Eyes of an artist

I hate arbitrary things. They are, to me, the worst things in the world. Give me rules with a reason behind them, however inane or backed by misplaced concern. Tell me to do something for someone because it makes you laugh that I don't like it. Make me work only in days that the sky is free of clouds. Just don't pick something randomly. "Just 'cause it's Wednesday"? I balk at these things with no reason for being the way they are.

I think it's because I fear a world of chaos, where coincidence is devoid of meaning and actions lack some overall purpose. Yet, I do not turn to religion, I turn to life around me, looking at picture after picture of trees and clouds and water in the supreme moment of beauty, as though if I witnessed enough perfect scenes, nature's beauty would show that it has a purpose, and I would see the light.

Until recently, I thought I was almost an atheist, or that my need for God, some higher being, or organization of the world, was a weak one. But many, if not most, people have this need: it manifests itself in devotion to God and religion, spirituality, superstition, science, art, music, movies, and writing.

Wikipedia says

The subjective experience of "beauty" often involves the interpretation of some entity as being in balance and harmony with nature, which may lead to feelings of attraction and emotional well-being. In its most profound sense, beauty may engender a salient experience of positive reflection about the meaning of one's own existence. An "object of beauty" is anything that reveals or resonates with personal meaning.

I suppose that's why humans create anything of beauty in the first place...


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beauty