Question 2

2) If you had to formulate your aesthetic sensibilities, how would you do that?

The Short Answer-- my aesthetic sensibilities are all about the things that move me. If they don't, then I'll make up a standard that they don't reach. If they do, then I'll twist the standard to fit it.

The Mystical Answer-- Something true sits inside me. It is mute. For example, it is not helping me now. When I sense good art, it resonates.



The Mathematical Answer-- There is no arguing with nature, or Fibonacci or five thousand years of history.

The Bottom Line Answer-- When I see good art, it usually propels me into the studio, if I see bad art, it sweeps inspiration away, leaving gray indifference.

Sock Monkey That!

I made my first sock monkey today. Actually, I should call it a "sweater monkey" since I made it from an old sweater. I loved this sweater until I saw a picture of myself in it and I looked like a big pink pillow, so it went into the goodwill bag, until I decided I needed to make some monkeys.

Sock Monkey Aesthetics

This sock monkey is painfully ugly. I realized this pretty early on, as I was sewing the legs. The legs are very long compared to the body. Surely no golden mean of ratios of leg versus body length has been met. I decided to press on, thinking that perhaps the beauty of the monkey would consist of her softness, of her sweet spirit and kind demeanor. I stuffed her with the ugliest silk scarves. They wouldn't be good for anything else and they don't show, so they don't count. I sewed on her ears, on the side of her head, since she is a primate, like us, and our ears, for better or worse, don't stick up like a cat's, but lay on the side of our heads. I couldn't find two matching buttons, so she has failed at symmetry (but they are vintage mother-of-pearl).

Her head is lumpy. It is a phrenologist's dream. Her stitching shows (I was lazy and used white thread. I did it on purpose! Its artsy stitching!). I sewed matching socks for her (a self-referencing accessory) that look like condoms on her legs.

The Verdict
I brought her out for the M to see. She immediately declared her a "beautiful sock monkey!" I was relieved to see a 150 years of aesthetics go down the drain. I hinted that this might be her Christmas present, and the M's face brightened. I am not sure why the M thought she was pretty-- perhaps her homeliness was somehow appealing in this context. Maybe cuddly things don't have to be classically beautiful.

John B suggested that I have a naming contest. If you have a suggestion, feel free to leave a kibbitz. The winner gets a free prize, so make sure you leave your info.