Robert Gale Ongley

Tag: creative arts

  • IT’S NEVER TOO LATE!

    If you’re on a career path outside the arena of the arts, but you sense a gnawing from the subconscious you should be creating through the medium of aesthetics, you may think that ship has sailed. You may have trained for a practical, stable occupation and think there’s no room for distractions that take you down a rabbit hole into crazy dreams.

    The truth is there’s room for including arts in your life on some level. Despite your busy schedule, there’s time to start developing latent talent you have a longing to explore. There have been many who did so late in life, sometimes to enormous success. This article will give a few examples of stories you may not have heard.

    Ways to Get There

    Imagine this familiar scenario. A girl in elementary school falls in love with books. She wants to read constantly. She always seems to have a book open or at least at hand. This continues through her high school years. She’s a good student, especially good in English and secondary languages, but is so reverent toward authors that she never considers she could be a an outstanding writer, too. Then one day a teacher gives the class an assignment in creative writing. She must write a short story of at least 2000 words. She knows she will be miserable at storytelling and even puts it off until a few days before the assignment is due. When she finally starts typing, she feels a magical tingle in her spine. The words begin to flow and she enters a new mental dimension. The story is almost writing itself and she is merely its instrument. She loves the process and wants nothing more than to keep doing it.

    Discovering artistic talent within us often doesn’t occur until we are beyond our formal education years. One of my brothers grew up focused on sports and having good times (much like me). He was drawn to cars and didn’t mind getting his hands caked with grease in maintaining those cars. He started working immediately after high school, was soon married and raising children. He worked hard and played hard, sometimes sustaining severe injuries that limited his physical activities. When he was in his mid-40s, he jumped off the bed of a big truck as a portable tank of some kind of gas was about to explode. He broke both feet and was disabled for months as he healed. This made him reflect on what he really would love to do with his time. He took up photography and found a passion for it.

    Some individuals don’t realize ability in the arts until their retirement years. In fact, there are cases documented where dementia impinges on use of parts of the brain and allows artistic abilities to surface. This new way of occupying their time gives people a new purpose and function in life.

    Late Bloomers of Note

    Claude Monet–This legend of the art world didn’t start painting until he was in his 30s. His wife died when Monet was in his 40s and this period became transformational for him. His production mushroomed and he developed his iconic style at that time. That hidden potential and generational innovation was lying within for half of his life.

    Vincent van Gogh–Another master with his own distinct style, van Gogh set upon painting in his late 20s. He wasn’t a social person. He didn’t show his work to many people, but he was prolific. In his 10 years or so of work, he completed approximately 2100 paintings. His reluctance to promote himself couldn’t keep his brilliance from being discovered and revered. His life was complex and I don’t claim to understand him well, but his passion for nature and portraits suggest he saw the world with a remarkable depth.

    Out of Nowhere

    Charlize Theron–A striking beauty, Theron was brought to the United States from South Africa by her mother at the age of 19. She had no intention of becoming an actress. She was discovered by a talent agent as she was arguing with a bank teller who refused to cash a check she had presented. Her presentation must have been convincing. She soon landed movie roles and later had impressive box office hits. She developed her craft well and eventually had a lead role in Monster, playing a serial killer who actually lived a tragic life that spiraled downward into a horror for many. Theron won an Academy Award for Best Actress with that part.

    A Life of Expression

    It’s natural to express our thoughts and feelings. It could be said it’s a form of therapy. I know this to be true for me when I write. If we can bring our creative urges into reality where others can experience their manifestation and communicate messages of meaning, we may be able to inspire. What higher purpose can there be? It doesn’t matter you haven’t found this expression yet. It is indeed never too late to try.

  • LIFE IN THE LABYRINTH–FINDING YOUR WAY HOME

    As a writer, I know that every project leads me through a virtual labyrinth which I must resolve to reach my destination. I’ll know the destination when I see it. I have a concept of it in my mind. In the longer works, such as a novel, I even have a road map (also known as an outline) to help me find my way. However, there’s one factor that’s key to making it through the labyrinth, maybe the most important of all. I have to trust the inner storyteller who is leading me from station to station, armed with ideas and inspiration.

    The Inner Guide

    I fully believe there lies within the creator of art, no matter the discipline, some awareness of the final product which the creator strives to produce. It isn’t just the final product. We usually have a goal for a project and can imagine how it will be when the finish line is reached. It’s as though one’s intuition can be tapped and if followed will bring the artist through the necessary changes to the satisfactory conclusion. This inner guide knows the key points that need to be touched in order for the work to unfold as it should for maximum effect.

    Maybe there’s a deep sense of the finished product from the beginning, but I tend to believe that, like a puzzle, the pieces have to be discovered one at a time. Without the framework in place, the details of the interior are more or less guesswork. I don’t see this as a hard and fast rule. Works of art can come about in a variety of ways, but I would say we usually work our way through them with a progression of ideas coming to the surface that flesh out and develop our creation. The point is this. There’s the inner tactician putting this all together along the way on a subconscious level, probably even working when we’re sleeping.

    Art in Action

    Television artist and instructor Bob Ross said something to the effect that he never knew exactly how a painting started at the outset of his broadcast would turn out. He said he had a general idea and what colors he would use, but he didn’t work out all the steps from A to Z. This was evident when he would say–and I paraphrase–“How about if we put a tree right here?” It was an idea that popped into his head as part of the process. Typical, right? It’s just a basic example of our creative process.

    It goes deeper than that, though. Bringing the project home requires this willingness to go with the flow. If we have it all taped out before we start and we stick to the plan with no allowance for diversions down different passageways of the labyrinth, we deny our art a certain richness. We deny it life and vitality. In my stories, I’m surprised at times when following the route of my outline, I write something that shines a light on a new aspect of the tale. It may open the way for new understanding of a character or it could bring the plot more depth.

    That small element, be it a phrase or sentence or paragraph, was written with one purpose in mind, but it couldn’t have been more effective for introducing a whole new dimension to the story if it had been intentionally done in the full light of consciousness. I’m convinced that another level of consciousness was at work that brought me to the stage where the element mentioned above was perfectly placed to import the new phase of the story from a reservoir of ideas usually below my awareness.

    Writing fiction is how I came to realize this phenomena. I want to emphasize, though, that I’m quite sure it applies to all kinds of writing and all kinds of art. In creating a dance routine, the choreographer will lay out how it may go and in the process be struck with a new step that will dazzle. A composer may come up with a brilliant melody and in so doing write a sequence that almost magically leads to a counter to the melody that fairly takes the breath away.

    My Giveaway Takeaway

    We may view this part of ourselves that lives above the sleep horizon, that walks and talks and eats, as the sole proprietor of our persona of artiste. Maybe it’s true, but still we don’t have much of a clue as to the depth of our own minds. We should accept that we’re getting help from subliminal forces which are in league with our highest aspirations. Sometimes, perhaps, we’re more proficient when we allow all parts of our minds and being a role in finding our way home.

  • WHY GIVING BIRTH TO ART FEELS SO GOOD

    An unknown composer finishes her song just after sunset. The last note is set upon the staff with eager anticipation. She can play it now in its entirety and listen as she does for any incongruity in the arrangement.

    She starts softly on the introduction with the bass keys droning as the right hand sets an ethereal mood. The song begins in earnest as the melody of the first verse comes in somewhat ominously. The tension builds slowly to the end of the verse with plenty in reserve. Verse two repeats the rise with just a bit more emotion in the end. The chorus angles off in another direction with even more energy, but lighter. By the end of the third verse and the final chorus, a dramatic crescendo delivers a message of hope in answer to the warnings of the earlier verses. The ending is so strong she is overcome and tears roll down her face.

    The light pouring through the studio windows is golden. She knows her work has hit the mark. She has a sense of satisfaction with a hint of enthusiasm. She has to play it again…and again.

    Crafting Joy

    What is it that makes creation of art so enjoyable? It may seem absurd to even ask the question. It’s akin to asking, “Why do we love this newborn so dearly?” Let’s see if there’s something of value to know on the subject.

    There’s at least one study showing creative art activity increases blood flow to the brain’s prefrontal cortex which, among other things, is a reward center. Dopamine is released into the blood stream to bring a feeling of pleasure.

    Not all effects of creating art are so easily measured by release of a neurotransmitter in the brain. Yet, these effects are documented. In a study by Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts, participants helped researchers determine that a feeling of sadness could be alleviated by creating art not related to the source of the sadness. If nothing else, making up a story in whatever form is a distraction from a painful preoccupation.

    In fact, a study published in Journal of Clinical Psychology promoted the idea that writing down our problems in story form tends to make the issues better understood and more manageable. I guess I’ve done that when writing fiction, though I wasn’t directly addressing those problems and they weren’t a primary component of the piece. Writing about my problems in my journal, while not in story form, has definitely had the effect of improving my understanding of these issues and helped me work out how to handle them. It isn’t exactly art, but in reality I feel I’m making art when I write a sentence or paragraph in whatever context.

    Playing and composing music have been found by researchers to be beneficial to the brain in the realm of cognitive function, even enhancing abilities relating to memory, study and language. It’s also known that endorphins are released when playing music. This could explain why making music with others can result in a feeling of well-being. These are findings of legitimate scientific studies. As a matter of opinion, though, I would submit that generating the rhythms of music puts a musician in the moment and thus in connection with the rhythms and energies of the universe. That has to be a source of joy, right?

    Other Benefits

    An increase in self-esteem. The sense of having accomplished something is key.

    Being more attentive. As a visual artist, it’s necessary to notice such environmental details as body positions, how moving water looks and the contours of rock formations. As a choreographer, motion and grace must be observed. The fiction writer, playwright and others learn about people and everything that goes with them. Every type of artist will develop observational skills that help them become better at their craft.

    Problem solving. Working on a project in the arts will usually lead a person into trouble. They believe it’s going along swimmingly when suddenly they realize it isn’t. As a writer, I can “paint myself into a corner.” The progression of the story can render the plot impractical sometimes. Or a painter might find the shape of the face hasn’t left room for that long nose. We find ourselves having to resolve the issue if we’re going to finish the piece. The more of these we handle, the stronger our confidence and ability to deal with difficult situations becomes.

    Feeling Good

    Having talents and skills are common to us all. Everyone has some unique ability. I am grateful that I’m drawn to the arts and I can give at least a small measure of enjoyment to others. There’s the most important payoff.