Closing the Door, 2013
Maybe it’s not so bad to dwell in the past, and muddle in the memories, to stem the simplification of time, and put some craft back into it. Maybe we should think of memory itself as an art form, in which the real work begins as soon as the paint hits the canvas. And remember that a work of art is never finished, only abandoned.
— John Koenig, Klexos definition from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows
It’s been a while since I shared a definition from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. In it, author John Koenig has coined a number of new words describing complex feelings and emotions that have often lacked words to describe them in the past. It took Koenig many years to compile his dictionary, but it ultimately produced a best-selling book. I have shared a number of his definitions here in the past and usually find myself nodding my head as I recognize many of the feelings he describes.
Today I am sharing the word klexos which is briefly defined as the art of dwelling on the past. I chose this word because I have recently mentioned here that this is often the time in which I revisit old work, mostly that from the time before I began showing it publicly. Though I have done this many times before, there is almost always something new to be found in doing this again.
As Koenig points out in the video below, which gives the full definition, the context for the past is always changing.
There is always something new in the present which changes our memories of the past.
I also like a couple of subtle points in his definition of klexos. For one thing, it uses the word on instead of in in its primary definition, the art of dwelling on the past. Dwelling in or on the past are two different things. One, in, has you trapped in the past while the other, on, has you moving on but reexamining the past for potential clues or lessons for the present.
The other subtle point is the suggestion that we think of memory as an artform. That very much aligns with my own thoughts on how we all possess a story or mythology in our lives. The painting analogy Koenig uses for this feels on the spot for me. Some folks choose to abandon their painting as soon as the paint hits the canvas while others continually revisit theirs to organize and embellish it in an artistic manner.
If you read this blog regularly, you know which group I fall in.
Here’s the video that goes with klexos. It’s worth a few minutes of your time.
FYI- The painting at the top, Closing the Door from 2013, is one of those pieces here in the studio that I often revisit in my own personal klexos. Surprising how often I find something new in it that helps me in the present.
Redtree Times 