Painting alternate reality, with words.

For the longest time I thought that art mirrored reality, that art was the mirror image of reality. Recently in a moment of reflection (Actually, I was drinking coffee), I analysed this thought. This is what I realised : if art does mirror reality, then artists just give a reflection, a carbon copy of life to their audiences, right? Basically, all artists do is copy and paste from life onto canvas, into a play, into a story, or into a poem. But, I know art can do so much more than just exist as an imitation.

If art mirrors reality then almost anyone can be an artist. You just observe and document in musical, dramatic, visual form etc. But, that’s not artistic, that’s scientific. 

After further deep and analytical thought, I reached a conclusion: art does not mirror reality, at least not in the literal sense, instead it represent reality. Art is a representation of reality, it can stand in for reality, but it cannot be/become reality.

If art represents reality then artists can do what they do best. Removing the restriction of carbon copying allows the artist to present reality in a totally different way, basically alter it, and even create parallel universes of reality. Essentially allowing the artist the opportunity to offer an alternative to reality, and that is where the majority of art consumers derive their joy from, being able to escape actually reality and temporarily be transported into a virtual reality. 

I then realised something, my writing was constricted by reality, I wanted my short stories and unfinished novels to appeal by being realistic and relatable. I now know two things: 

1. I should drink less coffee.

2. Reality is depressing.