(Archive) Idleness

the state of idleness

Idleness is a state which is connected to mental pleasures. It might involve enjoyable activities such as eating grapes. It is neither about being entertained nor about relaxing after a busy day.
When the attention, which is usually directed towards my surroundings, suddenly flips to the inside, when I sink into my own thoughts, I’m in a world in which time does not exist as a parameter. A daydream commences, sometimes leading to trance-like state. From the outside, this looks like inaction.
During idleness, the importance lies in that which happens inside the heads. This is invisible. What is visible are the imprints of static body positions such as the traces of elbows in a pillow of a window bench that won’t fade.
Pillows with imprints of idleness accompany the sinking into a world of thoughts up to a state of trance.

Scagliola is a very complex and time-consuming technique. With the monotonous work of sanding one can also experience this state of daydreaming. Today it is not being used a lot anymore as it does not suit the time we live in.