“The critic has to educate the public; the artist has to educate the critic.” ~ Oscar Wilde

I’m not sure what it says about me that the quote I wanted to feature at the start of this entry was a toss up between Oscar Wilde and something from Ratatouille. Since no one is reading this blog yet, I’m going to  take advantage of the opportunity to slip in one of those “what’s it all about” entries.

I had the idea for SalomeSays about a year ago. Back then I wanted to do a podcast, but like the vast majority of my ideas, I simply didn’t have the desire to develop it. I was also beyond burned out on blogging and trying to figure out how to gracefully retire the bittersweet venture that was Linden Lifestyles. It wasn’t the right time; I didn’t have anything to say that was worth writing about, let alone worth letting others read. I am still not entirely certain I’ve developed a clear voice for this blog in my head. Like all the voices in my head, it’s rather coy.

Still, I know going in that a large portion of this blog will focus on critical evaluation, and that truth begs certain kinds of questions like: who the hell do I think I am and why do I want to scale that particular cliff again? Ironically, the answers are entwined. I am a critic. I always have been. It is who the hell I think I am and no matter what I’ve done in my professional or personal life, I’ve never stopped being one who evaluates, considers, and voices opinion.

No one ever adds the second clause to “I think, therefore I am” and completes the equation: “I think, therefore I am, therefore I am what I think.” We cannot all be the type of person who only notices pretty things and only thinks beautiful thoughts. I’ve met people like that and they are few and far between. Most of us see pitfalls, identify weak spots, pinpoint flaws as naturally as we breathe. Some people see the critic as a negative soul, or as the opposite of an artist. My personal belief is that critic and artist are not antitheses so much as halves of the same fruit.

A critic, internal or external, is a base unit of creativity. We are fundamental to all aspects of human creation and action. In fact Dr. Stephen Thaler’s Creativity Machine Paradigm extends that beyond human creation at this stage. For those unfamiliar, Dr. Thaler  is (and has been for quite sometime) the man on the cutting edge of AI technology. He invented the ” Creativity Machine” which is best described as a neural network programmed  to create, invent, and innovate. In the late 90’s when Thaler invented this “Device for the Autonomous Generation of Useful Information” he discovered that the first thing it generated was its own critical network to evaluate its creations. That’s right — before it wrote music or invented the OralB CrossAction toothbrush, it invented its own critic.

Of course, the value of a critic is always the key element. To be useful in the role is a challenge; to be tactful is a talent; to endure is an obstacle. I am sure that I have and will occasionally (and, from time to time spectacularly) fail to meet the criteria of an ideal critic.  I was, alas, not invented by a creativity machine…which is probably why I have no soul for brevity.

So, for those playing the home game, that is why I’m beating my head into this very familiar wall. Ah well, at least I’ll be doing so with my quite flawed make-believe feet in very cute (and hopefully less-flawed) make-believe shoes.