{"id":2520,"date":"2013-07-13T01:42:11","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:42:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=2520"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:42:11","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:42:11","slug":"59-painting-in-the-ashram-vol-27-letters-on-poetry-and-art","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/03-cwsa\/27-letters-on-poetry-and-art\/59-painting-in-the-ashram-vol-27-letters-on-poetry-and-art","title":{"rendered":"-59_Painting in the Ashram.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n


\n\t\t\tPainting in the Ashram <\/font> <\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n


\nA General Remark<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\nWhat you write about the expression of beauty through painting and the limitations of the work as yet done here, is quite
\naccurate. The painters here have capacity and disposition, but as yet the work done ranks more as studies and sketches, some
\nwell done, some less well, than as great or finished art. What they need is not to be easily satisfied because they have put their
\nideas or imaginations in colour or because they have done some good work, but always to see what has not been yet achieved
\nand train vision and execution-power till they have reached a truly high power of themselves. <\/p>\n

10 January 1936 <\/font><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

On Some Artists of the Ashram<\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\nAnilkumar is still learning; he is very clever and ingenious, loves painting and works hard at it and recently he has been making
\nremarkable progress in technique. <\/p>\n

Nishikanta has already his own developed technique and a
\ncertain originality of vision ―two things which must be there before a man can take rank as a painter. There are on the other
\nhand certain defects and limitations. Power he has but not as yet any consummate harmony. <\/p>\n

These observations of course are private and for you only. Mother does not want to pass any public judgment. Let each
\ngrow in his own way and to his own possible stature ―with as little rivalry or vainglory as may be. <\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\nIt is true that Romen has an instinctive artistic sense but also he
\nhas spent much time in painting and given much attention to it,   <\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-692<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nso he has progressed fast. He has also great self-confidence. <\/p>\n

The artistic sense can be had by training
\n\t―the capacity
\nyou have, but it has to be brought out more and more and disciplined by study and practice. By development you will get
\nself-confidence. <\/p>\n

7 November 1935
\n<\/font><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Need of Artistic Training<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\nYou can write to him that the Mother has seen his pictures. If
\nhe wants seriously to take up painting, it can’t be done out of his own mind without help of competent teachers. He would
\nhave to undergo a complete and long training so as to train his eye as well as his hand; his eye to see things as they appear to
\nthe artistic vision and his hand to execute that vision with a sure technique. Technique cannot be acquired without a sound
\ntraining. Also he must learn to know all that is necessary about the human body and its details; otherwise he will not be able
\nto build faultlessly a human face or figure. For instance in his picture of the flowers he has a put a hand in which the thumb
\nis in an impossible position and the fingers begin at the same level as the thumb and not far below. In art a taste for the art
\nor even a faculty for it is not sufficient; there is necessary also a training. <\/p>\n

8 September 1932 <\/font><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n


\n*<\/b><\/font><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do you think that I shall be able to learn painting? <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\nYou can learn on condition you study and take pains. Painting is
\nnot like poetry which you can develop by the innate faculty and a growing inspiration with just a little knowledge of metrical
\ntechnique. In painting you have to learn carefully any number of things ―learn not by theory only but by practice with a good
\nteacher, e.g. firm line and strong drawing, perspective, how to mix colours, how to use the right colours and what colours can
\ngo together and so on ―all that goes by the name of technique. If you do not study that, no amount of inspiration will make you
\na good painter. You were progressing very well, but you must   <\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-693<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\n

learn these things carefully and you must take more pains about details. <\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

*<\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

\nThat is a great error of the human vital
\n―to want compliments
\nfor their own sake and to be depressed by their absence and imagine that it means there is no capacity. In this world one
\nstarts with ignorance and imperfection in whatever one does ―one has to find out one’s mistakes and to learn, one has to
\ncommit errors and find out by correcting them the right way to do things. Nobody in the world has ever escaped from this law.
\nSo what one has to expect from others is not compliments all the time, but praise of what is right or well done and criticism
\nof errors and mistakes. The more one can bear criticism and see one’s mistakes, the more likely one is to arrive at the fullness of
\none’s capacity. Especially when one is very young ―before the age of maturity ―one cannot easily do perfect work. What is
\ncalled the juvenile work of poets and painters ―work done in their early years ―is always imperfect, it is a promise and has
\nqualities ―but the real perfection and full use of their powers comes afterwards. They themselves know that very well, but
\nthey go on writing or painting because they know also that by doing so they will develop their powers. <\/p>\n

As for comparison with others, one ought not to do that. Each one has his own lesson to learn, his own work to do and he
\nmust concern himself with that, not with the superior or inferior progress of others in comparison with himself. If he is behind
\ntoday, he can be in full capacity hereafter and it is for that future perfection of his powers that he must labour. You are young and
\nhave everything yet to learn ―your capacities are yet only in bud, you must wait and work for them to be in full bloom
\n―and
\nyou must not mind if it takes months and years even to arrive at something satisfying and perfect. It will come in its proper time,
\nand the work you do now is always a step towards it. <\/p>\n

But learn to welcome criticism and the pointing out of imperfections ―the more you do so, the more rapidly you will advance.
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

1933<\/font> <\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-694<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nIf you work hard and patiently you can surely learn [painting<\/i>] ―but you must realise that you are very young and it takes years
\nbefore an artist can learn to produce something really perfect. <\/p>\n

\n  <\/p>\n

\n Wanting to Learn<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

\n  <\/p>\n

\nThe difficulty with him [a young painter of the Ashram<\/i>] is that he does not want to learn
\n\t―it must all come by inspiration, as
\nif such a thing were possible in things in which knowledge of technique and careful and long assiduous practice are needed,
\nas in art and music. Besides he cannot bear to be criticised and [to have] his mistakes shown to him. All the talent in the world
\nwill not serve, if he does not change in these two things. <\/p>\n

\n 11 June 1934 <\/font><\/p>\n

\n *<\/b><\/font><\/p>\n

\n  <\/p>\n

\nSomeone who is learning to paint or play music or write and
\ndoes not like to have his mistakes pointed out by those who already know ―how is he to learn at all or reach any perfection
\nof technique? <\/p>\n

12 June 1934
\n  
\n  
\n<\/font><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-695<\/font><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Painting in the Ashram   A General Remark   What you write about the expression of beauty through painting and the limitations of the work…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-27-letters-on-poetry-and-art","wpcat-51-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2520"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}