Logic is a device, a fabricated tool. All of the formatting tools, like the Golden Whatever, Rule of Thirds...ad nauseum are tools as well. Like all tools, including language, text, and speech, it approximates what the brain "sees" expressed by charges in axions, which developed long before any of this communication stuff. That doesn't mean that the brain does not understand but does mean that understanding precedes the aforementioned tools. I imaging that understanding developed well after instinct.
I seldom use logic to understand my visions. I work from the gut, excepting client demands. ;)
I think logic is different though, for many of us, because it is a tool we feel the default need to apply all the time to everything. It’s useful in plenty of situations, I find, but definitely not as many as my brain wants me to believe.
And, as I attempted to elucidate, I think it’s an over reliance on logic that’s in everything from someone staring at a Rothko and saying “I could do that” to the part of me that’s saying “but why?” for every artistic choice I make.
I wish I could convince my brain it’s only a tool. It feels like a factory setting it’s near impossible to jailbreak.
Bill, being a logical, mathematical, yet artistic person, I recommend considering what you’re addressing in the post in context of Information Entropy. From that, add the utility of complexity. The purpose is to connect artistic and mathematical dots between the domains.
In my view, the best art has fundamental structures. Jackson Pollock’s paintings are measurable in contrxt of fractals, as an example. There are all sorts of implications if you follow this logic trail as a cross-domain art & math agent. Cheers!
I hadn’t. That’s great. And I think maybe some evidence that we (the masses) allow a little more room for nonsense in musics than we do in other art forms.
I don’t intend this to be contrarian at all, but! I do find lyrics like “I attack with love, pure bug beauty, I curl my lips and crawl up to you” to be perfectly sensible. Especially given the context of the artist/author’s communicative intent. I could go on about how much I dislike the “death of the author” sentiment, but I will not.
Out of context, abstracted, phrases like this do seem a bit illogical (and there is interesting philosophy that’s been written on “nonsense statements”; what differences there are between coherent sentence structure and phrase content). And I think that’s the point. It is invaluable to engaging in curious, open-minded and flexible modes of thought! I just don’t think either mode of thought is incompatible with the other for me, or that one stops me from thinking in the other.
Especially helpfully to remember if and when I get stuck on trying to logic out a rationale for a decision, instead of just making one :)
I don't disagree, and in fact that was a last-minute replacement of another bit of more nonsensical lyrical content, mostly as a nod to something Mr. Tweedy wrote specifically about the "pure bug beauty" bit in his book. But your point is taken, nonetheless. Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment!
I can't help but think of the book The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist as that intuitive aspect that defies logic is the beauty of our right hemisphere. Thanks for sharing this!!
Logic is a device, a fabricated tool. All of the formatting tools, like the Golden Whatever, Rule of Thirds...ad nauseum are tools as well. Like all tools, including language, text, and speech, it approximates what the brain "sees" expressed by charges in axions, which developed long before any of this communication stuff. That doesn't mean that the brain does not understand but does mean that understanding precedes the aforementioned tools. I imaging that understanding developed well after instinct.
I seldom use logic to understand my visions. I work from the gut, excepting client demands. ;)
I think logic is different though, for many of us, because it is a tool we feel the default need to apply all the time to everything. It’s useful in plenty of situations, I find, but definitely not as many as my brain wants me to believe.
And, as I attempted to elucidate, I think it’s an over reliance on logic that’s in everything from someone staring at a Rothko and saying “I could do that” to the part of me that’s saying “but why?” for every artistic choice I make.
I wish I could convince my brain it’s only a tool. It feels like a factory setting it’s near impossible to jailbreak.
Use a hammer when needed and know when to set it aside.
Bill, being a logical, mathematical, yet artistic person, I recommend considering what you’re addressing in the post in context of Information Entropy. From that, add the utility of complexity. The purpose is to connect artistic and mathematical dots between the domains.
In my view, the best art has fundamental structures. Jackson Pollock’s paintings are measurable in contrxt of fractals, as an example. There are all sorts of implications if you follow this logic trail as a cross-domain art & math agent. Cheers!
This is a really interesting concept. I'm going to investigate Information Entropy. Thank you for reading and commenting!
Bill did you see this article in the NYT? https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/20/arts/music/amplifier-newsletter-nonsense-songs.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share
I hadn’t. That’s great. And I think maybe some evidence that we (the masses) allow a little more room for nonsense in musics than we do in other art forms.
👏👏👏
I don’t intend this to be contrarian at all, but! I do find lyrics like “I attack with love, pure bug beauty, I curl my lips and crawl up to you” to be perfectly sensible. Especially given the context of the artist/author’s communicative intent. I could go on about how much I dislike the “death of the author” sentiment, but I will not.
Out of context, abstracted, phrases like this do seem a bit illogical (and there is interesting philosophy that’s been written on “nonsense statements”; what differences there are between coherent sentence structure and phrase content). And I think that’s the point. It is invaluable to engaging in curious, open-minded and flexible modes of thought! I just don’t think either mode of thought is incompatible with the other for me, or that one stops me from thinking in the other.
Especially helpfully to remember if and when I get stuck on trying to logic out a rationale for a decision, instead of just making one :)
I don't disagree, and in fact that was a last-minute replacement of another bit of more nonsensical lyrical content, mostly as a nod to something Mr. Tweedy wrote specifically about the "pure bug beauty" bit in his book. But your point is taken, nonetheless. Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment!
Always love your stuff Bill. I’m a musician, and all the creative/artistic things you touch on tend to track over to my realm as well!
I can't help but think of the book The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist as that intuitive aspect that defies logic is the beauty of our right hemisphere. Thanks for sharing this!!