Afgeskeepte kunstenaar

Dit voel aanmatig om myself 'n kunstenaar te noem, maar ek het onlangs weer besef dat dit is tog die kern van wie ek is. As kind het ek ure en ure om gesit en prentjies teken en stories vertel. Op skool was ek geken as die outjie wat mooi kan teken. En pouses het ek vir my vriende stories vertel--lang "drome" wat ek die vorige aand gedroom het, maar ons het almal geweet dit was net stories wat ek daar op die dag opgemaak het. Maar dit was die getekenry waarvoor ek die meeste bekend was. En dit is juis hierdie getekenry was ek nou al vir jare afskeep. Sedert ek my graad in Grafiese Ontwerp voltooi het, omtrent 15 jaar gelede, en van studierigting verander het, het ek byna geen meer visuele kuns gemaak nie. 'n Prentjie een of twee keer per jaar, en doodles in my notaboek tydens vervelige vergaderings is nie 'n uitlewing van my kunstige self nie.

Ja, daar is ander maniere waarop ek my visuele kreatiewe sappe aan die brou kry--fotografie, byvoorbeeld. Ek neem gereeld fotos en verbeter die foto dan met grafiese programme (Grafiese Ontwerp kom steeds handig te pas), maar om iets af te neem, is baie anders as om iets te teken. Om 'n foto te neem is om 'n estetiese oomblik te herken en dan vas te vang. Om te teken of skilder is om die estetiese oomblik te maak. Die verskil is soos om 'n fliek te kyk of die boek te lees. Laasgenoemde vereis veel meer persoonlike inset, as eersgenoemde. Hiermee bedoel ek geen afbreek aan fotografie as kunsvorm nie. Ek noem myself nie 'n fotograaf nie. My mooi fotos het minder te doen met my fotografiese vaardigheid, en baie meer te make met my Grafiese Ontwerp agtergrond. Ek verstel aan my fotos om hulle mooi te kry. En 'n mens kan jouself allermins 'n fotograaf noem wanneer jy fotos met jou selfoonkamera neem, soos in my geval.

Terug by my behoefte aan kuns maak: 'n Paar weke gelede luister ek na 'n uitmuntende preek deur Greg Boyd wat een van daardie oomblikke-van-verheldering ("enlightenment") vir my ingehou het. Die preek handel oor die Skeppingsnarratief:

In ancient near-east culture, the phrase “made in the image of” was not uncommon. Often it was applied to statues of their gods. When these statues were made, the sculptor was to let the gods work through them to sculpt some attribute of a god. Then there was a “mouth-washing” ceremony, which often happened in temples that faced east or in gardens or rivers, in which the spirit of that god was “breathed into” the mouth of the statue. From that point on they believed that the god inhabited that statue, so the people would “feed” the god through rituals and ceremonies, and the god would then hopefully take care of the people. These statues were said to be “made in the image of” their gods.
So are we supposed to be statues of God?! Actually, in a manner of speaking, yes! The author of Genesis 1 describes God speaking everything into existence – except humans, who he came down and formed out of the earth. Then the text says he “breathed” his spirit into us, and put us in a garden with rivers in the east. This would have communicated to the ancients that God was saying, “this is my temple – I’m present here, and I created you to inhabit you.” It was a big twist on their understanding of “being made in the image of” – God sculpting and inhabiting us instead of the other way around!
But more than that, God is a “living God” – an intentionally redundant phrase that communicates that we are not just lifeless statues when he inhabits us. This is a very important aspect of being made in the image of God – we have a God who lives and moves, and we are to do the same! A living God needs a living representation of him, and we are to mirror his capacity for life, love, faithfulness, passion, etc. As Irenaeus said, “The glory of God is man fully alive”, and now is the time to be fully alive! This is the time to manifest God’s character, to care for the poor, to serve – to image the God who is living and fully invested in his creation!

Ek raai dit beslis aan. Jy kan dit hier aflaai en luister.

Boyd se aanmoediging aan die einde van die preek is dat aangesien ons in die beeld van die Lewende God geskape is, ons juis ons lewendigheid moet vier. Wat is dit wat jou maak lewendig voel? Die sielkunde vra die vraag soms anders: watter aktiwiteit maak jou vergeet van tyd? Vir my is die antwoord wanneer ek teken. Wanneer ek besig is om kuns te maak, dit is wanneer ek "flow" ervaar, en vergeet van alles om my, en net "is".

Daarom het ek besluit om 'n punt daarvan te maak om meer te teken. Ek wil nie vir myself ten doel stel om groot kunswerke, reuse skilderye, of so iets nou te maak nie. Ek het veels te veel ander dinge wat prioriteite is en my aandag vereis. Maar ek wil meer kuns maak. Al is dit net doodles. Ten minste een keer 'n week moet ek sit en iets teken. 'n Blom, of 'n appel, of 'n vis, of 'n gesig, of 'n ding. Net iets. So sedert verlede week het ek daarmee begin. Hier is 'n paar van my skribbels tot dusver.

Some things I did in March 2015

After I came back from South Africa, I went to the Studio Ghibli exhibit that was in Seoul.

The end of February and start of March began with farewells to friends whose tenure in Korea came to an end. 

Of course, returning to Taekwon-Do training.

Going to a friend's birthday party...

and visiting the strange university with its own unique Korean religion.

On my own birthday I went to a Bobby McFerrin concert.

And got this cute little figurine as a gift from a close friend.

Since my birthday fell on an inconvenient day of the week for a celebration I decided to have a party on my lunar birthday instead, which conveniently fell on a Sunday. Some birthday party pics:

I had a nice time doing some Taekwon-Do research with two great Taekwon-Do academics.

More Taekwon-Do training.

And I went to the Ahn Joong-Geun museum and was party of a small group of people that rediscovered the dining room in which "Taekwon-Do" was founded in the Chosun Hotel in 1955.

Some things I did in January & February 2015

First I spent a couple of days in Hong Kong. For a long time I wanted to celebrate New Year's Eve in Hong Kong and I was finally able to schedule my trip to South Africa in such a way that I could be in Hong Kong over the end of the year, and hailing in the new year while standing at the Hong Kong Harbor. After a couple of days in Hong Kong I continued my journey to South Africa where I stayed for about six weeks.

I got to see many friends and family. My trip in South Africa started in Johannesburg where I stayed for two days with my friend Franco. I then went to Vanderbijlpark almost a week, and then on to a road trip with one of my best friends to Pinetown where I stayed one night with another one of my best friends, and returned to Sasolburg the next day. From Sasolburg I went to Potchefstroom and stayed there for about a week--after Potchefstroom I went to Johannesburg again, then Pretoria, and then Tzaneen, Polokwane, back to Johannesburg from where I flew to Durban and Pinetown again. Finally I flew to Cape Town, went to a small Western Cape town, again to Cape Town where I stayed for about a week to spend time with my brother and another of my closest friends. From Cape Town I flew to back to Johannesburg to catch my international flight via Singapore back to Korea. As always, my South Africa trip was not particularly relaxing. All the travelling was rather stressful, and many of the people I care about are going through difficult times. Nevertheless, seeing so many of the people I love dearly was a great blessing. Because of my PhD studies I wasn't able to visit South Africa in two years, so it had been a rather long time not to see many people I care about. Also, because a might have my graduation ceremony during my break next January/February, there is a possibility that I may not be able to visit South Africa then.

Below are some representative photos from the trip:

This last picture is the first draft of a poem I wrote while in Cape Town.