Blank Canvas

Today in my religion class we were discussing the Eastern tradition of Daoism that began with Lao Tzu of royal China.  Tzu was an advisor to the chinese emperor, and began to feel that society and political rule were distorting the true expression of human goodness, and therefore left the royal court and wandered of into the Western mountains.  Wandering is quite a common theme in this class; If you ever hope to attain enlightenment, I heartily endorse wandering.  After much contemplation, he began his teachings of the Dao: the way of the all things, the truth of universe.  Daoism holds that silence and emptiness are the basis of all form – any sound can be born out of silence, and therefore all the sounds of music are somehow held within this dynamic, empty state of potential and possibility.  My professor, Dr. Mahoney, compared it to a paining: the colors of a painting are the forms we see around us, yet the most crucial part of the painting is the blank canvas that lies underneath.  The Dao is the canvas behind all colors, the silence behind all sounds.

All this talk of art inspired me to go back through my old sketchbooks and touch up a few of my drawings from back in the day.  I don’t sketch nearly enough nowadays (apart from t-shirt designs and painting frogs on the wall of my sorority house) but whenever I do, I gain a new appreciation for the detail and beauty of the form lies before me.  I am aware and in awe of the gift we humans have to recreate beauty where none exists.  When I was a little kid, I would sometimes draw alongside my Dad  (an artist by profession, and an amazing one at that) as he worked on his pastels or paintings.  While I kept myself busy with mediocre sketches of ballerinas (my life’s aspiration at the time) I would watch him paint every stroke with care, focus, and a contemplative look on his face, as if he revered the grace and meaning that every line could express.  I learned that the very essence of art engages in this sacred dance of the universe, because, as Dr. Mahoney says, nature’s forms are the pristine expressions of the Dao, of all that is divine and good.  A smart man by the name of Aristotle once said, “the aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” When we sit before a blank page, we have the chance not only to create and re-create, but to revere and become in touch with the divine foundation by which all these forms spring.

Each day we are given a blank canvas.  We awake in silence with the potential of all music and the possibility of all color.  

“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.”  - Scott Adams.  

Some of my sketches:

Our dog Max when he was a puppy

Our cat Tasha

 Lindsay and Max at the County Fair

Also, go look at my Dad's art on his website!  It's pretty awesome. :)