David Jones, artist and poet (1895-1974) begins his PREFACE TO THE ANATHEMATA :

'I have made a heap of all that I could find.' (1) So wrote Nennius, or whoever composed the introductory matter to Historia Brittonum. He speaks of an 'inward wound' which was caused by the fear that certain things dear to him 'should be like smoke dissipated'. Further, he says, 'not trusting my own learning, which is none at all, but partly from writings and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of Britain, partly from the annals of the Romans and the chronicles of the sacred fathers, Isidore, Hieronymous, Prosper, Eusebius and from the histories of the Scots and Saxons although our enemies . . . I have lispingly put together this . . . about past transactions, that [this material] might not be trodden under foot'. (2)

(1) The actual words are coacervavi omne quod inveni, and occur in Prologue 2 to the Historia.
(2) Quoted from the translation of Prologue 1. See The Works of Gildas and Nennius, J.A.Giles, London 1841.


19 September 2023

T - + - R


This glossy 8x10 arrived out of the blue with several others placed inside an old folded movie poster.

Recognised as a classic Theatre of the Actors of Regard document worthy of further regard, Henry Weatherfield & Associates were commissioned to sign-write it as it now appears.
click image to enlarge 

Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA
  
  
   


11 September 2023

Me 'n U (for Jo & Michele)


The Appetiser Recycled
(re-using a drawing from the mid-80s)



Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA


   

20 August 2023

FLOWER DRUM SONG


A cover version of yesterday’s “Flower Sermon” in which one of the actors was a percussionist.

click image to enlarge 
            for Margaret Plant  

Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA


    

19 August 2023

Three Act Regard (Part 2)


Theatre of the Actors of Regard yesterday presented Three Act Regard (Part 1) in which the first regard brought forth laughter at the appearance of a Label Flower.
click image to enlarge 

Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA

Today, another represenTARtion of the “Flower Sermon” offered by Guatama Buddha to his followers at Vulture Peak. There, it is said, he twirled a flower...

“At this, they all remained silent. Only the venerable Kashyapa broke into a smile. The World-Honored One said: “I have the eye treasury of the true Dharma, the marvelous mind of nirvana, the true form of no-form, the subtle gate of the Dharma. It does not depend on letters, being specially transmitted outside all teachings. Now I entrust Mahakashyapa with this.”

The scroll shown here is by Yosa Buson from the collection of Henry Weatherfield & Associates.

[Wikipedia : Yosa Buson or Yosa no Buson (与謝 蕪村, 1716 – January 17, 1784) was a Japanese poet and painter of the Edo period. Along with Matsuo Bashō and Kobayashi Issa, Buson is considered among the greatest poets of the Edo Period.)

Three Act Regard (Part 2)
click image to enlarge 

Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA


    

18 August 2023

Three Act Regard (Part 1)


Theatre of the Actors of Regard

presents  

   Three Act Regard   
][             Observe the mind             )(
click image to enlarge 
Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA

Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA




















Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA


  

15 August 2023

TAR : This Anagram Reversed


[chorus)
RAT ART TAR TAT
RAT ART TAR TAT
RAT ART TAR TAT
RAT ART TAR TAT



Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
detail
A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
someone looks at something...
  
LOGOS/HA HA
  

     

14 August 2023

Twombly of the AssisTARed Readymade



Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
Let  ][ ---- )(  

equal

detail
A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
someone looks at something...
  
LOGOS/HA HA


     

13 August 2023

Towards an ArithmeTAR of Regard


Melbourne's Lyon House Museum shows this image online ...

... and asks :

Should a painting be explored as a whole or as the sum of its parts? Or both?

How is it composed and structured? How does it set up a relationship with us as the viewer?

These questions will be explored by Dr Mimi Kelly and Corbett Lyon as they analyse four works from the Lyon Collection.

LOOKING AT PICTURES 🖼️
Sunday 20 August, 3pm – 4:30pm
$25pp




Towards an ArithmeTAR of Regard asks 

Should TAR be explored as a whole or as the sum of its parts? Or both?

How is TAR composed and structured? How does TAR set up a relationship with us as the Actor?

FIAPCE presents LOOKING AT LOOKING



Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
detail
A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
someone looks at something...
  
LOGOS/HA HA
  


11 August 2023

TAR : “It’s really about ...


We received an email captioned :

Art Guide Australia #474
What to see at “the art fair that artists love”


and noted with interest this sub-section teaser, "It's really about..."



“It’s really about looking at images and putting them together, and looking at how they behave,” says David Noonan. 

Theoria

The Greek theoria (θεωρία) meant "contemplation, speculation, a looking at, things looked at", from theorein (θεωρεῖν) "to consider, speculate, look at", from theoros (θεωρός) "spectator", from thea (θέα) "a view" + horan (ὁρᾶν) "to see".[9] It expressed the state of being a spectator. Both Greek θεωρία and Latin contemplatio primarily meant looking at things, whether with the eyes or with the mind.[10]

According to William Johnston, until the sixth century the practice of what is now called mysticism was referred to by the term contemplatio, c.q. theoria.[4] According to Johnston, "[b]oth contemplation and mysticism speak of the eye of love which is looking at, gazing at, aware of divine realities."[4]

Several scholars have demonstrated similarities between the Greek idea of theoria and the Indian idea of darśana (darshan), including Ian Rutherford[11] and Gregory Grieve.[12]- Wikipedia

Darshan

In Indian religions, Darshana, also spelt Darshan, (Sanskrit: दर्शन darśana lit. 'showing, appearance,[1] view, sight') or Darshanam (darśanam) is the auspicious sight of a deity or a holy person.[2]

The term also refers to any one of the six traditional schools of Hindu philosophy and their literature on spirituality and soteriology.[3]

Etymology

The word darshana, also in the forms of darśana or darshanam, comes from the Sanskrit root of दर्शन dṛś 'to look at', 'to view', vision, apparition or glimpse.[1]

Definition

Darshana is described as an "auspicious sight" of a holy person, which bestows merit on the viewer.[2]

It is most commonly used for theophany, meaning a manifestation or vision of the divine, in Hindu worship, e.g. of a deity (especially in image form), or a very holy person or artifact. One can receive darshana or a glimpse of the deity in the temple, or from a great saintly person, such as a great guru.[4]


In Hinduism

The term darshana also refers to the six systems of thought, called darshanam, that comprise classical Hindu philosophy.[5][6] The term therein implies how each of these six systems distinctively look at things and the scriptures in Indian philosophies.[6][4] The six orthodox Hindu darshana are NyayaVaisheshikaSamkhyaYogaMīmāṃsā, and Vedanta. Buddhism and Jainism are examples of non-Hindu darshans.[4]

Mahayana Buddhism

On the significance of darshana in Mahayana thought, Paul Harrison writes: "By the second century CE... the vision of the Buddha (buddha-darśana) and the accompanying hearing of the Dharma (dharma-śravaṇa) are represented as a transformation experience of decisive importance for practitioners, be they who have renounced (mundane life) 'ascetics' or householders."[7]

The Abhidharma, collections of systematic summaries of the sutras, mention Darshana-citta, i.e. visions.[8]

Indian Mahayana philosophers Vasubandhu and Asanga acknowledged five paths to liberation, of which the third is darshana-marga, the "path of seeing".[9]

Nagarjuna, a prominent philosopher of the Madhyamaka school of Mahayana Buddhism, wrote that the wise person perceives tattva-darshana, true reality.[10][11]


 “It’s really about looking at images and putting them together,

 and looking at how they behave,” says David Noonan. 



Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...
  
 LOGOS/HA HA
  

    

09 August 2023

Tri-Angle of Regard (SELF-LIGHT-OTHER)

  
Theatre of the Actors of Regard enjoyed looking at this Herald-Sun photo from 1962.

Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
 @heraldsunphoto_retro : 1962. Melbourne recently took a step backwards into the more gracious, less frenzied days of "the gaslight era" when the Lord Mayor, Cr M. Nathan, lit this shapely old gas lamp in Collins St. The lamp, now nearly 80 years old, had been preserved for the city by a private estate and, with enthusiasm all round, the State-controlled Gas and Fuel Corporation co-operated to bring the lamp back into full operation. This they did by laying new pipes and fitting the lamp with a time clock which turns it on at dusk and off at one a.m. daily. Girl at the base is Jenny Boyle, POST cover girl, dancer and gaslight admirer.

Here are a couple of TARmatic others :


Theatre of the Actors of Regard 
detail
A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
someone looks at something...
  
LOGOS/HA HA