Art as a Vision of Consciousness
Degard in Association with Academy for the Advancement of Post Materialist Sciences
Art and Artists have long been involved with the observation and documentation of extraordinary experiences. From Hildegard of Bingen in the 10th century who had visions of energetic presence, which she used for healing purposes and had drawn for her to the very same ideas explored amongst artists and scientists today; energy, healing, vibration, telepathy and dreaming.
Artists through the centuries have involved the extraordinary and the visionary in their work. Whilst Damien Hirst in 1991 in The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living explored literally the title of the work and puts into conversation that liminal juncture often explored in near death experiences now explored by AAPS scientists. Leonardo da Vinci imbued his work with the thinking “While I thought that I was learning how to live, I have been learning how to die.” – Leonardo Da Vinci, which is potentially why The Last Supper, is such a penetrating piece of art.
The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of the Living, Hirst, 1991
Last Supper Da Vinci 1498
It is also the gaze that the artist brings to the world which is so striking. Where Kandinsky opened up a world of energy with his Theosophical thinking, Salvador Dali viewed a vision into the mind of dreams whilst Andre Breton hurried the arrival of Automatic writing and drawing and the notion of a deep unconscious. This unconscious was also written about by Carl Jung and reinterpreted by Jackson Pollock. The swirls of Pollock’s art make infinite sense in the light of notions of the unconscious.
Contemporary artists although having been working under the taboo of scientism have nevertheless shown their thoughts through art. To name a few contemporary visionary artists: Degard is a pioneering artist discussing energetic presence, vitality and its relation to consciousness, Grace Ndritu recognises the vibrational impact of a place, Dr Lila Moore works with notions of Goddess and serpent exploring historic to modern notions and events in a weave of mesmerism.
Art and artist thinking is an essential ingredient in the mix to understand consciousness. The observation of consciousness is after all expressed and seen through artistic practice.
On these pages AAPS is exploring artists and their art and their involvement in the ideas of consciousness.