Creating the Universe: Test 1

The process of creating the Universe

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I haven’t been updating my blog with artistic experiments as much as i should, mainly focusing on the thoughts that drive the expression of the experimentation. I plan to change that from this day forward.

As of this moment, i am working with ideas that will, once completed, form a sequence. A theoretical sequence that is not meant to represent reality, rather i aim make one think. For now, i am making experiments, ‘draft’ imagery if you like. Once specific images have been chosen at the ‘conclusion’ of this side of the project i will rework them to a higher quality and finish. The work will then be exhibited under specific conditions.

The sequence will play out as a story, the story of existence. A purely theoretical sequence that focuses on the emotional side to the exploration of science and faith. The story will express the foundations which birthed, stabilized and which eventually, inevitably will bring an end to our existence.

An example of one of my tests is below, the theme of this specific image is the ‘catalyst’ that birthed the universe. The mysterious light in the image represents an unknown, it represents ‘something’. You could say that ‘something’ is ‘god’.

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Birth

(please be aware that for space and copyright reasons, the work is sampled at low quality on my blog)

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Test 4 …

Dark Moon

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If there is a god, let him show himself in all his glory.

If there is a god, let him come to me, let him answer my questions.

If there is a god, explain to me, what are you?

Where are you?

Tell me, why am i here …

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Test 4

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Below is the latest visualization of the ideas i am expressing on this blog.

God=Light.

More than man, the mortal who thinks hes god=Shadow Figure.

Dark Moon=The embodiment of Darkness.

Dreamscape=Where all things big and small meet.

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Those who seek shall find.

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Test 3 …

Man meets the creator, creator meets its creator …?

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Visualizing the theory of being in a simulation from the perspective of man meeting the creator.

The man, almost insignificant next to the higher being. Man stares into its future, it wants to be god. Man’s creator stands tall next to him, its eyes illuminating bright light, it sees what man can only imagine, it believes it is god. Yet, the higher being also finds itself standing in the face of its creator.

Man and the higher being with which it seeks to become, both find themselves in the face of a true unknowable other, in the face of the true god.

Two examples of my tests with this idea are displayed above. Feel free to comment on the work itself, or the themes with which i am working alongside.

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Test 2 …

Translating a simulation into an image

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Following on from my thoughts on the theory of simulation, that we ourselves may actually be in a simulation, i have been exploring the ideas visually. Essentially, my thoughts that i convey on this blog are focused through the art on an emotional level. The art becomes an imprint of that emotion, if created successfully.

Is there a god?

Could we really be in a simulation?

If we are who’s to say that god, the one who created our simulation, is not in a simulation itself?

These are the three primary questions explored in these tests below. I’m exploring on an emotional level the idea of man meeting god, the idea of god being what we seek to become, the idea of multiple worlds where a creator lies.

There are two distinct types of figure, one shorter than the rest which represents humanity. The other, is far taller, darker and has eyes that radiate bright light. The eyes representing all seeing, the height representing  power, the extended limbs and head of the shadow figure represents ‘intelligence’. It looks to have an essence of humanity, it is a reflection of what we seek to become, it is our future. The bright light, the sphere, represents an actual god. Its form not distinct, its purpose in the image in question. Basically it is how we perceive god, everyone has got their own image of what he/it is.

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God in Relationship to a Simulation …?

The biggest question of all 

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So many questions end with perhaps the question of all questions.

Is there a god?

Can god exist?

What is god?

The more my understanding of life develops, the more interesting this question becomes. Specifically in this post i want to talk further on the idea of a simulation. This time though, more directly in regards to our current world.

Some philosophers state that if we are able to create a fully simulated world, that it heightens the possibility that we ourselves are in a simulated world. If we can create that simulation, we ourselves may be in someone else’s. If so, god could be, essentially, the designer of our simulation? As we would become god to the world with which we simulate. On this line of thought, who’s to say then if we live in such a simulation, that whatever simulated us isn’t also in a simulation?

What if we were in a simulation, how would that make you feel?

How would it change the world in which we live in?

How would we ever even know whether or not we are in a simulation?

Would it be possible, if we are in a simulation, to be part of the world which created us?

If we can create a world, if we are in a simulation, how many times then has this process repeated itself?

Would there be a base reality, with which the true world lies?

If we are in a simulation, then the idea of life being a test starts to hold new meaning. What would we be tested for, for what purpose? What is the end result of such a test? This line of thought sends a chill up my spin, such a reality would be a daunting one indeed.

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Part 3 – The shadow figure

Representing oneself, others and the world

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The human figure is very important in my work. It represents myself, others and the world as the title suggests.

For the last couple of years the figure has had no identity in my work. Instead, the figure is reduced to shadow. The reason for this is that it symbolizes more than one person, one expression, one thought etc.

People ask me, is the figure you? Yes, it is. But its not just me. Its more than me. Its my emotions, its my thoughts, its my life, its my experiences and its how the world sees me and how i look at it. More than that, it is an idea, a theory, it is too much to express in one person or many. It is like staring out a window and staring back in both at the same time.

The figure is an ‘unknowable other’ not because it is unknowable, but because it chooses to be.

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Part 2 – Test 1

Test 1: Creating the world

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Above is an example of one of my tests with creating the world for ‘… Beyond …’. It is by no means a ‘final view’ of beyond, i am at a very early stage of development. It is nowhere near representing my message.

The aim of this test is to investigate my ideas through a visual language. Specifically in regards to this test, the idea is to play with creating a surreal environment that is familiar to us, but ultimately is still ‘alien’.

Essentially, beyond will be represented through a dreamscape series which document specific messages/stages/questions.

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Part 2 – Creating a surreal lens with which to view to world

Representing an illusion through ‘surrealism’

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We ourselves  in our daily lives wear masks with which we hide behind. Just because someone smiles at you, does not mean that they are happy. Just because someone asks you how you are, does not mean that they care. Just because someone may not speak, doesn’t mean they have nothing to say.

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Conveying a perceived reality

Is an edited photograph less real than an unedited one? How you answer that question depends on ones point of view.

Photograph a sunset that leaves you in awe of nature, the world. Now … put that photograph up on the wall. Tell me, does it represent what you saw, what you felt? Does it convey it to a mind other than yours?

No?

Truth is, a wash of colour with a watercolour brush could represent that sunset better than the photograph. Why? Because it involves expression, it is a creation direct from your hand and thus involves ones emotions. For better or for worse.

Now, i use a lot of photography in my work (be it for reference or display). But the purest would say i am not a photographer, as i do not leave it as is when dealing with ‘art’ . Distorting what we generally perceive as real from the lens of a camera can in fact sometimes lead to a truer representation of life through the eyes of a conscious mind and heart.

That is the theory behind my work.

Create a surreal lens with which to view the world, distort what we perceive as reality in order to convey reality.

My reality.

How i do it is down to the subject matter. I do not choose the medium, the message does.

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Part 1 – The Light …

Part 1

Dissecting the image …

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The Light.

Light is the opposing force of the dark.

The balance between these two forces is fundamental to my work. The light a symbol of hope, the dark a symbol of fear and doubt.

A sphere of light will exist in the world within the image. It represents the future, the goal of mankind to go beyond its limitations.

We do not know the future, this uncertainty is expressed in the mysterious object in the world shown through the image.

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One of the things the work will represent is man meeting his future, what he will become.

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Sphere of Light

The example shown in the bottom right hand corner of the image is a clearer representation of what it will look like in an actual image from the visual arts project.

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Questions of Life …

Unknowable?

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What if you were to be confronted with your future, your fate?

Is life on earth a unique miracle? Or are there other civilizations, life on other worlds?

What happens after death? Could we one day comprehend it?

Is there a god? If there is, can we understand it, relate to it, feel it?

What is reality? Ask yourself that, what is it, how do you define it? Can you define it? The greatest minds on earth cannot.

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These are but a few of my questions with which i seek answers to.

However unlikely it is i am to find answers, i find myself asking the questions nonetheless.

As the title ‘… Beyond …’ states, my interest lies in the unknowable.

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