Wonder

On my morning walk I was thinking about (you might say wondering) about Wonder. Kicked off I suppose by re- reading “Electric Universe” by David Bodanis. It’s a fascinating book about the complex subject of electricity but written as a story of discovery, scientific breakthroughs and the very human stories of the people involved.

It got me thinking about the word “Wonder” and how crucial it is to any sort of human endeavor. The words “I wonder….” are involved in both the very big discoveries and the very small.

I wonder what the link is between magnetism and electricity?

I wonder what tomato added to this recipe will taste like?

I wonder if this clay will hold together at this thickness?

Taking some photos on my lawn led me to wonder what setting my critters up in a forest location would look like.

Turns out forest locations are a great idea. I’ve also discovered better ideas for eyes, beaks and adornments through experimenting with materials.

Part of this “wondering” was what little riders would look like on my creatures, and what materials I could use so I could make them being smaller and finer than the steeds.

That feeling of wonder is central to my work, experimenting with ideas and materials is how new combinations come together. Some are discarded, many ideas and materials don’t work as well as I thought they might but its immensely satisfying when they do.

I wondered what it would look like to take photos of masks up at this location. It fueled some great ideas that I’ve stored up to revisit at a later stage.

It takes time to keep the sense of wonder and curiosity alive. Wondering about things takes time, time to put materials and colours together, time to play with my art, time to wonder about things other than art too.

What is the link between magnetism and electricity………? Best I keep reading.