An Image of Feminine Power
The Bitter Withy / Cerys Hafana
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John Fraim
Sometimes it is not always what you arrive at in life but how and when you arrive. That is, the context (medium) that something new comes into your awareness. A song, film, book – a person – that you had not heard of before but hear now, for the first time. Questions psychologist Carl Jung had about what he called “meaningful coincidences” or things brought together by forces of the present in time, rather the past or future. He called this power of bringing things together through synchronicity and discovered its presence in ancient Chinese games of prophecy such as the I Ching and Tao Te Ching. And in the Tarot deck.
When I was growing up, a book (like Catcher in the Rye) was pondered certainly a lot longer than it would be in today’s fast culture of flashing image and pulsating sound. Our pop-up culture. It might have made a so-so season on Netflix but maybe something else. It would be competing each day for attention with probably one hundred times things keeping me from pondering things besides Catcher in the Rye back in the day. Pulling me away from reflection.
“Move on, nothing to see here.”
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Culture moves ahead at a faster and faster pace. One gets out of breath – mentally – just trying to keep up with it. My way of escaping much of the constant info barrage today, the flashing news in the talking heads and headlines, the new revelations about the assassination attempt on Trump. The threats of war in the Middle East. The end of the Olympics and the upcoming DNC in Chicago.
Have been an Internet surfer for a long time. Sometimes to dig into the news above but most times to escape it. Travel the landscape of the Internet via links to sites. Some sites leading to other sites and paths into these sites and beyond. I believe the word for this is rabbit hole.
And so the Internet is filled with these holes to take your time and attention away from the world and into – often – another world. Yet it is getting harder and harder for this other world to become more fantastical than the real one it parodies.
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Many things come into my radar through these daily “safaris” through the landscape of the Internet. I don’t know how these things come to my attention. But I have to place some belief in the idea of synchronicity and the “meaningful coincidences” of life. Whether it is meeting another person. Going to a particular place. Or, seeing a new artist for the first time.
If one hangs around online surfing all over the place like I do, not really looking for ideas for my posts to Midnight Oil (690 so far since 2016). Really looking for something simply interesting and unique, a little off the beaten path today. As it’s always been for me. I know it when I see it. In the back of my mine, the idea for a novel and the manuscript on screenwriting yet to be published.
The days seem to move in hyper time since the presidential debate. The world going by like the world outside a speeding train window. The lowest rated VP in history rises to historic highs right before the DNC convention in Chicago. She is suddenly the candidate for President as the current President is forced out by powerful leaders of the party. The Middle East is exploding. China and Russia threatening. Millions pouring into the southern border. Inflation out ability for many to make ends meet.
So it somewhat through a number of links (I can’t recall even after checking my History on my Mac) that I arrive at the paintings of Guillermo Lorca.
I start looking at some of his Portfolio. I find in disturbing and spellbinding at the same time. Powerful overall.
I read Lorca is a contemporary Spanish painter. Exhibitions, include The Asprey Exhibition in London, “Eternal Life” at the National Museum of Fine Arts in Chile and “Splendor of the night” at the MOCO Museum in Barcelona, Spain. On these days, he’s on collaborations with the famous actioner Simon de Pury, art galleries and museums, most of which are concentrated in Europe. Currently exposing at the Tang Contemporary Art in Seoul and at the Palau Martorell in Barcelona.
Anyway, here are and some of the paintings of Lorca. One of the rabbit holes I fell into this morning around 10:00 am. Now, it’s 8:02 pm and I’m writing it.
You be the judge.
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More Notes to the Above
Somewhat a mixture of the beginning of the Olympics with these paintings. How does one classify them? Exotic and erotic are likely. Much animal and human symbolism going in themes of the Spanish artist.
I was drawn to his paintings in somewhat the same way I was drawn to other artists of exotic type of photography such as staged photos or scenes set up to be shot as one photo. The brilliant work of Gregory Crewdson. Now at Yale I believe.
Two fascinating paintings of Larca on the site but go to the link to his site at the end of my post. I think Lorca is a visionary artist but just some thoughts from today on this artist I’ve just seen for the first time. It is not the first time I’ve seen this theme. Yet it is expressed in a different way in Lorca’s art. The color. The lighting. Both add to the impact of the art in subtle, powerful ways.
The post really about synchronicity in one’s life. But also, about the discovery who I think might be an extraordinary artist today (from what I’ve surveyed online of his work and read reviews).
Still, I suggest if one wants to follow the education in paintings of the artist, they go to his paintings sorted by years on the young Chilean artist’s site.
But there is something beyond the obvious pairing of feminine and animal. But then, cats in Lorca’s paintings, the most feminine of all animals. Young feminine girls next to wild feminine cats. Maybe this was moving towards the symbolism of Lorca’s vision.
I think Lorca had a vision.
But it is something I’m still thinking about.
Was it a good or evil vision.
Perhaps this is the major obstacle in Lorca’s art. The symbolism of erotica takes over one’s general viewpoint of this artist.
Yet is it this or simply placing humans in some of the most unique relationships with the great wild cats of the world. In so many ways, a very powerful symbolism of the new, fearless, woman of the modern world we all just watched at the Paris Olympics. More than anything else, it seems to me that the above photo in this post presents an image of great feminine power. Very assured of this power. Very proud of this power.
J