Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal

Jonathan Pageau on Art, Metaphor vs. Literal, Christ, The West, and Better Left Unsaid

Apr 2, 2021

Jonathan Pageau, an Eastern Orthodox icon carver and expert in symbolism, dives into the complexities of art and meaning. He contrasts traditional and contemporary art, highlighting the role of symbolism in storytelling. Pageau explores modern art's disconnect from community and critiques its destabilizing effects. He discusses the nuances of identity in narratives, emphasizing the importance of deeper artistic interpretations while addressing the ongoing meaning crisis in contemporary society.

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ANECDOTE

Art School Mismatch

Jonathan Pageau's art school supervisor advised him to leave.
She recognized his traditional artistic leanings clashed with the contemporary art world.

INSIGHT

Traditional vs. Contemporary Art

Traditional art emphasizes skill and purpose, integrating into a community's worldview.
Modern/contemporary art prioritizes self-referential commentary, questioning art's very nature.

INSIGHT

Art as a Tool

Contemporary art often questions the nature of the object itself, rather than serving a practical or communal purpose.
Pageau contrasts this with traditional art, where art serves a clear function.

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YouTube link: https://youtu.be/6umrrokgeG4

Jonathan Pageau carves Eastern Orthodox Icons and other traditional Christian images in wood and stone. He's a cognoscenti with regard to symbolism and the West. *NOTE: This is a re-upload of a video that is approximately 2 years old.*

Jonathan's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/pageaujonathan Better Left Unsaid (the documentary): http://betterleftunsaidfilm.com

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TIMESTAMPS BY: Cooper Sheehan

00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:10 The artistry of symbolism 00:03:32 History of an artist / The transition from modern to contemporary art 00:06:36 The traditional view of art (art as the tool) 00:08:46 Finding a personal style in the contemporary art era 00:12:14 Is it Art? / Arts purpose (meaning/ integration) in the world 00:15:11 Modern art as destabilization 00:19:11 Contemporary art as a parody of modernism 00:21:33 The propaganda of Social Realism 00:23:37 Social Realism in contemporary media 00:25:36 The destruction of symbols as the restructuring of culture 00:26:49 Modern propaganda and the upside-down Fairy-tale 00:30:30 Miyazaki and feminine symbolism 00:33:46 Lord of the Rings: The technological power dynamic of the Ring 00:39:51 Taking in things to make us whole 00:44:23 The weight of the Ring (from Lord of the Rings) 00:47:23 The Little Mermaid: The transition of worlds 00:53:31 Living in the moment: Nihilism 00:54:51 Cain and Able: The sin of pride 01:00:23 Social revolution and the revolution of the content (happy / satisfied) 01:03:37 Our society of excess 01:07:46 Becoming an anchor / Truth, Justice, Civility 01:10:17 Fixing the problem from the ground up and the ecological problem 01:12:38 Remember the Christian story / Christianity as a way out 01:15:29 Finding one's place in life / Finding ones meaning / Jonathan Pageau finding meaning in religion for art 01:20:01 Iconography and life’s patterns 01:23:34 Symbolism life’s meanings 01:25:48 Islam and Religious expansion 01:29:15 The lenses we see the world through and Identification Theory 01:35:01 The pattern of being and reality 01:37:31 Desires as pulling away from the (ones) center / Giving into desire / The right hand and left-hand sins 01:41:20 Knowing one's center 01:42:21 Seeing films through a lens/ Shazam thought experiment/ Shazam and interpreting meaning 01:46:57 Reading too much into art / Hollywood film and narrative patterns 01:51:05 Personal bias in reading films / Pattern vs counter pattern 01:52:51 Introverted art vs extroverted art 01:57:08 Narrative morality / The scales of good or bad and narrative complexity 01:59:25 The framing of Christ 02:01:55 Film framing and narrative tropes 02:04:52 The Hollywood problem / The entertainment culture problem 02:06:35 When do you see the left going too far? / The world of exceptions

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I just finished (April 2021) a documentary called Better Left Unsaid http://betterleftunsaidfilm.com on the topic of "when does the left go too far?" Visit that site if you'd like to watch it.

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