RAFTS

I had the privilege of listening in on Tony Ryder's class today. My attention wondered in and out, so I shouldn't be quoted. It seemed that he was saying how imperfect were the many discreet "swatches" that go to make up a painting or drawing. You almost never capture your subject just right. Each stroke is like a rough log with knobs sticking out from it, perhaps twisted, with or without bark. But we are making a raft, and as we tie these imperfect logs together, a rare thing occurs. The whole crude assortment manages somehow to float.

I feel a need for some strong public project that ties together the limitless number of issues out there which now pass each other like ships in the night. The imperfection of each of our constructs is notable. But what if we could tie them all together? Would they make a raft that could float? Logs, like issues, can manifest in numerous ways, but we are constrained by a single project--to make a raft. We must decide what the raft is that our ragged social issues will comprise.