[MF] Dharmakaya Light

[Lorenz Gude]

Hi Ted et al.

Sorry I haven't replied sooner I have been just plain busy. I really 
enjoyed your account of your father's reaction. It reminds me of just 
how unnecessary it is for the artist to know about any philosophic or 
psychological interpretation of the work. El Greco might have answered 
in similar fashion, if asked about the light in the paintings.

Your father's reaction reminds me of Persig's discussion of the 
difference between a philosopher and a - I believe the word is - 
philosophologist - ie one who studies philosophy. (I just can't find the 
passage in Lila - Chapter anyone?) Here there is no question of what 
comes first - the chicken or the egg. We know the philosophy or the 
painting come first  -the rest is secondary.

 There is a story about Joyce and his secretary Beckett that illustrates 
this point nicely. Beckett's instructions from Joyce in taking dictation 
for Finnegan's Wake were to write down everything Joyce said exactly as 
he said it - except for conversations outside the dictation about 
breakfast or whatever. One day someone unexpectedly knocked on the door 
of the room where they were working  and Joyce said, "Come in." and 
Beckett wrote it down before he could stop himself. When the visitor 
left Beckett asked Joyce if he should take it out. Joyce considered the 
matter and said, "No, leave it in."

I could say a lot of critic things about the role of the accidental in 
art or Dada or whatever,  but the bottom line is I trust Joyce and his 
instinct to leave it in and I trust your father's instinct to grind his 
pigments and experiment with Chinese art and prospectors. I trust them 
because both works - Finnegan's Wake and your father's painting  give me 
an experience of Quality.

Lorenz Gude


muzikhed at aol.com wrote:
> Follow-up For those who read my last post re my father's painting - ("the  
> Prospector")
>  
> I visited my dad today, and asked if he remembered when he painted it, and  
> what inspired it.
> As I expected, he couldn't remember any thing inspiring it - but that he  had 
> at the time taken an interest in Chinese landscapes, with the steep rocks  
> and misty atmosphere, blues & greens.  I said the man looked  Western though, 
> the western hat, almost cowboy.  He agreed.  Yeah, he  intended that.    He 
> remembered he was experimenting with getting  gray - not from black and white 
> pigments, but instead from combining  colored pigments to make gray.     
>  
>  
> He couldn't remember exactly when he painted it, but after he went to art  
> school in the late 40's, so about 1950.  Also he described stretching  his own 
> canvases, ordering his own pigments from some store in New York City,  grinding 
> the pigments, and mixing with linseed oil to make his  paint. 
>  
>  
> Interesting.  He put a cowboy in a Chinese painting, put a special  light on 
> the guy, but it didn't MEAN anything to him that he can recall.   Just playing 
> with the pigments.  
>  
>  
> ---------------
> Thanks again, to Lorenz for the assistance, & to all for all the  interesting 
> input on this topic.
>  
>  
> Ted C 
>  
>  
> p.s. to Kevin - thanks, yes, I'm normally comfortable with  solitude.  In 
> fact it may be my comfort with solitude co-evolved with  my 'lonely' position.    
>  Good to hear from you.
>  
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