Isms In Creativity

 

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How is it that we can multitask on things that use different brain hemispheres and determine where they fall on the "ism" spectrum: premodern, modern, postmodern, metamodern (or remodern)? When I'm working on music, I feel it's more modernist, but postmodern in the sense that I might be thinking about the art of it, and a metamodernist in the sense that it can be all those things. For example, I can read some art history (which is a "premodern" activity),  and all gets woven into the creative process. When we're in production mode, trying to figure things out and complete them, that's more of a left-hemisphere process. When you're zooming out and looking at what you're doing over a span of 3 to 5 hours, you can see that it's alternating between things that are historical and might be dealing with craft and things that are a little bit more intellectually atmospheric. Postmodernism, and to some degree metamodernism, are about those atmospherics. When I've followed the discussions on various podcasts and various YouTube channels about metamodernism, I've found it can sometimes be too heady. When I'm working on music, learning how to play things (or remind myself how to play things) I'm not being philosophical. For example, if I'm listening to a particular part that I did, such as a bass part or a guitar part, and I asked myself 3 or 5 months later, can I still play it that way? Probably not--I have to practice it. Practicing music and physically playing an instrument is not intellectual. It can't be--you're not thinking about the theory, although it's below the surface. Work isn't an ism at all: it's not modernism, it's not premodernism, it's not postmodernism for sure, and perhaps sort of metamodernist, as you're being more reflective. Metamodernism is a way to combine them and not have to be overly self-reflective about what you're doing--or always watching what you're doing and considering whether you should be doing what you're doing.

When I'm working and I want to finish something, the only thought I might have is perhaps shutting down the process as I might be losing objectivity. That's a spiritual/philosophical issue that has to do with the flow of your life and not so much the flow of the art, or thinking about the art. I'm sometimes a bit confused by the focus on talking about only those things and engaging less in the primary activities that have to do with craft (other than the craft of writing--although debate is a craft as well). Craft is about getting in the trenches. As I read Geddy Lee's memoir I realized it's all about work–album after album followed by a tour for 40 years, spending months hunkered down in a studio working 12 to 14-hour days. They weren't sitting around talking about metamodernism. Those are the things that we need to separate if we're going to talk about metamodernism. Placing attention on skill and craft is a separate brain task where both hemispheres are used (if we want to use McGilchrist's theory). In my experience, craft is mostly left-hemisphere (Emissary), but the right hemisphere is (supposedly) the Master. The mastering of recordings is a good corollary.