Old Friends
When was the last time you re-watched your favorite film or tv show? When was the last time you re-read your favorite book or listened to your favorite song? How often are we constantly seeking out for something new or different and what was the reason behind it?
If we can agree that art is a form of communication, then the medium in which an artists communicates — say film — then the film is a language or dialect which they use to speak to you, their audience and patrons. So when you’re watching a film or reading a book or listening to a piece of music; there’s a conversation happening between you and the creator, and through the conversation, there is something to be gained. Something to be learned, something which pushes us forward as people, would you not agree?
It wouldn’t be beyond reason to suggest that when you watch a film by Lynch, or observe a Degas, or listen to Bootie Collins are striking up a dialogue between the two of you. There is a type of bond of friendship developing between the artist and the audience. Confessions, proclamations and philosophies are shared. There are moments of truths which are shared, whether they are beautiful or not. There is a reason why we tend to remember the controversial artist and writer because they have a way of provoking a thought. We want to communicate back but we’re not sure how. We do so through critics and reviews, chats with friends over coffee, or maybe sitting alone with our thoughts wondering why we liked the piece or not.
Whether good or bad, happy or sad; it’s those works of art which tend to stay with us long after the box office tally, the New York Times best seller list is sent out, the Grammy’s have been issued and the Oscars paid out for.
It’s those conversations, the ones that are authentic, provocative and sometimes, but not always, uncomfortable which we remember and learn from. And the more we come back to them, those conversations with an “old friend,” we’ll come to find that there’s more to understand, learn and discover. Not just about their work, but what also about ourselves.
When was the last time you had a conversation with your favorite author, filmmaker, artist or musician?

