Make It Organic

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Born AgainOne of the most challenging elements of the sculpting parties is to help people see the human body as a continuous flow of organic shapes. Most people see the human body as 4 planes: side, side, front, and back. You can see the edges joining those 4 sides making them almost independent from each other. I have to repeatedly prompt people to make it organic by eliminating the sharp edges because it needs to flow. Every part of the body has independent significance and we can dedicate a lot of time on each one, but the most important aspect is to make all the separate parts a cohesive unit. It is one body. All the parts make one.

When it comes to painting there is not much of a difference in the concept. We can have many elements in a painting but it is one painting. The composition and representation of all the elements need to flow to make it all one thing. How colors are applied has a lot to do with this, pretty much the same way as blending and flowing in sculpting. I encourage people not to clean the brushes to allow the colors to mix as they paint in such a way that all the colors used appear throughout the whole painting instead of having patches of colors here and there.

Life is no different either. People often want to compartmentalized their lives not realizing that it is one life. To compartmentalize life only produces sharp edges and patches of colors that interrupt the flow and organic nature of life itself. Everything must flow and intertwine. That is the meaning of the concept of ‘blessing’, ‘being blessed’, ‘being complete’, or ‘peace’. The salutation known as ‘shalom’ to the Hebrews. Let us have it on earth as it is in heaven, and in life as it is in art.

The Pain of Cognitive Dissonance

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Bow

Bow

What a pain in the neck is asking a question and getting a dozen conflicting answers! Why is it so difficult to get a straight answer? All you want is a straight answer that you can put into an effective plan of action. It seems like all the advice you get is contradicting and confusing. That mental stress and discomfort is caused by cognitive dissonance and it happens when you have to balance two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values. You like peace of mind, balance, and as psychologists call it you want ‘internal consistency’. However, the pain of cognitive dissonance is necessary as growing pains.

Cognitive dissonance is an important catalytic for learning. Learning is not about transmitting knowledge like giving away a box of chocolates. Learning is the process of making meaning through consciously balancing previous knowledge with the new information. It requires reflection and intentionality. Humans are not machines in which an algorithm is inserted and automatically executed without cognitive processing. When conflicting ideas emerge these are sorted out and considered based on reliability, credibility, and delivery. In some cases, when information doesn’t serve to balance dissonance it is just discarded.

You love unwelcome advice, don’t you? How about uninformed advice or critique? People love to give uninformed advice. They tell you how to do something and how to do it right without examining what you are doing and how you are doing it. Your brain generally rejects the information. When you seek advice or critique you are ready to receive and consider the information. This is why instructional design considers (or at least should) of great importance to perform a needs analysis before suggesting a learning solution. When you go to see a doctor you expect a check up before a prescription. It is unreasonable for a mechanic to tell you how much repairs are going to cost before they assess the damages.

Information is consciously or unconsciously delivered to you in a constant basis. When you are consciously seeking information, no matter how willing you are to receive it, cognitive dissonance must occur. The mental stress should be short when information is considered in a timely manner. Psychology suggests self-perception theory as an alternative to cognitive dissonance. Self-perception theory is explained simply a way to see yourself as if you were an outside observer. Is the new information conflicting with your values, ideas, and beliefs?  Consider advice and where it comes from. Remember the famous saying, “Is not what you say but how you say it”? Cognitively it matters too. It helps to sort out information. Consider your goals. What needs to change to get there? Is the new information helping you develop a plan of action? Straight answers won’t help if you really want to learn.

The Eye of the Hurricane

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Coming from the tropical island of Puerto Rico talking about hurricanes is pretty common. Most recently with hurricanes reaching New York and New England in the past few years seems like a commonality here too. While we don’t get hurricanes during this season, Christmas time feels like a hurricane but not of wind and rain, but of people. Just sit back in the eye of the hurricane and observe. Look around you. Look at yourself. Are you falling in the same madness of the world during the holidays?

During this time people run around like crazy trying to fulfill the self-imposed demands of the season. People put too much emphasis in ‘getting stuff’ for the season and very little emphasis in enjoying the season. This time is for much more than buying stuff. Yes, giving is important. It feels great to give. Stressing and running over other people to get that ephemeral object, and falling in debt (less than ephemeral) to satisfy false expectations is of little sense and value.

If you are giving, give from the heart and within your means. Spend quality time with the people you care about. Call those who are far. Send a text message, a card, FaceTime with them. Let them know you are thinking about them.

Inspired by Life

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Escape Your Shadows

Escape Your Shadows

Everyone has a story to tell. Some of those stories become inspiration for art. I’ve had conversations that provoke images in my head as the person speaks. These images become unpredicted elements of some of my pieces, specially sculptures. Yes, I’m listening to the conversation (or paying attention as I read on messenger) but images begin appearing. I just see things. You might say I’m a visionary. Psychologists might have a different label for sure.

Visual, philosophical, and emotional metaphors emerge from these conversations and they can turn a figure study into a sculpture that speaks to people. Concepts of overcoming the past, infatuation, victory, defeat, pain, pleasure, hurt, peace, strength, escape, freedom, failure, contentment, bliss… We could go on and on.

Interestingly, these conversations also help liberate the person telling the story. Often is like a burden that was lifted from their shoulders. Then when looking at the sculpture they feel like they can keep telling the story through it. That is a very rewarding experience as an artist.  Life inspires life and once again the human experience is shared among humans with a little help of art.

 Beguiled Published in the book International Contemporary Masters VIBeguiled
Published in the book International Contemporary Masters VI

 

 

Influence and Influenced

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AQUA

AQUA

We influence our environment as our environment influences us. We are not in total control over our circumstances but neither totally controlled by our circumstances. This is something I aim to project in my artwork. You may notice in my work the composition of a calm figure with a peaceful demeanor surrounded by a very dynamic and often chaotic environment. We can’t control what happens around us but we can choose to assume self-control and self-regulation to influence our environment. This is one of the principles of  Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) and Triadic Reciprocal Determinism (TRD). It might sound a little complicated but it is not.

For several years now I’ve been immersed in trying to understand how people learn. I know it is not as cool as being an artist but learning and teaching are areas in which I’m very passionate about, and it is also part of my research. According to SCT and TRD our perception of who we are and what we can do is determined by the interaction of 3 factors: environment, behavior, and cognitive factors. I will explain in greater detail how these factors interact and how they affect our perception of ourselves and our capabilities. These factors also affect how we interact in social settings (Stay tuned for that post)… I bet you didn’t know that! Well, yes, I am a scholar too.

Today is a good day to consider how the environment is influencing us. Are we letting our circumstances take total control of who we are? Have we consider our role to influence our environment? We are not in control of our circumstances, I understand that. Nevertheless, we cannot be controlled by our circumstances. In the middle of the craziness surrounding us we can still be in peace and making a difference not only in our lives but the lives of others.