Unleashing the creative: Nietzsche, the phenomenologists and the good life

Art is the supreme task, as Nietzsche would have it. How can we balance creativity with rationality? And what are the dangers of letting the Dionysian genie out of the bottle, especially in the public square? Dr Laura D’Olimpio, a lecturer in philosophy at the University of Notre Dame WA, appraises the value of a creative life.

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CrazyNeutrino said:

How can we balance creativity with rationality?

And the answer to that question is what? I suspect that there’s no correlation between creativity and rationality, there are equal numbers of people who are both, neither, and one but not the other.

> The example of beautifying public spaces with street art

I used to consider graffiti as vandalism until I watched the short film “Wall flowers” ten or more years ago, which allowed me a paradigm change. (It also gave me a different perspective on ‘social workers’). Since then I’ve sought out examples of graffiti as an art form.

mollwollfumble said:

CrazyNeutrino said:

How can we balance creativity with rationality?

And the answer to that question is what? I suspect that there’s no correlation between creativity and rationality, there are equal numbers of people who are both, neither, and one but not the other.

> The example of beautifying public spaces with street art

I used to consider graffiti as vandalism until I watched the short film “Wall flowers” ten or more years ago, which allowed me a paradigm change. (It also gave me a different perspective on ‘social workers’). Since then I’ve sought out examples of graffiti as an art form.

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

I agree that creativity and rationality are not really correlated

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Not if express permission has been given to put the art there.

Still, then and all, vandalism is an art form of its own when you think about Banksy.

roughbarked said:

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Not if express permission has been given to put the art there.

Still, then and all, vandalism is an art form of its own when you think about Banksy.

If permission has been given the it isn’t graffiti it’s commissioned art.
Also it is possible for graffiti to be both vandalism & art.

roughbarked said:

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Not if express permission has been given to put the art there.

Still, then and all, vandalism is an art form of its own when you think about Banksy.

Not if permission has been granted, but then by definition it’s not graffiti

Graffiti may be considered art in some cases, but Christopher Hitchens quote about literature applies to graffiti too

“Everybody does have a book in them, but in most cases that’s where it should stay.”

mollwollfumble said:

CrazyNeutrino said:

How can we balance creativity with rationality?

And the answer to that question is what? I suspect that there’s no correlation between creativity and rationality, there are equal numbers of people who are both, neither, and one but not the other.

I would say that creativity is a sub-set or rationality.

That is, for a human to exclude creativity form rationality is irrational.

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Even if it is Gothic?

The Rev Dodgson said:

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Even if it is Gothic?

Graffiti, even if it is vandalism, can be useful.
Roman graffiti tells us quite a lot about life in Roman times.

The Rev Dodgson said:

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Even if it is Gothic?

I don’t understand the ref

Dropbear said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Even if it is Gothic?

I don’t understand the ref

Would you like me to Google that for you?

(The Goths and Vandals didn’t get along too well)

Tamb said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Dropbear said:

Graffiti IS vandalism. Period. It may be artistic but it’s still vandalism.

Even if it is Gothic?

Graffiti, even if it is vandalism, can be useful.
Roman graffiti tells us quite a lot about life in Roman times.

>>Roman graffiti tells us quite a lot about life in Roman times.

vandals in sandals?

The Rev Dodgson said:

Dropbear said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Even if it is Gothic?

I don’t understand the ref

Would you like me to Google that for you?

(The Goths and Vandals didn’t get along too well)

Ahhhh I see.. Very good

Some clever stuff in this one.

stumpy_seahorse said:

Tamb said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Even if it is Gothic?

Graffiti, even if it is vandalism, can be useful.
Roman graffiti tells us quite a lot about life in Roman times.

>>Roman graffiti tells us quite a lot about life in Roman times.

vandals in sandals?

Or Goths in cloths.

wasn’t phenomenology debunked years ago?

JudgeMental said:

wasn’t phenomenology debunked years ago?

I had never heard of it until today so maybe it was so debunked as to not ever be mentioned.
I had heard of phrenology though. Another one which has been debunked.

ahhhh phrenology.

;-)

Phrenologists are a joke, they’re frauds and anyone stupid enough to believe in them needs their head read.

Peak Warming Man said:

Phrenologists are a joke, they’re frauds and anyone stupid enough to believe in them needs their head read.

boomtish

dv said:

Peak Warming Man said:

Phrenologists are a joke, they’re frauds and anyone stupid enough to believe in them needs their head read.

boomtish

>And the answer to that question is what? I suspect that there’s no correlation between creativity and rationality, there are equal numbers of people who are both, neither, and one but not the other.

‘n’ to lucidate some there’re creative rationality’n rational creativity
uncreative rationality’n uncreative irrationality’n the list do goes on

I find that a preoccupation with rational thinking can get in the way of my artistic creativity.

Bubblecar said:

I find that a preoccupation with rational thinking can get in the way of my artistic creativity.

I find that artistic creativity that does not align with rational thinking can often lead to pretentious bulldust in the name of art

Dropbear said:

Bubblecar said:

I find that a preoccupation with rational thinking can get in the way of my artistic creativity.

I find that artistic creativity that does not align with rational thinking can often lead to pretentious bulldust in the name of art

True, but when you get up in the morning expecting to do some fine art or music composition and instead log onto the internet and find someone’s wrong, your brain goes into rational argumentative mode and it can be hard to snap back into aesthetic/poetic mode. Especially as talking shit on the internet is a lot easier than creating fine art :)

Bubblecar said:

. Especially as talking shit on the internet is a lot easier than creating fine art :)

hard to argue with that :)

Especially as talking shit on the internet is a lot easier than creating fine art

phew, luckily i do neither of those things.

JudgeMental said:

Especially as talking shit on the internet is a lot easier than creating fine art

phew, luckily i do neither of those things.

Hmmmm