Observation • Interpretation • Expression
“Is the mind a product of nature,, or is nature a product of the mind?” — Gregory Bateson
(Note: FIELD REPORT is a personal investigation. You can find the final document (left) HERE in Publications. Below is the report Introduction.)
The germination of this series began in June of 1983 while driving across Arizona with my muse after a three day stay in the Hopi and Navajo Nations. Taking in the endless vista, on way to a campsite, we speculated on whether or not the Hopi medicine men listened to the U. S. weather forecasts. Contemplating that, I profess, “I want to make chanting songs to the science gods.” It made perfect sense to us.
Field Report is that song/experiment. Today art need not serve any purpose. Aesthetic experience is an end in itself. Instead of this “art for art sake” approach, I have a thesis. I have made observations and interpretations. I have defined my constants and variables. I work with an objective in mind. Through this process, my results will determine the unknown.
And I am making music. I am harmonizing my constants and variables. I am composing my data and orchestrating my interpretations to minimize the noise and create melody.
We all ponder “What is Life?” When does it start? Where does it come from? Where does it go when it’s gone? Are there other dimensions? What are its limits and definitions? What about the “soul”?
Now that we are a secular society, what is “spiritual? I don’t mean to be glib or pretentious. I don’t even expect answers. But I am curious about these unknowns.
When I became a father, I was overwhelmed. Transformed, I needed a new understanding. Because I am a painter, my art became my method of this pursuit. On these pages I have recorded my efforts.
Kenneth B Smith NYC~ November 1987
Below: a few of the some 250 drawings and 40 paintings. Observation: on grid paper • Interpretation: on B F K Rives • Expression: on board
