the first time I had seen Eno in the flesh. The show was a continuation of a dialogue that both had had over the pat years. The content was varied mainly unscripted. Now to the point of this blog. Surrender. Eno postulated that surrender in its non passive form was experienced in four aspects of life; Sex, Drugs, Religion and Art. It is here that we feel able to let go, drop pretence and wander emotionally and spiritually and perhaps even intellectually. This in the context of art resonated with me deeply. More so as it is something that I have been battling with over the past few months as I try to establish my painting style. This, coupled with a similar discourse on "Understanding what it is that I like", an attempt to identify what we like and hence may be best at, led to a mini epiphany. I have been toying with ideas for paintings and books. Its been a constructive time. Many ideas have been dead ends. But as Eno states, its the dead ends, the failures which steer you inexorably towards the good stuff. We should not be afraid of failure, we should welcome it and use its lessons wisely. And so it was that all I had been struggling with, all that I had failed at, all that I surrendered to, became clear. I was/am on the right track. I awoke this morning and decided to restart a painting I was some way into. It was not right. It was a failure. I have repainted it now and I feel confident it has a better chance of turning out the way I envisaged it.
Above is a chance shot one evening under Waterloo Bridge in London. I think she was waiting for someone - a lover perhaps. Anyway, the way the light outlined her form captivated me.
