He Was Born Too Early For His Contemporaries

Be willing to add value to your self-esteem by trying to compare yourself to others, accepting that your conscience is the product of a subjectivity that has nothing to do with material objectivity.

Michelangelo. He has always loved the struggle and the task of putting all his strength into play. To create, one needs solitary thinking, and the idea of ​​continuous struggle. In summing it up, we must first point out that Michelangelo was destined to play a unique role in art, and not only in that of his time, but also of many centuries to come. Of modest origin, he behaved like a simple man and enjoyed the company of the people. With those who were rich and in power, he was worthy and did not shy away from challenging them, being aware of his worth.

He was sociable only with the humble people he appreciated and respected. He had neither friends nor disciples. Introverted, haunted by fantasies, he lived an internal tragedy, not letting go of the turmoil that tormented him. He had no family life. The only woman in his life – Vittoria Colonna – was but a fugitive episode that ended much too early. He talked and especially insinuated a lot about his relationships with women. Work absorbed him so much that he “burned” and had no availability for himself. He was a titan, predestined to live for art, sacrificing himself. Any bad thought about him is a sacrilege.

Seen this way, Michelangelo is no longer an enigma. He was born too early for his contemporaries.

In another book, the philosophy of art (Schelling), these words of Plato are written, two things that philosophers who love the system and are confident in the myth of reason overlooked: “The embodied spirit is sick, troubled, in a state of pure thought. Perhaps in addition to the rational faculty, there is also one of delirium, of enthusiasm, of madness.”

Does the result of your creative work mark an awareness of yourself and everything around you, considering the endeavor of a life that had to go from unpredictable heights – to the life of a normal person?

The artist always puts his soul, with all that is good in him, in what he does with forethought and with the help of God, without considering himself a loser of destiny. And then his role in the integral destiny of creation is grounded and fulfilled in Christ. But when his soul seeks a great image and attaches itself to an image of creative effort struggling with seemingly insurmountable difficulties, the artist practically shares the state of mind of the one who produced that image, just as he shares his vision of an object that can only be seen, but never touched.

It is very important, in this sense, to cultivate the eye with which the gaze pursues itself. For if the artist does not cling to an object that does not match the rest of his setting, and if the self-image is his reflection in his own consciousness, then his gaze on the world around him is an awareness of nuances and multiple “faces” of a life that is consumed by a story that is difficult to experience (but which he eagerly pursues to write daily).

The artist has this need to draw attention to his creations and feeds on this attention, so his pride can be easily hurt when someone does not give him the attention he deserves. There is especially a religious focus on the visual space of faith, through which his soul tries to find a way to face the world that does not appreciate him enough.

Can you be more permissive with yourself by taking into account a picture of your own face against another?

But the artist becomes even more gloomy when he realizes the difference between saving the world and destroying it. He is frightened when he realizes how insignificant one is on a world scale, even if his works are grandiose, but difficult to understand by the slow-minded, routine or ill-adapted spirits to modernity. So, it would be said that the artist has two faces: one that displeases him, and another that glorifies him.

Often, the life of the artist is a visual product related to the grandiose feeling of self-esteem, as presented in the narcissistic personality disorder, which can certainly be compensatory and can even damage personal relationships. And let’s not forget that in the case of artists, small changes have a huge impact on self-esteem.

In particular, a distinction must be made between self-image and the image attributed to the world, and a distinction must be made between self-worth and tolerance in situations hostile to conscience. Because this is something else, exactly that intention that lies behind the various forms of image of the inner world, of spiritual existence, and an image of our own face must be taken into account against the background of another.

The total artist dedicated to his art is, often, the concretized expression of the way a person sees themselves or represents themselves through the prism of being aware of a deep drama.

He Was Born Too Early For His Contemporaries. This can be said of an artist who has not been able to analyze the differences between self-image and the image of others about himself, and to identify common aspects that could increase his mental balance and sense of self-worth.

* Note: Paul Ştefănescu - Enigmas and mysteries of all time (vol.1)