I've a writer friend who moved to Australia. She's emailed me about her current experience with a writers group there that's participating in an annual event with an art society. What she's doing sounds like a really great way to experiment with writing from a different perspective.
The Oz Writer says (paraphrased):
We writers take part in a ballot to receive a photograph of a painting, and we must write what we think it tells the viewer. Mine is a doozie, attractive to look at, but as for discovering the subject matter I think I would have to ask the artist what they were on at the time, and take it myself. Only joking! But you'll gather it's very obscure. To me it has an organic, emotional feel, with lots of red, and brilliant radiance bursting through windows, and as it includes a long-stemmed rosebud I have gone the romance way with it. And ultimately quite enjoyed the challenge. I think it is good for writers to write something they don't want to, because one has to dig deeper, when one's favourite phrases no longer apply.If you're a writer who's fairly good at avoidance as most of us are, you might pretend that you really want to do this exercise in perception. You might imagine that the world is waiting with barely contained excitement to read what you think any given image in your home or elsewhere communicates to you, the viewer. Pretend that you're seeing a picture or graphic for the first time and as you do, open to your emotions about what you're perceiving. Sit right down at the computer. Let your new perspective flow through your fingers until you feel like you've said enough. Next, go do something else for a few minutes. Come back and read what you've written, then look at the same picture again. Notice anything new or different in terms of image content and what you're feeling when you view it? You could write about that, too. You'll be very surprised how stimulating and interesting this exercise is. And you'll want to write about that, too.
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMelinda
