Like
the German philosopher; Arthur Shopenhaur, I too believe that "
the world only exists only as an idea, that is to say, exists only in
relation to consciousness. This truth, he says, was first realized in
Indian philosophy, with its doctrine of Maya or appearance,"(1).
Ones
body is the starting point of all perceptions of the world. The limitations
of the senses define the fundamental limits of a knowable construct
or abstract fabrication of the the world. Thus the world construct
as human beings shape it, is largely a fictional shadow of the real
world of which we only sense the surface.
"We
live in a dream world. With a small rational part of the brain, we
recognise that our exsistence is governed by material realities, and
that, as those realities change, so will our lives. But underlying
this awareness is the deep semi-consciouness that projects our future
as repeated instances of the present. This, and not the superficial
world of our reason, is our true reality. All that seperates us from
the indigenous people of Australia is that they recognise this and
we do not.
Our
dreaming will destroy the conditions necessary for human life on Earth."
(2)
"There
is an unpredictable and ever shifting relationship between the visible
and the comprehensible." (1) Therefore, signs no longer represent
what we assume they mean and actions are only half seen and understood
less. These things are the first signs of the hidden world.The hidden
world lies underneath the mantle of fiction mascarading as the body
of all knowledge which is just a cheap suit passing as wisdom which
" so permeates modernity it has overwhelmed the very concept of
reality-even in societies that believe they are the epitome of sophistication
such as the United States. This fabricated environment comes at us in
many different forms and shadings that weeding out faux reality is arduous."
(3)
In
this place, " signs are mere conventions, words are illusions,
representations are fragile artifices, common sense is a string of absurdities,
and reason is a myth."(3) The false body of knowledge is corrupt
and fails to provide a basis for transalation or self awareness. "
It is everywhere you go- unless you break the trance and and check the
off-camera bleakness of peoples glances, the heart catching flaw of
the private expression, of trunk and limb illfitted for the prodigal
enticements showered on them in a world of surfaces. Surfaces and constant
transition: The news shows, academic hype, TV series all appear in the
same gliding transitional format.(5) We grope in the darkness for emerging
bodies of meaning as a new starting point and almost always fail. "
Global satelite TV, the internet, the breathless, transitional Zietgeist
produces a virtual world awash in the urgent febrication, representation,
shifting blips of data, a world not too perceptive, not too astute or
discerning." (6)
As
a maker, I am obliged to gaze as directly as I can at what is to be
seen and more importantly to try and create conditions which peel back
the skin of the constructs which may obscure the hidden nature of things
of which we may be unaware or in denial of. This is an aspect of de-construction
which can reveal underlying elements of fundamentaly flawed and false
so-called rational assumptions about the imutability of truth. From
this perspective, all things are mutable and subject to forces both
internal and external. The world as we percieve it, is dichotmous and
paradoxical.
Yes,
this is the post-modern age, the age of fiction and uncertainty. The
idea of deconstruction in this context is not only applicable but is
desirable.
For
further remarks on this line, see the NewDevelopments
page.
If
you read all this, you deserve to enjoy the rest of the site. Dig the
the cool pic.
(1)
Anthony Kenny. A Breif History of Western Philosophy.Chapter XIX. Three
Ninteenth Century Philosophy. P.292-298.
(3),
(4). Phillip Dagen on Rene Magrite, from The Guardian Weekly, March
6/2003.
(5),
(5), (2) Allyn Hunt. Sunday August,18, 2002. Letter from Guadalajara.
Rollercoasting the Zietgiest.The News. English language newspaper published
weekly in Mexico City.
(7)
George Monbiot. August 21, 2003. Comment and Analysis, With Eyes Wide
Shut. From
the Guardian Weekly, August 21/2003
