365 days of aRt. DAY ONE HUNDRED & THIRTY-EIGHT.

there it is
knocking on the corpus of my intelligence
seducing, captivating, tempting
there again
playing another bass line
for an audience
of no one but me
this crescendo of musical genius
is in a creative struggle
with the rational, analytical being
and there it is again
the persona within me.
(canvas text)

Blog about the piece:
The alter ego is a concept that's been used in literary analysis and comic book usage for years. Although, it seems we all struggle with some sort of alter ego; I see it as that little voice inside, that keeps reminding you of not doing your life's work. Finding and developing our creative strengths is an important part of becoming who we really are -- we don't essentially know who we can be until we know what we can do. Ken Robinson refers to this concept as THE ELEMENT -- it's that combination where the things we love to do and the things we are good at, come together. In Robinson's book, he describes THE ELEMENT as having two features, aptitude and passion; and, having two conditions, attitude and opportunity. According to Robinson, the sequence goes something like this: "I get it; I love it; I want it; Where is it?" For more of the amazing Ken Robinson, check out his TED talk on cultivating creativity and acknowledging multiple types of intelligence: http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html
If you were able to take one piece of encouragement from today's posting, it would be to not ignore that persona that's knocking on the corpus of your intelligence. "Never underestimate the vital importance of finding early in life the work that for you is play. This turns possible underachievers into happy warriors." (Via a quote from one of the possible underachievers in Robinson's book, whom eventually went on to winning the Nobel Peace Prize in Economics.)