Artistic Practices That Are Close To Magic

[C.O.T.]

This is a kind of little report post that can be extended by anyone that knows something more about this courious subject.
As a person interested in art have readed about the visions and explanations that artist give about their creative process, that ones in olve logical rational ones, or technicall triying to achieve some originality or a new approach. Between that kind of trainings and exercises we often found a specific kind of exercises and this special kind have the particularity of being quite close to the Magical or Mistycal practices. This kind of exercises could be gruoped as the mental or perception changing ones. This kind of practices have had a golden age, and that age has been the one of the artistic vanguards from the beginning of the XX century till the 50s. This kind f mental strategies have been used by a lot of artist, and is quite difficult to fix his first developer ( Wich would be interesting cause as you will see have some kind of beauty on their design and originality). So we will fix on any of their most famous and active users. If anyone knows about other kind of artistic strange mental training, post here as you wish.

 

[Moth Twiceborn]

Well, there's always Alan Moore's essay 'Fossil Angels' where he connects Art and Magic as being the same thing. After slagging off all those magicians who are just going through the motions.
https://glycon.livejournal.com/13888.html

 

[C.O.T.]

I will start from one that is not exactly a artistic training, but a psicological research tool, but that was inspired by the artistic activities on the family, and fo sure has been one of the most tipycal ways of getting ideas about painting.
THE ROSCHACH TEST
this consists on a dec of ink stans over paper, some with simetry other without.
The subject tries to figure that the stains resemble, the theory around it says that the subject will trend to semthe main internal conflicts he have by projecting it on the random forms of the stains. This is very similar to the very common practice of finding forms on clouds in the sky or stains on a wall. On a Fortean level is related with that tipycal cases of people finding spirits, gods or demonds on stains.
AUTOMATIC PAINTING- WRITTING.
Today most famous by his Esotericism activities, the artist Austin Osman Spare is one of the first noticed artist on postuling and practicing the automatic painting, is togueder with the french Andre Breton, who was focused on the automatic writing into the underground artistic group of the Surrealist. Both postuled the practice of both activities on a non rational, planificated way, doing it as a kind of compulsion, without any rational control.
PARANOID-CRITIC METOD
Was postuled into the surrealist group by Salvador Dali. Is inspired on the way in wich the people ill of paranoid delirium think, this way is not the automatism of inconscience, but the active rational collaboration of the consciousness on the building of delirant narratives and explanations of irrational and inconscience driven beliefs.

READY MADES
This artistic practice was designed and executed by the French Marcel Duchamp. The artist dont do the art work, he simply finds it, a public porcelain urinal, the wheel of a bicycle, a device to let bottles get dry. Are seen completly out of its function, utility or evn social background, then become simply forms, structures that can be appreciated by his own structural beauty.
THE BAD ART FAN.
Sir Alfred Hitchcock, reading an interview with the filmaker he talked about the kind of practices he did triying to get good and fresh ideas to build new films he confessed that was a compulsive consumer of bad films and pulp literature. But far from being a defect it has a very rational explanation. Masterpieces are in reality deadends, going farest in the same direction is useful for the spectator but absurd for the wanabe creator. The creator instead have to pay attention for the bad art, and try to find between it something interesting that have not still been taken to his best possibility.

PSICOGEOGRAPHY
The French group of the situationist were one of the main practicioners of this strange strategy. Get a city map, each day trace the way you have walked on it, each day with a diferent color. You will realize that the repetition of trajectories is overhelming. They postulate a discipline that seems physical but in reality is spiritual: Simply wonder, literally. Walk with no direction each day for places of the city in wich you dont use to be never.

 

[Endlessly Amazed]

This is a kind of little report post that can be extended by anyone that knows something more about this courious subject.
As a person interested in art have readed about the visions and explanations that artist give about their creative process, that ones in olve logical rational ones, or technicall triying to achieve some originality or a new approach. Between that kind of trainings and exercises we often found a specific kind of exercises and this special kind have the particularity of being quite close to the Magical or Mistycal practices. This kind of exercises could be gruoped as the mental or perception changing ones. This kind of practices have had a golden age, and that age has been the one of the artistic vanguards from the beginning of the XX century till the 50s. This kind f mental strategies have been used by a lot of artist, and is quite difficult to fix his first developer ( Wich would be interesting cause as you will see have some kind of beauty on their design and originality). So we will fix on any of their most famous and active users. If anyone knows about other kind of artistic strange mental training, post here as you wish.

C.O.T. - I am interested in the topic, but don't have much to contribute. Could you perhaps list specific artists, such as Austin Spare (UK) or Rosaleen Norton (Australia)? European painting tradition has much religious art, and I think that this evolved into mystical art in the 1900s - Thomas Cole (USA), for example. I am assuming you are thinking of European art. Aboriginal (native, non-technical culture), Muslim, and Asian art all have a traditional mystical component; but this mystical component is no longer the only way art is expressed in these cultures. The spiritual movement of the 1900's, and continued today, produced much mystical artwork. Roerich is the most famous example.

A current global movement toward fantasy and speculative art, which I think sometimes has a mystical quality, can be found here:
https://www.spectrumfantasticart.com/about-us
I have several of their annual compiled art books, and am amazed at the talent and weird visions. Amazed!

As a hobbiest painter, I think that any time one spends hours and hours focused on something, one's perception will be altered. Which is different than altering one's perception and then painting.

ps - I see that you are in Spain. Vallencia is my favorite city in the world.

 

[Frideswide]

PSICOGEOGRAPHY

The last picture? it makes me think of a fly in amber. I'm a big appreciator of psychogeography.

 

[Endlessly Amazed]

I will start from one that is not exactly a artistic training, but a psicological research tool, but that was inspired by the artistic activities on the family, and fo sure has been one of the most tipycal ways of getting ideas about painting.
THE ROSCHACH TEST
this consists on a dec of ink stans over paper, some with simetry other without.
The subject tries to figure that the stains resemble, the theory around it says that the subject will trend to semthe main internal conflicts he have by projecting it on the random forms of the stains. This is very similar to the very common practice of finding forms on clouds in the sky or stains on a wall. On a Fortean level is related with that tipycal cases of people finding spirits, gods or demonds on stains.
AUTOMATIC PAINTING- WRITTING.
Today most famous by his Esotericism activities, the artist Austin Osman Spare is one of the first noticed artist on postuling and practicing the automatic painting, is togueder with the french Andre Breton, who was focused on the automatic writing into the underground artistic group of the Surrealist. Both postuled the practice of both activities on a non rational, planificated way, doing it as a kind of compulsion, without any rational control.
PARANOID-CRITIC METOD
Was postuled into the surrealist group by Salvador Dali. Is inspired on the way in wich the people ill of paranoid delirium think, this way is not the automatism of inconscience, but the active rational collaboration of the consciousness on the building of delirant narratives and explanations of irrational and inconscience driven beliefs.
View attachment 54937
READY MADES
This artistic practice was designed and executed by the French Marcel Duchamp. The artist dont do the art work, he simply finds it, a public porcelain urinal, the wheel of a bicycle, a device to let bottles get dry. Are seen completly out of its function, utility or evn social background, then become simply forms, structures that can be appreciated by his own structural beauty.
THE BAD ART FAN.
Sir Alfred Hitchcock, reading an interview with the filmaker he talked about the kind of practices he did triying to get good and fresh ideas to build new films he confessed that was a compulsive consumer of bad films and pulp literature. But far from being a defect it has a very rational explanation. Masterpieces are in reality deadends, going farest in the same direction is useful for the spectator but absurd for the wanabe creator. The creator instead have to pay attention for the bad art, and try to find between it something interesting that have not still been taken to his best possibility.
View attachment 54936
PSICOGEOGRAPHY
The French group of the situationist were one of the main practicioners of this strange strategy. Get a city map, each day trace the way you have walked on it, each day with a diferent color. You will realize that the repetition of trajectories is overhelming. They postulate a discipline that seems physical but in reality is spiritual: Simply wonder, literally. Walk with no direction each day for places of the city in wich you dont use to be never.
View attachment 54935

OK, this is weird: when I responded earlier at 11:36 to your first post of 10:55, your second post of 11:14 had not appeared to me.

 

[James_H]

In making creative work a 'flow state' is often desirable (what a jazz musician would term being 'in the zone'—a state of relaxed hyperconcentration). However, such a state is not always easily accessible (see 'writer's block'). Artists will often use 'rituals' to get into this state.

Examples:

Classical pianist Glenn Gould would soak his fingers in hot water for an hour before a concert. While this may have had some physical benefit, there were surely psychological reasons for it too.

Andy Warhol phoned a friend at 9 every morning before starting work, to tell him about the previous day's events. They'd talk for a couple of hours, then he'd go shopping.

Haruki Murakami on his ritual behaviour:

When I’m in writing mode for a novel, I get up at four a.m. and work for five to six hours. In the afternoon, I run for ten kilometers or swim for fifteen hundred meters (or do both), then I read a bit and listen to some music. I go to bed at nine p.m.

I keep to this routine every day without variation. The repetition itself becomes the important thing; it’s a form of mesmerism. I mesmerize myself to reach a deeper state of mind. [italics mine]

Now I don't know about you, but I think that using ritual to access particular mental states is the essence of magick.

I'm sure this doesn't only apply to 'creative artists' but also to athletes, engineers, etc.

 

[IbisNibs]

I think that any time one spends hours and hours focused on something, one's perception will be altered.

True.

I keep to this routine every day without variation. The repetition itself becomes the important thing; it’s a form of mesmerism.

Yes.

 

[C.O.T.]

With many of the answers have realized that the subject is quite more deep and complex of that in a first glance i have thought. Many of the post have made me think about different approaches. Will try to get them together on a coherent vision, cause a lot of times fortean subjects trend to be very prolix, with a lot of data and info but quite weak on the plane of the explanations or simply the integration of the diferent data into something coherent.

Aboriginal (native, non-technical culture), Muslim, and Asian art all have a traditional mystical component; but this mystical component is no longer the only way art is expressed in these cultures.

Well, primitive art plays in a different league. Have to say that primitive art works on a mental world in which there is no clear demarcation between art, magic, mistycism, and religion. That primitive vision is maybe more accurate than nowadays. Will explain it deeply after.

think that using ritual to access particular mental states is the essence of magick.

Reaching alternative states of consciousness is one of the main tools on magic cause this states allow the performing of magical operations that are on the normal states simply stage performances. That reaching of a different state of consciousness is too the objetive of art and mistycism.
But, why this ideas are so often together? And, if are related, are in reality the same?
Will try to get some intellectual risk and throw some hipótesis.
There is a very usual and deep connection between this 4 elements.
ART

MISTYCAL. RELIGION

MAGIC

This interaction is quite circular, is difficult to find what comes first or what finish on what. The mistycal experiences are not very far from the magic ones, religions perform magic rituals, mistycal visions led to religious beliefs, artistic training led to mistycal or religious perceptions... And so on.
But if we would like to get some single wires from that ball, we could find some trends.
MISTYCAL- ART CREATOR
RELIGIOUS- ART CONSUMER
In a mistycal aproach one uses art to leave the structure of perceptions one lives on.
On a religious approach one consumes art to keep and generate that social structure of perceptions.
Well sure that is still a lot to be said about this subjects, hope that you found it quite reasonable.

 

[Frideswide]

MISTYCAL- ART CREATOR
RELIGIOUS- ART CONSUMER
In a mistycal aproach one uses art to leave the structure of perceptions one lives on.
On a religious approach one consumes art to keep and generate that social structure of perceptions.

Very interesting @C.O.T. Much to think on, thank you.

 

[kesavaross]

Slightly at a tangent, a few years ago I read a book about 40+ years of various interviews with the famous drummer, Ginger Baker. I can't remember the title of the book or the author simply because being a minimalist I give away any books as soon as I've read them. A friend who was an avid Cream fan in the day recommended it to me.

Ginger Baker said that often during his drum solos it would send him into a hypnotic trance wherein he would loose all sense of what his hands and feet were doing and all there was was the beat and the sound, no audience, no other band members, no sensation of anything except the beat and the sound. Then at some point he would come back to being aware of himself. On a few occasion he said he actually found himself looking down on himself playing the drums. He concluded that his talent didn't come from him, it wasn't him always playing the drums and it came from an unknown somewhere else and what ever it was, it was triggered by the rhythmic beat.

I also read recently, within the last year, somewhere, that someone who was reckoned to be the worlds greatest footballer, sorry, I'm not into sport at all so I don't recall the name, said that often he didn't know how he scored his greatest goals or did what ever it was he did. It just happened as if he was taken over by something mystical that moved his body for him. I don't remember the footballer but I definitely remember the article because I thought how interesting and it put me in mind of what Ginger Baker had said. This footballer also said that sometimes for him when he had the ball, that football was like being lost to or taken over by an African rhythmic beat which I thought was really odd.

 

[Mythopoeika]

I also read recently, within the last year, somewhere, that someone who was reckoned to be the worlds greatest footballer, sorry, I'm not into sport at all so I don't recall the name, said that often he didn't know how he scored his greatest goals or did what ever it was he did. It just happened as if he was taken over by something mystical that moved his body for him. I don't remember the footballer but I definitely remember the article because I thought how interesting and it put me in mind of what Ginger Baker had said. This footballer also said that sometimes for him when he had the ball, that football was like being lost to or taken over by an African rhythmic beat which I thought was really odd.

My friend who is an artist has this thing where he 'goes into the zone'. He loses all sense of time and awareness of the outside world, concentrating totally on the painting process. He describes it as 'art of the sublime' - as if it's somehow been guided by something else.

 

[Frideswide]

My friend who is an artist has this thing where he 'goes into the zone'. He loses all sense of time and awareness of the outside world, concentrating totally on the painting process. He describes it as 'art of the sublime' - as if it's somehow been guided by something else.

That's interesting. I get this when engaged in my autistic special interests.

 

[Coal]

My friend who is an artist has this thing where he 'goes into the zone'. He loses all sense of time and awareness of the outside world, concentrating totally on the painting process. He describes it as 'art of the sublime' - as if it's somehow been guided by something else.

I've had this while batting (in cricket) and also in Shotokan tournaments (back in the day). My own experience is that while in this state one functions at one's full potential, but once it's over there is almost no memory of the events that transpired.

 

[Endlessly Amazed]

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, 2008. ​

Edit: ps - I met this author in the 1970's when he was teaching at the University of Chicago. I would love to share some wonderful anecdote but all I remember is that he was very unassuming and kind to me. Very relaxed and self-confident, and oddly acted as if he was paying attention to music or some inner conversation which only he could hear. It made a distinct impression on me. This was before his book was published or even before he had written it. I had no idea he was such a big deal.

 

[JamesWhitehead]

Classical pianist Glenn Gould would soak his fingers in hot water for an hour before a concert.

Indeed! Yet he was, in his spectrum way, following in the path of some pioneers! Vladimir de Pachmann, for example. Gould's choice of a kitchen chair was unusual but Pachmann would finnick around on the seat, adjusting its height with a postcard under the legs. He was once observed to try the postcard under every leg of the stool, before settling to perform as it had been set up originally. Some of his mutterings were preserved on early records!

 

[skinny]

That's interesting. I get this when engaged in my autistic special interests.

Me three, when I'm writing, which I rarely do currently. Can lose six hours to the muse when it kicks in.

Senna famously claimed to have left his physical state at times while racing his McLarens (no Imola jokes pls). I consider all such states of elevated consciousness to be experiences of artistic creation - the godsense within, if you will. Psychedelic chemical pursuit can be a worthy substitute but you know when its the pure stuff.