“A mystery to unfold, a psyche to unravel. I ask myself what stories lay beneath the surface.”
Have you ever been so captivated by beauty that it caused inspiration within your soul to create?
A beautiful woman cascaded in shadows that caress her figure as she candidly meanders in her essence of mystery and elegance? A whimsical autumn morning scene that grabs your being as you gaze upon it through your window whilst sipping a morning coffee? Maybe a city skyline illuminated in the dark of midnight, glancing into distant windows that house stories you can only imagine whilst pondering your life in glorious solitude on top a high rise building?
The ever so elusive answer to what would otherwise be a simple question… What is a muse?
I believe the answer to such a question exists within the observer, rather than the observed.
Of course, as someone who is so hopelessly seduced (and slightly obsessed) with complexity, the basic definition given to us in the dictionary just isn’t going to satisfy my desire to complicate things… “A person or personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist”… All too basic for my own tastes.
Although the minimalist definition is true in a broad sense, it only scratches the surface level. Our individual muses can reveal the deepest parts of our psyche and natural inclinations that transcend written definitions.
A muse can exist in many forms, maybe infinite. These forms depend on the subjective perceptions of each individual. While there are some universal truths to the definition of a muse such as, mystery and wonder, many more depend on the individuals personal viewpoints on this thing we call life.
Sensory Sparks
First is to look at where the identification begins, the senses.
As an artist and writer, my main inspirations begin with visuals and aesthetics, for a music producer certain sounds vibrate at just the right frequency to conjure up a unique beat, for a sculptor certain textures and shapes create new form structures, for a philosophical mind it could be an idea or new perspective that peels back another layer, and so on. All very self explanatory and fits within the boundaries of the dictionary description.
There are no limits to what can stimulate the senses, it can even be a combination of two or more for any creative. Visuals and touch could inspire a song, smell and sound could inspire a painting. The possibilities are seemingly endless.
What stimulates you is what stimulates you, but this is where the surface is only scratched.
What Hides Behind The Veil?…
As humans we have complex minds that (when proper due has been paid to inner development) are capable of immense introspection and deeper understanding. Yet most of us have been conditioned from birth to only perceive what lays on the surface level, whilst we are capable of so much more.
A deep dive into what/who your muses are can reveal parts of yourself that would otherwise be hidden. They tell us stories of who we are, what we value and the foundations of what our perceptions rest on, whether socially conditioned/learnt mental traits or our natural birth given traits.
As a straightforward example I will use my own perceptions and interpretations.
As a visual artist and story teller naturally drawn to aesthetics, I am enraptured by by physical beauty in various forms. Whether it exists in appreciation for stunning architecture, the quiet moonlit streets of Amsterdam as I wander in solitude in the early hours of the morning, or the sight of a beautiful woman who exudes a mysterious divinity.
But what causes me to create from the latter, using the subject matter of the female form and essence? What lays beneath the surface?
If creation was for the sake of physical beauty alone we would need no more than the standard definition of a “muse”. But physical beauty merely grabs the attention, a complex mind and spirit is what holds and encapsulates (at least for me personally).
A mystery to unfold, a psyche to unravel. I ask myself what stories lay beneath the surface. A woman with a melancholic aura and divine danger whose presence invokes a wonder with a mind of its own. A mystery unto herself. This satisfies the part of my nature that is stimulated by psychology and philosophical thinking and how it corresponds to the physical world, as well as other aspects. This is what I find myself creating in single frames.
I’m not just referring to the creation of art or images themselves, I’m also referring to our mental creations of what we are observing through our minds. These are known as ‘projections’
Our projections of the “thing” is what creates your perception of how you see it.
How one person observes a thing, person or situation will have its unique fingerprints of their own mind. Separate observers, separate projections. We apply our own projections on what our senses perceive, our own filters on reality. This is what is meant by the phrase, “it exists in the observer, rather than the observed”.
But then you get to the interesting part and ask yourself “why?”
What does this reveal about ourselves?
It could reveal the shadow parts of your psyche that have been subconsciously repressed. It could be memories of a significant time in your life that you could conscious or unconscious of, or something that just vibrates within you that resonates truth.
Of course, it doesn’t always require such immense psychological depth, it could be as simple as whatever you’re experiencing through your senses or actions you are participating in, make you feel alive. I reference deeper psycho-analysis as my example because that is the realm in which my muses reside. Psychology, the sub-conscious mind, mystery and wonder, in terms of both physical and non-physical aspects of human existence. Where the tangible meets the intangible in the frameworks of seductive power, elegance and melancholy.
Acknowledgment of the deeper aspects of your muses in life can bring an abundance of meaning and reason to your works, making the creative process all the more energetic. By investigating your muses you are, in turn, investigating your own unique mind. But that’s where your journey of self discovery can begin, if you haven’t already gone down the rabbit hole. This can be beneficial for the creator in “flow” or the creative with a “block”. I can say with absolute conviction that that diving into the depths understanding the reasons “why” has provided a clarity I never thought existed and and a passion for the process of creating that only grows in intensity.
Conclusion
If you’re a creative like me and your mind craves the stimulation that only complexity can provide, maybe diving into these concepts could satisfy that craving.
Studying your muses becomes studying your own mind from the angle of of what your inner and outer senses feel pleasure towards. What better endeavour than to study that which brings you to a deeper understanding of why you create what you choose to create.
Appreciation for beauty will come and go, sometimes in only an instant. But muses hold something true within you that cannot be ignored and yearns for expression. Muses don’t just inspire, they activate a creative force within you.
Raine.