Explore your Horizon
We never know where we will end. We look at the actions we take and hope for a possibility we dream of. The universe plays with its limits. We are thrown whatever is bound to happen and must embrace it.
In Finite and Infinite Games by James P. Carse, Carse presents a distinction between finite and infinite players, and their respective games. The infinite game never ceases; it has no reward; its sake is for enlightenment and continuing what others have brought along from the past and present. The finite game has a reward; a legacy. The finite player seeks that and nothing more.
Carse’s take on the meaning of a horizon presents uncertainty and hope.
“One never reaches a horizon. It is not a line; it has no place; it encloses no field; its location is always relative to the view, To move toward a horizon is simply to have a new horizon” (Carse 57).
“Every move an infinte player makes is toward the horizon. Every moment of an infinite game therefore presents a new vision, a new range of possibilities” (Carse 57).
In relation to photography, allowing myself to not set a goal but to rather experience new sights and testing my cameras capability is how I can be an infinite player. I am merely seeing what I am capable of.
This notion of consistency and repeating my past allows me to reach a new horizon. In my Spring 2023 semester, Gregori and I strolled outside of our campus and came across a house with a garage that resembled a barn.
The leaves were rusty and crunchy. They cleared the pavement for Gregori’s arrival. I dropped the shutter speed so that Gregori appears to be in motion. Is he so absorbed with his thoughts it appears that his world is shaking, yet his body is frozen? No matter the plethora of explanations I have for this photo, I have come to terms with seeing it as it is. Yet, we were not satisfied. There was more land to explore. We did it again. This time with a new persona. A new vision to witness.
The second picture acts on the visual technique: leading lines. The houses diminish and Gregori continues to take his giant like figure. I think of a horizon because the viewer and I have no clue of how far the houses extend to. Has Gregori traveled a long journey, is he awaiting the moment to start the journey? It remains unanswered. Open to inspection.
It is a nightmare to not know the path that we are heading on. I feel this as well. Thoughts of missing out and being left behind become thick clouds that drench my conscious. I realize that I have my own path. The process of waking up everyday and transforming my visions into Medium’s default font type and size, and discovering literature that ranges from Greek mythology to psychological discoveries. I must enjoy art as it is.
When we play in an infinite game, we flood love into our craft. We allow the journey to become the destination.
Works Cited:
Carse, James P. Finite and Infinte Games. New York: Free Press, 1986
