Infinity in The Finite Unwind Your Mind | Weekly Wisdom With Dan Isaacman

When you look at this picture, what are your thoughts?
Take a moment to appreciate the vivid scene with its colours and intricate details.
Can you guess the age?
Looking deeply into this painting is an exploration of wonder that can be hard to describe.
There is so much detail to take in.
I can imagine a significant amount of time goes into producing such a stunning piece.
The question I have, however, is how much time has been spent viewing this masterpiece?
Here is a thought experiment: 🧪 🧫
If I look at this painting in a museum for 30 seconds, and so do another 120 people on that day. Then an hour has been spent engrossed in the image.
Can you imagine the number of people over the ages who have admired this landscape for over 300 years?
Extrapolate that minute a day over centuries, and you get a startling result.
Lifetimes worth of contemplation has perceived this "Wheat Fields. "
ca. 1670, by Jacob van Ruisdael Dutch.
Notice The Art of Living
These ancient memoirs are an echo of the fact that an artisan exists in all of us.
You, too, can appreciate art with a sense of consciousness that can take in infinite allure in a finite moment.
You, too, can train yourself to observe the magic contained within a single frame of existence.
Taking a step back to see with "new eyes" and question with curiosity might just reveal a world/moment that is so intricately divine that the simplest observation can change your state.
The key is to take notice and look beyond a narrow scope.
The artist within can look at a scene and capture a finite moment and make it infinite.
The artist is one who can see the beauty and complexity in a single fleeting second.
The works encapsulated throughout history follow this pattern.
We have this power because we are both the creator of our interpretation and the observer of the moment.
If Marcel Duchamp can see art in this urinal, then maybe you too can notice the magic of living and observing.
Interpreting Your Perception
There is much to be said about the wealth contained in this present moment.
Our human perception consists of an eternity of now.
Like a motion picture, the still images in succession give the impression of movement, each film frame containing rich material.
This very moment is the complex result of many contributing factors from the past and future.
We perceive time and reality in this eternal now, with the added benefit of imagination.
We can imagine the future and remember the past, but our reality, as a participant, exists in the moment.
The deep level of awareness captured by an artist is why a piece of art is so unique.
The artist can manipulate their perspective and immortalise it for a focused audience.
Art takes a moment that is fleeting and finite and makes it infinite and expansive.
The artist may take 100 hours to produce a painting of a single moment, and as the consumer, we get to see a slice of life through an alternative lens.
Picasso's Napkin Anecdote
There is an old tale that goes something like this:
Picasso was sitting in a French cafe, enjoying his morning coffee.
He pulled out a marker and started doodling on a napkin because the world was his canvas, and he saw art everywhere.
Onlookers stared in awe to see what the great artist would produce.
He later handed some cash to the waitress as he briskly made his way towards the exit.
On his way out, he mindlessly threw his sketch in the bin.
A voice from behind quickly called out, "Can I buy that napkin from you?"
A mischievous smile emerged from Picasso as he slowly turned around.
He scrummaged the napkin from the garbage and extended his arm to the patron as he said, "That will be 40,000 francs."
You can imagine the look on the potential buyers face as they contorted in confusion and said, "but that only took you 30 seconds to draw?"
To which Picasso responded, "No, This took me a lifetime".
Ironically, one such Picasso doodle sold for 20,00 pounds in 2009 [1]
Infinity In The Finite
Picasso had work