Post 7: The Unconscious

Post 7: The Unconscious

“We may define the unconscious; the deepest level of consciousness, as a pool of unwanted or unacceptable ideas, wishes or desires, memories, and emotions. These unwanted things are pushed down into the unconscious so that we do not have to deal with them and so they do not interfere or cause problems in our daily lives.”

http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Unconscious#ixzz2Kccw57EF

Bird speaks of how Sigmund Freud came up with the idea of the unconscious and how it is possibly the place from which many artists, and philosophers derived their melancholy and darkly divine expressions. In the 1020’s Breton’s Surrealist Manifesto used Freud’s theories’ to tap into their unconscious for repressed desires and symbolic dreams. They believed this was a way to confront and process these hidden demons, which were causing nations to wage war. After WW2 the exploration of the personal unconscious took a back seat while dealing with practical social issues become more important. Anselm Kiefer, a German artist delved into the collative conscious and the repressed memories of Nazi Germany. I had never heard of this artist but now I am highly drawn to his work. Here are two below.

The hidden aspects of the mind fascinate me and how it works. I have always found Surrealist art to be some of my favorite and I tend to work in that style with collage. I can envision a series of art works based on my dreams, and hidden desires. I do think that writing, sketching, and free form art making helps to uncover feelings and memories we don't allow ourselves to experience on a busy daily basis.