Northampton Electronic Collection of Theses and Research

Spirituality & trans-cultural phenomena: art, alchemy and the outsider

Parker, D. (2010) Spirituality & trans-cultural phenomena: art, alchemy and the outsider. Paper presented to: Contemplations of the Spiritual in Contemporary Art, Liverpool Cathedral, Liverpool, 10-11 December 2010. (Unpublished)

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Abstract: This paper speculates on motivational connections between art making and its reception, the alchemical process, and notions of the spiritual in the art of the outsider. Using Jungian psychology as a theoretical framework, the paper attempts to address the perceived oppositional conditions pertaining to art made from both within and outside the cultural mainstream. Parallels are drawn between the artist and the alchemist as outsiders and how visionary states of mind might be seen as fundamental to aspects of spiritual experience. The paper had evolved out of theoretical issues developed from within my studio and the practice of painting. The idea of the possibility of ‘trans-cultural’ expression emerged from this practice and this was developed theoretically using Jungian and Post Jungian perspectives. In the process, it became apparent that any symbolic meaning appeared to be embedded within aesthetic values and that these ‘values’ as such suggested deep connections to the notion of ‘otherness’ in art and the spiritual. These ideas remain central to my ongoing attempt to invest painting with a level of ‘depth experience’ and to establish the primacy of imagination as the key faculty underscoring perceptual and emotional intelligence
Subjects: N Fine Arts > N Visual arts (General) > N7432.5 Outsider art
N Fine Arts > ND Painting > ND1158.P64 Psychological aspects
N Fine Arts > N Visual arts (General) > N7560 Special subjects of art > N8248.S77 Spirituality in art
N Fine Arts > N Visual arts (General) > N61 Theory. Philosophy. Aesthetics of the visual arts
Creators: Parker, David
Faculties, Divisions and Institutes: Faculties > Faculty of Arts, Science & Technology > Fine Art
Date: 11 December 2010
Date Type: Presentation
Event Title: Contemplations of the Spiritual in Contemporary Art
Event Dates: 10-11 December 2010
Event Location: Liverpool Cathedral, Liverpool
Event Type: Conference
Language: English
Status: Unpublished
URI: http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/id/eprint/3388

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