s p i n t o n e w i r e f o r m

24 Jan 2017

39. a new dawn a new day

Ok, so 'a new dawn a new day' is a cliche.

Cliches are continually given new life because of their widespread applicability, even despite often being trite, tired, worn out, and well... well used. A word or an expression can convey the richness of an idea and in a few words can capture what we are trying to articulate more concisely than we likely can on our own - less is more, if you will, and they are greater than the sum of its parts, if you really will.

Artists and writers attempt to avoid cliches. We might allude to them or attempt to incorporate them in (what we think are) novel ways, but we rarely overtly embrace them. We night use them to make a point or use them laden with sarcasm or irony, but rarely do we overtly recite or re-postulate them. The creative mind is striving to achieve - you guessed it - creativity. We aim for novelty, uniqueness, +/or a degree of critical composition.

So, why the cliches?

Laziness? Lack of discipline?

No - cliches are being used to form the backdrop of this discussion. The theme here is really one of 'days' - new days, old days, any days.

Days go by.

I haven't posted to this blog in over three years.

Life comes at you quick, and life happens.

Despite all of the pursuits that I find myself immersed in, I don't feel as though I've progressed as far as I feel I should have over the past few years. I measure progress by 'things' completed, and there have been few. However, I have many, many things that are indeed progressing and developing - a slow burn of sorts. The most significant change I have made has been towards attempting to create my best work by placing a large degree of focus on the details that form the underlying basis of each pursuit.

Quality over quantity.

With this said, I want to embrace and capture the process. Despite my careful and methodical (aka slow) development of all things creative, baby steps are being taken. This blog will be the place where everything lives during development and upon completion.

So not to beat a dead horse, and although needless to say that it might sound cliche, it is now time to pick this blog back up.

_jh

8 Nov 2013

38. almost 300

wheels go round a-
round
all (at)
most

© 2013 kjh all rights reserved.

4 Nov 2013

37. blocks

w e a t h e r e d b -
l o c k s r e s -
c i n d (u n d)
e r (r) a t t i c

27 Sept 2013

36. tenthousandfootceiling_n008

Tenthousandfootceiling_n008 by Krayjis on Mixcloud

18 Sept 2013

35. the next chapter

The past couple of years have been an experiment for me as I slowly and timidly entered the vast waters of the social media world. I have oscillated between passive and active engagement on a variety of social media platforms but have, however, consciously and deliberately avoided signing up for a Facebook account. From the first time I became aware of Facebook through its mammoth explosion in terms of popularity several years ago, and to its seeming current plateau, I really have not ever been entirely sure of the merits and benefits of being hyper-connected in a Facebook context.

The upsides or downsides of my decision could be debated almost infinitely, and trust me, they have been debated almost infinitely between a couple of my heavy FB-using friends and myself. Recently, in fact, I've perhaps started to see some of the first cracks in the walls of my FB avoidance since starting my own architectural firm.

The point here is that I was definitely hesitant in the first place to make my foray into the hyper-connected world of social media, sharing, public availability & accessibility, and even to some extent curation. I’ve never been one to shy away from a conversation with a stranger, but the adjustment to having these conversations in a digital medium has been tricky. Like so many, I am a busy person – I work hard and play hard (and apparently love clichés) and find it difficult to dedicate time for the sole purpose of engaging in discussions or detailing my escapades in digital forums. Although I am amassing some quantities of work in music, photography, writing, and other pursuits, I have been historically poor at promoting the work.

Let’s face it. I know people are busy and don’t necessarily need to be bombarded continually with noise. Trust me – I’m bombarded with enough noise as it is and it can definitely be overwhelming. Also, I have no desire to compromise quality in favour of quantity, the challenge of course being that it takes time to create great work. Therein lies the rub – I’d rather spend my time working in pursuit of great work rather than expending the required effort to participate in the digital mediums promoting the work, connecting with people, and engaging in conversations. Which, frankly, is why my social media presence is, well, non-existent.

I don’t necessarily want to be an advocate of ‘balance’ here – I always advocate for balance and in all honesty, it can be a cop-out. However, an imbalance means that I have a collection of what I consider to be decent work and no infrastructure to promote it. And, I do understand that the best work in the world won’t find legs by itself – it needs mechanisms and mediums to live and breathe in.

As I mentioned at the start of this, my foray into the realm of social, yet publicly visible displays of communication has been an experiment of sorts over the past couple of years. The benefit, despite my inconsistency, is that I’ve learned quite a bit. I think I have an idea of the lessons I’ve learned and the directions I need to move in. In my mind, this is a time of new beginnings, and after over a year of not posting to this blog, I think it can play an important part in the collection and promotion of material. It will be a repository, a central place where I can keep track of all of my crazy endeavours and the work I’m creating. It will link to other more focused collections, but it should offer a home-base of sorts that will hopefully allow me to eventually cross-pollinate different works together.

I hope that something here will provoke, inspire, or at the very least entertain you. Whether you’re here just as one-time thing or wanting to follow me on my new beginnings, thanks for visiting.

_jh