Have you ever become so attached to a piece of clothing that you 've found it terribly difficult to get rid of? I was like that with a pair of shorts I had. These shorts had a real history. They were bought as part of a soccer kit and spent many practicing hours on a soccer field. I then used them for running in and then sleeping in. Eventually they ended up as a pair of gardening shorts.
You can imagine what they looked like - not a pretty sight, but I had grown so attached to them that I couldn't get rid of them, much to my wife Jane's frustration. Eventually I reluctantly and ritually placed them in a rubbish bag and they were never seen again. I've never forgotten those shorts. My sharing this bears testimony to that.
Vincent Van Gogh's painting of the boots is a moving one. Strong evidence exists that the boots were his own. If his relationship to them was anything like mine to my shorts, I can certainly understand him painting them in the way he did.
They say, in Jungian dream typology, apart from other things, boots or shoes are the symbol of the condition of one's chosen direction. If that is the case imagine where these boots had been and what they'd seen. Imagine the story behind them reflecting the movement, the burning passion and the ultimate exhaustion and dissolution of Vincent's life. What a profound and beautiful symbol of all that.
I suspect that clothing can take on an almost spiritual significance, especially when it's intimately connected with human story. The very smell in clothing can launch us in to memories of those we love, whether they're still with us, or not. St Paul, in a beautiful moment, while languishing in prison, cold and tired, slips these words in towards the end of his second letter to Timothy: "When you come, bring my coat that I left in Troas with Carpus." He remembers his coat. I wonder how attached he was to it? Imagine being able to see and experience that coat?
Recently, I read something about Paris Hilton. Apparently she never wears a set of clothing more than once. Rather sad, don't you think? I think there's a depth to clothes, but sadly a superficiality as well.
You can imagine what they looked like - not a pretty sight, but I had grown so attached to them that I couldn't get rid of them, much to my wife Jane's frustration. Eventually I reluctantly and ritually placed them in a rubbish bag and they were never seen again. I've never forgotten those shorts. My sharing this bears testimony to that.
Vincent Van Gogh's painting of the boots is a moving one. Strong evidence exists that the boots were his own. If his relationship to them was anything like mine to my shorts, I can certainly understand him painting them in the way he did.They say, in Jungian dream typology, apart from other things, boots or shoes are the symbol of the condition of one's chosen direction. If that is the case imagine where these boots had been and what they'd seen. Imagine the story behind them reflecting the movement, the burning passion and the ultimate exhaustion and dissolution of Vincent's life. What a profound and beautiful symbol of all that.
I suspect that clothing can take on an almost spiritual significance, especially when it's intimately connected with human story. The very smell in clothing can launch us in to memories of those we love, whether they're still with us, or not. St Paul, in a beautiful moment, while languishing in prison, cold and tired, slips these words in towards the end of his second letter to Timothy: "When you come, bring my coat that I left in Troas with Carpus." He remembers his coat. I wonder how attached he was to it? Imagine being able to see and experience that coat?
Recently, I read something about Paris Hilton. Apparently she never wears a set of clothing more than once. Rather sad, don't you think? I think there's a depth to clothes, but sadly a superficiality as well.
I think our intention always trajectorises (is that a word?) around what is beloved and intimate. Not because these are a truth, necessarily - just because love needs its temptations, it's pockets of gravity to veer towards before it shoots off somewhere else entirely, accelerated by that pull (having enough momentum in the first place). Then, what does this new space in creation feel like, in its freshness, its uniqueness? Familiar
ReplyDeleteWonderfully perceptive M.
ReplyDelete...love this post Don..i can relate so much to the topic..clothing DOES take on a Spritual property and significance..i have articles of tattered clothing that i regularly wear/ sometimes to the embarrasment of my family(i've been mistaken for a homeless person more than once)..i'd like to think that what i wear is a projection and statement of my obvious imperfection and flaws as a human being..clothing has the interesting power to even change ones demeanor/persona and to actually influence others..cops/doctors/judges/performers ect ect all make use of this..its particularly fascinating to me how the power of dress/garments is fully leveraged in some religious settings....very effectively i might add...
ReplyDeleteSome great insights in your comment. As you say, one doesn't realize just how powerful a symbol clothing is. Can develop some nice thoughts out of your illustrations - so true. Thank you.
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