Associational blocks
If you look at the image as an image and not as a nuclear explosion then you will see quite a good image. The colours are vivid, the proportions are correct and it has a depth and strength to it. The whole point of this is the aim to express the need to detach from one piece of information that may trigger adverse reaction simply because you have this information in your head. This affect works on many levels. The book I am reading at the moment; "Blink" expresses these concerns as it tells an anecdote of an experiment carried out in a college with predominantly black students. The students were asked to do an evaluation test, but before were asked 'did they think that being a black student was a disadvantage'? What happened next was that the students didn't achieve good marks in the test simply because, even though they were black student, the priming of the thought that being black was a disadvantage gave them an associational block to perform well. This form of 'priming' can work in both visual and literal forms and is so strong that it can govern one's own appreciation for things. An example of this is when someone sees another person wearing a certain clothing colour combination (let's say black and white) that person may believe the person is a fan of the local rival football club; who may wear black and white as their strip. In fact it may just be a coincidence that this occurs, but the thought has registered as a block in the viewers mind.
I remember when I first came to Greece, one of the people I was introduced to had this distance to me. I later found out it was because he was told that all men in the UK are gay, and therefore he had a strong aversion to being nice to me. How these blocks work are usually in two forms; that of not enough information or the opposite, that of too much information. This seems a little odd as how can you have just the right amount of information for any given situation? Well, its not a case of having the right amount of information, it is how you filter the information that you are given. Take the image above. If you image that you are given an assignment at art college to find a beautiful image. What would the results be? I would guess that many of the students would bring images of flowers, of landscapes or of things that they consider attractive forms. This in its own right is an associational block, as we are defining beauty as something that is perfect or near perfect. The film director, David Lynch, when asked why he cast many unattractive people in his films and also decided to make "The Elephant Man" he answered that there is more beauty in that which is non-perfect. He explains that the variations that move something away from what we perceive as being perfect is more fascinating and therefore more beautiful. Back to the assignment. What needs to be understood is the context of the brief. It asked to find a beautiful image; this means in technical terms a photograph that is correct and fascinating to look at, and not the subject. The subject simply creates the narrative of the image. The technical aspects of the image are what creates its form. Therefore, if you take away from the understanding of all that is nuclear, then the image above is beautiful. Still not convinced. Well this is the block.
How does this continue on in the usual vein of my blog posts? Well, these association blocks are all around us, and what I am probably trying to express is the need to have an open-minded view on a subject, based part on knowledge and based part of what is presented in front of you. My friend and I climbed up the mountain and "were amazed" on seeing several elderly people climbing up and down as well. When you think about it, this is a block. You see old people as stumbling and 'doddery'. Why? because this is a stereotype of that type of person. Maybe, in some senses it is a safeguard to protect ones position in middle age or youth, too. Would you like to think that a seventy year old person is able to climb a mountain better than yourself (if you were, lets say, 35)? Of course not, so these blocks can also be there to protect you. Or what seems like protection. I hope I can climb a mountain at 70, I hope that people don't see me as 'doddery' when I get old.
One of the aspects I have to employ in my work as well as my teaching is a judgement on the piece of work that is front of me, or the student that presents something in front of me. what can cause the blocks in this process are very evident. How do you qualify a piece of work that you know is by someone with no training and is the first thing they have ever done? Well, look at Vincent VanGogh. He was a clergyman in the ghettos and sketched the people he saw around him. This was far from correct training (in the sense) but today a VanGogh can reach some of the highest values a piece of art can possibly reach. Blocks can be made from many things. You can get blocks from attitude, perception of skill and a persons background.
Saying this, it is not also the sole responsibility of the receiver to control these blocks. The sender can also have a great deal of responsibility over the way things are perceived. I remember a very clever 'Guardian' advert on television, some time back, when the camera was zoomed in on a 'skin-head' running towards a man holding a brief case. Obviously the initial perception was that he was a thug, a thief and was about to rob the businessman. As the ad drew out we saw that in fact the man was running to the businessman's aid and a pile of bricks was about to fall on her head. He grabbed her just in time. The tag line was:An event seen from one point of view gives one impression. Seen from another point of view it gives quite a different impression. But its only when you get the whole picture that you fully understand what's going on.Blocks narrow your view point and therefore you need to open your eyes, in every aspect, in order to judge something. The expression "Where ignorance is bliss, 'Tis folly to be wise" is true application that people simply take things NOT on face value, but on their perception of face value and therefore create blocks. Maybe, a great deal of this is based on this 'thin-slicing' or gut-reaction that Gladwell talks of, but at the end of the day, the processes of instinct are there not only to protect, but also guide.
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