J is for Juxtaposition. I like that word. The sound of it, the feel of it in my mouth when I say it, the challenges it raises when I sign in, the way doesn't quite flow from the pen onto paper - the way spans the length of the keyboard as I type it.
As it doesn't flow to produce the word, so it doesn't flow in definition. By which I mean that a Juxtaposition is generally placing things together which aren't normally found that way. It doesn't have to be that there is tension between the objects places side by side, but often - at least in creative and artistic uses - it is.
In art, Juxtaposition is frequently used to show tension, inconsistencies, to make a point or give graphic representation to concepts one is trying to show to convince, evoke, or expose. I suppose that Juxtaposition is prevalent in dance, which is one reason I like it. And in theater. Aren't performances all about Juxtaposition? What goes together, what doesn't? What is present or absent, in the concrete or the abstract?
I was also thinking that Juxtaposition is what we use as writers. Juxtaposition isn't limited to just the visual arts, but to literary as well. We can Juxtapose a character in a setting and see how the story plays out. We Juxtapose two characters or two families or generations into a story to evoke those same senses as visual arts: tension, meaning, definition, and familiarity or dissimilarity.
J is for Juxtaposition.
I did a little wandering around the internet, looking for images others put up to represent Juxtaposition. Here are a few I found...
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| from Creative Studies Blog |
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| from Keeping Your Head in (All) the Game(s) | |
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| from Creative Studies Blog |
