A BIRTHDAY GIFT

Duncan MacAskill gave me a ball of clay for my birthday. It was made up of a number of coloured clays all struck together and shaped into a ball just over 2 inches in diameter. He took a knife and cut through the middle of the ball revealing a lovely abstract image. One could then put the two halves back together and create another twin circular image. It was art by chance. It was a kaleidoscope of clays. I played with it a lot. I even cut out a particular image that I felt was worth keeping. There was a quality about it that resonated. I now have it as my screen saver.

Unfortunately, the more I played with the ball, the more the colours blended and I am left with a bluish grey clay ball. I have found other ways to play with it. 

 

You will note the change in colour when photographed on a white background.

 

It is the same ball of clay. So far as the screen saver image is concerned, I have since turned the disc to view it from different horizontal positions and I find that the one I first saw (the one in the photo) is favourite. You can print the image and turn it to see which view you might prefer. Had I cut through the clay and separated the two halves of the ball with a different twist, I might never have seen this particular image. You may of course think the image rubbish, but it does impart the feeling that everything has its own horizon.  It is what gives us direction. Indeed, the earth viewed from space is best seen displayed from north to south, just as we see it on a map or globe. It is the way we are conditioned to view the world, as in space there is no north or south; yet, those cardinal directions are either the invention of the human mind or somehow implanted in our brains from birth. Migrating creatures, birds, bees, pigeons, and others seem to have some built in sense of direction; but, from where do we get our sense of orientation? Does the Universe have a north or south pole?

 

I can understand the arbitrary nature of language. As primitive beings interreacted and uttered sounds and made gestures to communicate, various objects around them were named. Certain sounds were attached to certain objects and as language developed sounds were attached to feelings as well. Different areas had different sounds and hence different languages emerged; different grammars and linguistic structure as well. Of course, we are all capable of learning each other’s language, although some find it easier that others. It seems sad, that at the very moment when we need desperately to understand each other’s languages things have gone awry. We need to recalibrate and find our common sense of direction.

 

It is startling what one can gather from a small ball of coloured clay given to one on one's birthday.