I have always rather presumptuously regarded myself as something of an aesthete.  I like to look or hear or experience things that seem to have depth and soul, I suppose in a way we all do however we choose to express it.

It is not important to me what source the aesthetic comes from and therefore I may not draw a distinction between the beauty that is inherent in nature around us from that which is created by those of us here.  I do not see one as being the product of an omnipotent creator whilst the other is the mere triflings of ‘its’ creations.  We are a product of the earth and just as anything that is beautiful here so anything we fashion is by extension a form of natural aesthetic.

Some people see that which is aesthetic and appreciate it, others seek to possess it and here the left-wing must stand against such action.  To own an item that has aesthetic value is to deprive it of much of that aesthetic for you confine the circumstances by which its beauty may manifest.  Something that is not only aesthetic but accessible by many is far greater in its power to influence and bring happiness than that which is locked away only for the dubious pleasure of the selfish individual.  To feel one must possess in order to enjoy is a product of the avaricious society in which many of us have been brought up and the hegemony of greed is camouflaged by the notion that such action is inherent in human nature.  It isn’t.

The removal of an item of aesthetic beauty from its environment may not seem per se make the item itself less beautiful but it may remove it from a part of the aesthetic makeup that may come from, or be in contrast to its surroundings.

Poppies are a pretty flower in themselves but the poppies that grew in the fields of Flanders were especially poignant precisely because of their contrast to all the killing that had gone on in the area before, their beauty showed that in spite of what had gone before an area could be reclaimed by nature and that the beauty nature had to offer transcended the deeds in that location that had gone before it.  If people were to wear poppies on their lapels all year round it would rob them of their symbolism as the antithesis of war and death.  If one were to pick the ones in Flanders and put them in a vase they would be no different from ones picked at the roadside anywhere.

We all have the ability to experience the aesthetic and the subjectivity of what we consider of beauty is something that marks out our individuality as people but in turn can bring much cohesion in common ground with those whom we might otherwise think we share nothing.  The appreciation of beauty transcends class, geography, race, religion and gender it is a unifying force like scarcely any other.

The artist that creates and does so as a form of expression may not initially be seen first hand to be providing anything to society as say a skilled labourer or professional but one must take this in the context that society is all of us, each one a constituent and equal part of it.  Much of creative expression comes from the exorcism of negative emotions and without this form of venting these feelings may fester inside and deprive the artist of their ability to be active and engaged.  The loss of one person is of detriment to us all, but by extension the victory of one person over the negativity of their lives can provide us not only with the joy of seeing another reborn but something of a beacon of hope as to the fact that this can happen and to some who are like-minded a template of how this might be done.  The re-emergence of that person into society renders them more likely to be a proactive and productive member of it and this in turn benefits both individual and society in which they may participate.

 

Song Of The Day ~ Supertramp – Take The Long Way Home