Ingmar Bergman

Those who have read my profile will observe that I have a twin sister. Let me set the record straight, then:

• Since we are of different genders, we are not identical. I've been asked that a lot, but the person who surprised me the most was an medical intern.
• We do not have some sort of psychic connection, despite my sister's comments to the contrary regarding awareness of pain, etc.
• We are not alike.

The last point is not a bad thing - it is simply a fact. I can't begin to cover the many ways in which we aren't alike. Today, however, I'll use another fact to illustrate this dissimilarity: my sister does not like Ingmar Bergman films. I seem to recall some episode during high school or early college when I picked up The Seventh Seal and somehow she ended up watching it. I think that choice led to a ban on what she called 'weird films' that I liked.

Today Ingmar Bergman died; he was 89. Meryn Rothstein's column in the NY Times quotes him as having said,

“I am very much aware of my own double self. The well-known one is very under control; everything is planned and very secure. The unknown one can be very unpleasant. I think this side is responsible for all the creative work — he is in touch with the child. He is not rational, he is impulsive and extremely emotional.”

I don't think this is a weird statement; I think it is the admission of an artist. I often like concrete art because I can sense the thought behind it, and I enjoy allegorical or metaphorical art because of the connections that are drawn in the work, but my perception of an artist is still of one who is irrational - one who is able to tap into a subconscious or other state of being that allows something visceral to be expressed. On the other hand, perhaps I want artists to be mystical because I don't want to understand the process too well.