Go with the Flow: a tree that falls in the forest

A poem is never finished, only abandoned

Paul Valéry

Having only recently spoken with a friend about the concept of flow, I pondered it in all its glory yesterday evening when watching a musician in Madrid. I’ve thought about how different people approach it today, like photography and video games and free running and stuff. I guess even in social networking too.

When (in this case) the creation of piece of music is consuming in such totality then Csíkszentmihályi’s ‘flow’ is created. He says flow is one of the eight main stages in his learning process theory and he basically means a feeling of total immersion. He also includes anxiety, apathy, arousal, boredom, control, relaxation and worry, depending on skill level and the difficulties of the task in hand.

I remember learning the meaning and origin of the word and was over the moon having chased it since I understood it was in my, or anyones power to create and keep creating. I can’t understand it as any less than self-taught therapy.

Moving forward with art is hearing a tree fall in the forest.

Amy Winehouse

We all know that saying. If a tree falls in a forest and nobody is there to hear it… did it still happen?

I’ve featured Amy here because she was, and still is in memory the Queen of Pop. Asif Kapadia’s recent (2015) biography/documentary Amy, revealed touching shots of her writing, her hand between the walls of the world which both made her, and took her away. Memorabilia like this captures the artist in the premature stages of a big reveal, nurturing endless possibilities until they grow into a fully-fledged piece of musical history – ticking ticking ticking to some internal and unpredictable clock, tripping over themselves and joining until they’re smooth as jazz and blues.

Fascinating to see the pages turned in Amy’s ring-bound notepad, and such a classic reminder of the realities that led to each, and live on inside of every track. So many scribbles, scrawls and melodies thrown away and evolving – heard and unheard simultaneously.

Best to go with the things we love, because our brains are truly trying to master them.