The Chromatics of Eternal Strays
Oh, how tedious it all becomes, doesn’t it? Why does this world insist on standing before us with such a flat, expressionless face? We wake in the morning, wash our faces, exchange those stiff, formal greetings, and then the day sinks away like a heavy, rotting apple. Don’t you feel the same? Beneath the surface of such a mundane existence, there is actually a tremendous “hole” gaping open, and today, I would like to quietly let you in on the secret. This is a story about a certain painter and his exceedingly quiet, yet exceedingly tumultuous, conspiracy.
The Silence of the Apple Bursting from the Chimney
There was a man named René Magritte. A Belgian gentleman of the most impeccable, ordinary appearance. Like you and me, he was a person who loved a tranquil life—waking at a fixed time, eating at a fixed time. However, within his mind, the “common sense” of the world was being perpetually ground into dust.
Imagine, if you will, a giant apple, large enough to reach the ceiling, sitting stubbornly in a room. Or a scene where the view from a window is actually nothing more than a painting on the glass, and the moment the glass shatters, the “real” scenery shatters into fragments along with it. He depicted such “impossibilities” with startling realism and a chillingly composed brushstroke.
Some call this Surrealism, but I think of it more simply: perhaps it is a “revealing of the world’s tricks.” Don’t you innocently believe that everything reflected in your eyes is the truth? Magritte is poking at that naive trust of yours with cold fingertips, laughing all the while.
The Paradox of the Pipe That Is Not a Pipe
There is a famous painting, isn’t there? A pipe is meticulously drawn, and beneath it are the words, “This is not a pipe.” Anyone seeing it for the first time tilts their head in confusion. “What is he talking about? It clearly looks like a pipe.” But think about it carefully. That is a “representation of a pipe” drawn with pigments; it is not a “real pipe” that you can light and draw smoke from.
It is obvious. So very obvious. And yet, in our daily lives, we confuse words with substance, and we feel we have understood a thing simply because it has a name. You are a being called by your name, but that name does not express the entirety of “you.” You must be something more inscrutable, nameless, deep, dark, and yet shimmering with light.
Magritte exposed the lies of language. He took the world we think we know, dismantled it, and reassembled it into forms we have never seen. Doesn’t that feel less like terror and more like a sense of liberation?
Where Day and Night Shake Hands
In his series of masterpieces titled “The Empire of Light,” the bottom half shows a residential street shrouded in the veil of night, sleeping quietly under the glow of a streetlamp. Yet, when you look at the top half—the sky—there is a piercing blue expanse with white clouds floating by. Day and night coexist within a single frame.
Logically speaking, this is impossible. It must be either day or night. But what about the landscape of our hearts? While in the depths of despair, we might suddenly crave a delicious sweet; while at the pinnacle of happiness, we might feel the shadow of death in a fleeting moment. Our emotions are always a landscape filled with contradictions, where “day” and “night” are inextricably blurred.
Why do Magritte’s paintings grip our hearts so firmly? Perhaps it is because the surreal scenes he paints are closer to the “true landscapes” within us. Don’t you harbor both the blue sky and the midnight streetlamp within your own soul? If so, you are a fine accomplice to Magritte.
The Wisdom of the Water Glass Atop the Umbrella
Among Magritte’s works, there is a peculiar one featuring a glass of water resting atop an open umbrella. He titled this “Hegel’s Holiday.” An umbrella is something that rejects water. A glass is something that accepts it. He trapped these two opposing natures within a single canvas. What a mischievous spirit.
Life, perhaps, is much the same. Rejecting and accepting, fleeing and standing one’s ground. If we could accept these contradictions and laugh them off, I feel we might be able to live a little more easily.
You are far too serious. It is perfectly fine to gaze upon the world with a bit more levity. If you think of the ground beneath your feet as thin ice floating upon a vast sea, even the tension of taking a single step might turn into a pleasant thrill.
The Hide-and-Seek That Never Ends
Throughout his life, Magritte pursued the “mystery” hidden behind the visible. However, that was not a journey to find an answer, but rather something like a stroll taken to enjoy the mystery as a mystery.
The world is far more nonsensical, beautiful, and cruel than we imagine. But that is exactly why it is interesting. Tomorrow, you will likely wash your face and walk the same path as always. But if, at some corner, you happen to see men in bowler hats falling from the sky, or an infinite universe expanding beyond a hole in the wall, please do not be surprised.
For that is simply a sophisticated prank played by Magritte. Come now, won’t you? Cast off that heavy coat of yours and try becoming a stray in this strange world. There was never an exit to begin with. You need only accept the colors before you, the absurdity of it all, and laugh from the bottom of your soul. That is the ultimate “useful” secret to surviving this tedious daily life.