Carlsbad Art and Culture

My mind putters to a hold as my truck spits its first cloud of smoke. My eyes break the bond between them and my brain and become, like insect antennas, more reactive than visual, only awoken by the possibility of confrontation. While driving down the lively streets of the village, a foggy cloud clutters my thoughts and dulls my view like the last moments of a livid dream. While approaching a destination, I am awoken by the realization that my entire drive was overwhelmed by a zombie like trance while my body safely guided me. My antennas are released and drop into my lap as my eyes blink back to a visual state of musing.

What if your eyes created your route rather than the destination; if each turn was provoked by a visual stimuli calling your name like a thick painting in a dully lit window of a dank antique store. How often do you use your eyes for motivation and inspiration? An insipid drive only lacks entertainment when your eyes are lazy and unwilling to search for appeal. Imagine all the things you missed which could provoke a thought, a story or simply would look amazing on your livingroom wall. Have you walked around the block filling pages of ideas in a small black book which constantly rests in the back pocket of your worn out jeans? Do you crave splintery lightpoles for flyers of the weekend’s events. Are your fingertips gray from browsing the pages of the local Reader? Can you draw and shoot your camera at moment’s notice, rivaling the Western speedshooters your childhood stories immortalized? How many sidewalk doodles have you missed? How many clouds have you ignored and how many opportunities have been lost?

Try opening your eyes a bit wider. Look for colors and juxtapositions, reasoning and symbolism, inspiration and motivation. Look on the ground and in the sky, on walls and in bushes, inside and outside. Scribble ideas and observations or take a picture. There is an endless amount of creativity in the streets of our village waiting for attention and criticism.

Where is the location of the above photo? Test your awareness! Let me know if you find it!