The palatable difference between pleasure and pain “Perhaps the only difference between me and other people was that I’ve always demanded more from the sunset; more spectacular colors when the sun hit the horizon. That’s perhaps my only sin.” That is coming from Joe, the main protagonist of Lars Von Trier’s Nymphomaniac, who was just saved from a savage beating by a man who is listening to hear her recount every single sordid detail of her erotic experiences, down to... Read more
A Supernatural Spark in Faith When we intend to find a spiritual reason to explain our existence, does that mean that science, the supernatural and the mundane do not belong? I would argue that all of these things are equal parts to understanding life, humanity and our world. Enter the blue rose, an impossible creation in nature. The sign of a supernatural occurrence via the world of David Lynch. I strongly feel that many of Lynch’s films are highly spiritual... Read more
Plagues and Panic: how art can keep us from feeling alone During the 2019 COVID pandemic, before that even, the lingering malaise that has covered the world has filled me with dread. It’s more than that basic existential dread, it is more of a sudden burst of inexplicable, terrifying consternation. The worry for the well-being of others. Of humanity as a whole. These feelings are as indescribable as they are relatable and have always been punctuated with art, books, music... Read more
Modern Rap And Hip-Culture in a deconstructed sense My partner recently defended the concept of modern pop culture rap and hip-hop songs as a more layered and elegant example of music. This went as far as saying classical is more primitive than other types of music. I felt that his thesis that, “WAP,” by Cardi B was more layered and complex than a classical piece by Beethoven was strange yet interesting to me. Elegant was a misnomer to describe anything,... Read more
Elevated Spiritual Plain through the onset of trauma When watching Life of Pi, you feel as though swept away into a new and exciting plain of existence. It felt like an elevated spiritual journey more than a simple film about a sunken ship and the story of survival that followed. The raw trauma that Pi endured directly from this tragedy caused him to develop a new story, which is how I perceived as a way to process his grief, pain... Read more
The heavenly strategy of hellish punishment against the blameless: What is the story of Job? I have been following the biblical story of Job in the Bible for quite some time now. It’s a perplexing tale of woe and despair that sends a man who is good and upright in his community to be punished without mercy to prove a point. Here is the direct text that starts off the Book of Job which is Job 1: 1 In the... Read more
How Therapy Can Keep your priorities in check I recall as I was a young teen in therapy my therapist making me write on a blackboard a list. It was a list of what was most important to me. Really, now that I’m older, I can see it was intended to be about what is most important in the sense of humanity in order to survive and thrive. I was grappling with a childhood trauma that I was trying to... Read more
The Pain of Self-Actualization verses Body Image “It’s just what feels right,” Amethyst says causally, but after watching her change her form drastically over and over the course of the whole episode —-and her words are markedly more confident and at peace. Calm and chill. It’s just… her. “That’s why it’s perfect,” Garnet responds. This sums up why I love this show. Steven Universe was such a groundbreaking and beautiful show that had a wonderful amount of depth when it... Read more
Expressing the spiritual journey of life and death through poetry and science I have always been incredibly fascinated by space and nature. The truly inconceivable scope of how much space encompasses our universe is truly a fascinating mystery. This journey is linked to true scientific research and facts I have researched, with my own poetic flair to create a new perspective and tone. I wrote this piece to express my feelings of such an immense power, such as a star,... Read more
Analyzing Religious Art Series: A Deeper Exploration In this ongoing series for An Exhibition Of Art History, I am going to be analyzing famous works of religious art. The focus will be religious symbolism, the history of the piece, biblical history and reference and my personal interpretation of the piece. I hope you enjoy this series as it will take on a wide variety of artistic expressions and spiritual avenues. Each article will represent one piece to keep a clean... Read more
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