What is Brackish Waters?
Dear kind friends,
I don’t want to sound like a Youtuber, but thank you for subscribing and giving this unraveling newsletter a chance! I decided to pursue this newsletter for a few reasons; 1) I love art 2) I like stealing my partner’s ideas and 3) what is it like to have an online artist community? For those reasons and everything in between, I am starting this newsletter which will be published every Wednesday. Me being me, I usually like to hibernate in my cocoon and refrain from the use of social media and its accompanying headaches, but I figured it’s worth giving it a shot.
Once again, life in Lebanon swept me away. This time, I wanted to be closer to home and to the Middle Eastern art scene, so I chose Amman, Jordan where I will be pursuing an internship at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts. Since I will be drowning in art, I thought why not pull you in with me? The main objective behind this newsletter is to pick a work of art or a specific artist and dig a bit deeper into their work. I will be sharing my opinions and analysis about the work/artist, but I also invite you to share your thoughts, suggestions, or just feel free to continue reading in silence. And since it is my first time being and living in Amman, small details about my time here might be shared, like funny taxi conversations and where to have the best Mansaf- Jordan’s national dish made of lamb cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yogurt and served with rice- which I haven’t tried yet!
This newsletter’s title, Brackish Waters, reflects my opinion on defining art. Brackish water is the result of mixing seawater with freshwater; it is saltier than freshwater, but not as salty as seawater. Now I hope I didn’t take you back to 6th grade chemistry class, but I couldn’t help but think about the similarities between brackish water and an artist community. There are so many controversial opinions and ideas in an artist community, but they mix in with each other, form something new and create new perspectives and outlooks. No matter how agreeing or disagreeing we are towards art, all opinions are still opinions and no matter how salty or fresh water is, it will remain water. Water, just like art, is able to transport you, make you feel like a dot in this vast world, and question everything around you. I am interested in knowing what makes us float and why.
In the meantime, I will be digging into the archives of the gallery!
Yours truly,
Rebecca