The freedom of not having a goal!

Nov 13, 2018

"Riot"
The Freedom Series

"Riot" -  She looks you over from whatever dimension she calls home. She is here to show you the beauty of chaos.

Want to take a closer look at her in the Gallery Store? - Click here!
The "Right" Way
I did not fit well in school. It wasn't that I did not have the brains for it, I just didn't fit the mold. Sit still, raise your hand, pay attention regardless of whether it makes sense or not - these things where as foreign to me as if somebody had teleported me to the Amazon and expected this little city kid to get on with life in the jungle. I was, in other words, a fish out of water. 
The educational system has a way of telling you that you are not enough as you are.
Everything is graded, tested - do you have the right answer? And remember, only one answer is acceptable, regardless of whether other answers are equally true. Better fit the mold, your worth depends on it...
I rejected that message back then, and I still do.
Catch a short snippet of me working on a watercolor piece - click here!
Watercolors and Ink
Art was always my refuge, my haven.

In art I can express myself without judgement, and for me part of that freedom is that I can express myself without a goal.

If you stop to think about it that is profound because it is unlike anything else we do in life. Most things are governed by the law of intention, that is, whatever you do, from watching a movie, traveling, to being an entrepreneur are all actions that are governed by intent - you have a reason for doing what you're doing, a goal.
Artistic expression is the notable exception. Art can be expressed solely for the sake of expressing art.
Watercolors hold a special place in my heart. The unpredictability of the life of the paint as it leaves the paintbrush mimics life itself. Life happens beyond our ultimate control, and we have a choice to flow with it. Not with a fixed goal in mind, but to see what happens when we let it unfold with a child's curiosity.

Quick disclaimer: Goals are not bad in and of themselves. On the contrary they are indispensable to living a good life. But no matter how vital, they can only lead us to to where we already know we want to go.
Art can take us beyond that.
Takeaway Pearl
Children use play as learning experiences. They experiment and try things out, not with a desire for a specific outcome in mind, but, like true pure scientific research, without a predetermined goal. Play is not a waste of time, it only appears so to the person indoctrinated by an educational system that believes that all actions must have predetermined goals.
So go play, express yourself without a goal other than expressing yourself! It's exhilarating! It's freedom!

Until next week, all the best!

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