snow and depression

gone they are

And an AI Haiku on This

I would like to take up a topic again today and I promise it will be the last time – for this year.
I recently wrote about my winter blues – and the winter depression is gone! Hopefully sustainable. This is notable as it generally lasts well into February.

What happened? A reader (Thank you, Annie!) asked if I had ever tried a lightbox. No, I haven’t. But I really liked the idea of the light and so I took up this idea in painting.

One of the works from the beginning of this year’s phase looked like this:

painting depression dialog

The idea was varied with the “characters falling from the sky like poems“. The objects, black and heavy, dance awkwardly down from the sky. Of course, they stand for the complex thoughts of this phase.

depression dialog details

Then I thought: Just make them lighter, more dancing – and bring in more light. It looked like this:

snow and depression

The thought was modulated by using warmer colors, but essentially not much changed:

snow and depression

Then, at the beginning of the week, I started with a new variant, which I based on Daoist thinking [1]:

exit of depressions

The steps I took:


1) Make it tangible: I started to give the feeling of depression a β€œface”. It is no longer an “abstract” thing, but something that I can see, that I can modulate and thus change.


2) Giving New Meaning: Why see depression as something that “comes from heaven” – or that surrounds me 360 degrees? From a Daoist point of view, “they are heaven”. They are part of the great void like everything else and what meaning we give to things and events is our choice.


3) Changing the narrative: Also in some western perspectives, it plays an essential role to enrich one’s thoughts, desires… with emotions. So I lustfully painted depressions fading away like fog in the morning sun. In a way, I watched as the exodus began and light regained the upper hand.

extra:

I couldn’t help but try what AI says about my painting [2]. I wanted it in the form of a haiku – here we go:

Winter’s shadows fade,
Light shines bright once more,
Depression’s grip loosens.

Well, it’s not extremely exciting – I paint better than AI writes πŸ™‚ – but it’s remarkable.

painting depressions details

Of course, after just under a week, you can’t say whether the whole thing is sustainable. But even if not, working on the topic was great fun and brought more sunshine to my cloudy days πŸ™‚


footnotes:

[1] This is of course a very complex thing and I don’t want to repeat myself too often. Most of this can be found in my posts on DAO

[2] I used ChatGPT, described the image and asked them to write a haiku about it.


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Comments

22 responses to “gone they are”

  1. swabby429 avatar

    There is always some type of light above the clouds.

  2. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

    Yes, sometimes we just forget….

  3. The Sicilian Storyteller avatar

    Wonderful work, F! My mind’s eye sees samurai warriors.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Many thanks! Yes, Far East Asia is always around 😎❀️

  4. AT SUNNYSIDE - WHERE TRUTH AND BEAUTY MEET avatar

    Remarkable, indeed! 😎❀️

  5. Edith avatar

    Denk einfach immer daran, die Sonne scheint IMMER, auch wenn wir sie nicht sehen. Deine Bilder ΓΌben eine Faszination aus. Mir sind sie Bewegung im Licht. Durch diese rΓΆtliche Farbe bringst du WΓ€rme hinein, Ja, das gefΓ€llt mir sehr.
    Herzlichst, ich <3

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Danke, Edith, das ist sehr freundlich! Ich habe in letzter Zeit vor allem am Neudesign meines blogs gearbeitet. Jetzt klapp es wieder und ich werde wieder Zeit haben, Deine schΓΆnen Gedichte zu geniessen! Liebe Gruesse aus Wien!

      1. Edith avatar

        Das freut mich – fΓΌr uns Beide.

      2. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

        Sonnenstrahlen im Winterregen – sind Deine Bemerkungen immer.

      3. Edith avatar

        LΓ€chel, ich greife halt mit meinen Gedanken tief in dich hinein.

  6. Graham Stephen avatar

    βœ¨πŸ””πŸ’§πŸ‡πŸŽ†πŸ₯’πŸšπŸ²πŸ‰βœ¨

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you so much! βœ¨πŸ””πŸ’§πŸ‡πŸŽ†πŸ₯’πŸšπŸ²πŸ‰βœ¨

  7. tobyo avatar

    What usually helps me in winter is the solstice. Once I get past it, things seem “brighter”. And not literally until about mid-January. Just last night I noticed it stayed light out until after 5 p.m. We’re on the upswing now!! I really enjoyed your paintings.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Many many thanks! Yes, the days are getting longer again. We’re on the up again πŸ™‚ All the best!

      1. tobyo avatar

        You’re welcome! πŸ‘

  8. markbierman avatar

    I’m glad to hear that you’re feeling better.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      How kind of you! Thank you very much!

  9. scarlettcat avatar

    I adore these piece. “Made them more dancing” I love it haha delightful! Followed you. Nice to meet you.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you for your kind words 😊 Nice to meet you too! All the best!

  10. Judith avatar

    I love this! And just to note… the last illustration reminds me of a raven. πŸ™‚

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much πŸ’• Of course, you as a great artist can see the raven 😎 Ravens have always been a symbol for depression to me. Especially since I heard Schubert’s Winterreise.

  11. Jenny avatar

    Hello Zetti I am a newcomer to your exciting creative inspiring blog JennyLewisArtist in EastmeetsWest.
    Darkness for me is a time of digging deeper into The Truth and The Way of The Journey.Asking questions of The Creator brings answers.

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