The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth

The atomic bomb brought a permanent end to the innocent optimism which the earlier spiritual artists had felt about technology. To a degree unparalleled in earlier history12 people came to realize the destructive effects of technology. And this in turn shook the belief of Junko’s generation in the Judaeochristian view of mankind as the “crown of creation,” above nature. for we came to realize that mankind could become an adversary to both itself and the whole of creation. This in turn reinforced a distaste for the notion that nature is there for man to conquer and exploit: instead, the experience of the atomic bomb made all of us more receptive to ecological concerns. And this led to a distrust of the views which underlay and promoted the industrial revolution: economic prosperity and growth came to be seen as just one aspect of a more complicated picture. now it was necessary for us to find ways for man and nature to live together in harmony. That ancient Shinto sensibility started to take some root even in the Western heart. These sensibilities are palpable throughout Junko’s work, which does not “glorify” mankind and which empathizes with life in plants, in roots, and even in inaminate things. These five influences combined to move the art world away from “modernism” and into “postmodernism”: let me call them the “five motivations.” The postmoderns reacted against the innocence of the moderns and, eager to clean their philosophical house, they swept the baby out with the proverbial bathwater. because the moderns still believed in the grand narratives of the past, the postmoderns rejected the whole concept of a narrative: they did not think of the possibility that there might be another kind of narrative. because the moderns still believed in excellence and truth, the postmoderns rejected the whole concept of standards: they did not think of the possibility that there might be another kind of truth. because the moderns still believed that art could speak seriously to the community of man, the postmoderns rejected the whole notion of such a community and insisted instead that art is ultimately a matter of pure self-expression. Junko lives and works after the postmodern age and her work reflects a vibrant part two // chapter four A Vital Spirituality p. 169

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth

PREFACE

-Definition of Centripetal Art -Its Place In Art History: After the Postmodern Period -Introducing the Subject Matter: One Centripetal Artist's Journey -The Relationship With Multiculturalism -After the Death of God and of Art

FOREWORD

-How the Author's Connection With His Wife's Art Grew More Intimate Over the Years -Learning In Marriage -"Why Does God Need To Paint?" [Section One] Individual Visitants -Dead Flowers and Root -Lungs and Rib Cage

CHAPTER FOUR - A Vital Spirituality

-Why This Art Could Not Have Been Created Earlier -Echoes of the Spiritual Arts of the Early 20th Century -The Impact of the Atomic Bomb; Ecological Concerns -Markers for Spirituality -Centripetal Art Overflows the Studio: Therapy

CHAPTER SIX - A Complex Spirituality

-Spirituality of the 21st Century

AFTERWORD - THE FURNACE

-Polytheism and Monotheism in Art -Goethe’s Aphorism -Marriage and the Alchemist’s Furnace Themes In Series

PREFACE

(Page I) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth - -Definition of Centripetal Art (Page II) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth - -The Relationship With Multiculturalism (Page III) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth - -After the Death of God and of Art (Page IV) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth -

(Page VIII) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth -

(Page IX) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth -

(Page X) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth -

(Page XI) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth -

(Page XII) The Centripetal Art of Junko Chodos, Matrix of Spiritual Growth -

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.