Comments On "Facing the Mask: 10 Essays on Living Art."By Poli Masens
Teacher, writer, creative consultant in Neutral Mask.
Sydney, Australia.
Tuesday, February 10, 1998"Oh, it simply cannot be described in words." How many times have you heard this expression? As a writer, I firmly contest the truth of it. Would a musician think so little of his art as to say the same about music, for instance? A painter about painting? It is a desperate expression uttered by the drowning, those who for too long have waded in the murky green waters of hackneyed words. Finally the weeds grow dense. No light penetrates the water. Unspeakable creatures, thriving not on light or oxygen but on the cacophony of meaningless language, drag them under the surface and they die the slow, painful death of the inarticulate.
In his "Facing the Mask: 10 Essays on Living Art," Samuel Avital is swimming far, far beyond murky waters. In the exploration of the philosophy and practice of his method, BodySpeak™, Samuel is in the crystal-blue zone where the sea meets the horizon. It is a zone of silence, a silence which he has activated to make for us new words. Throughout the essays the freshness of his language is striking. His use of metaphor is remarkable.
We have the impression that we are more than simply "reading." Rather we are "immersed." Samuel has coaxed us into the water along with him and is gently beckoning us to follow him further and further out towards the ever-shifting horizon and we are happy to do so.
How can we help but feel safe with Samuel? The further we swim through his essays, the more we are struck by the good sense of what he is saying to us. Here is no hype, no outlandish claims, and most importantly in these times, no demands to blindly follow. Indeed in the essay entitled "Geometrical Ecstasy," Samuel writes, "Observe, understand, and practise a law until it becomes yours. The intelligence that learns passes the information on to the one in you that knows."
In "Archetypal Movement," urging the performer to pursue economy and integrity of movement, he warns, "If you are not yourself, the audience can't see itself." These are just two of many instances where far from asking us to follow, Samuel is encouraging us to become masters of our own destinies. For our own sake and for the sake of others.
On the True creative journey, the one where travellers sail on the vessel named "Odyssey," the writer rubs shoulders with the mime artist, who rubs shoulders with the musician, who rubs shoulders with the painter... There may even be those on board who wish to make life itself their art. At the same time as we are exponents of a particular art medium, we share the fundamental experience of art and of being human.
In "Facing the Mask: 10 Essays on Living Art" Samuel speaks simultaneously to each individual traveller in the solitude of his own cabin, as well as to all artists on deck making the epic journey in pursuit of Truth and Integrity in their work and in their lives.
Let us return to the poor souls drowning in the fetid waters. Let us offer our assistance and pull them out. Let us concede at least that yes indeed, some things may be difficult to describe in words. But then let us read to them from Samuel's essays and we shall see their eyes sparkle and the colour return to their cheeks as they admit that this man has certainly restored life back to language.
As a final concession, might we not even be tempted to say that he has used words in such a way as to almost arrive beyond words? Any closer to the mark and they would disappear off the page!
Poli Masens
February 10, 1998
Sydney Australia.
Teacher, writer, creative consultant in Neutral Mask.