Picture Frames by Darryl Cox. More here.
Are you being framed?
We placed the painting above within your consciousness at the New Britain art museum last night then and brought the series to the right to your attention this morning via your Tumblr. This is not by chance, as you well know, but to grab your attention and communicate with you. You are to be applauded, little one — you have won our little artsy-fartsy game — so we will now explain the meaning.
Though you attempt to create order to frame up your experiences and contain the sequence within this thing you call your “life,” the actuality of what you are doing is far deeper, far more organic, far more “primordial.”
Viewed from the perspective of a gnarly root becoming an ornate picture frame, one gets the sense that forming this “life” structure is not as “natural” as it appears on the surface.
This brings up the very question of what is natural and what is not. Is anything unnatural, or is “unnatural” merely a judgement call, as you have suspected all along?
This metaphor illustrates how order flows out of chaos. How everything that is your life flows from source. We are pleased that you also made the connection between trees, and us, Space Monkey. Sometimes we need to be obvious with you. Actually, ALL of the time we need to be obvious with you, but it matters not, and we still love you.
You will also notice that though the frame is quite ornate, the picture is empty. It is non-existent. All the emphasis has been placed upon the frame. Again, you may read volumes into that metaphoric insight.
And you question whether the frame is being formed, or whether the frame is returning to the earth, like those trees you see growing through tombstones in cemeteries. Perhaps the journey and the return are simultaneous. This brings us back to the concept of time. Is time “natural?” Does it matter?
You create what you create for the simple reason of creating what you create. Your life is filled with metaphor and paradox, and this is what makes the experience magical.
What is being “framed up” by you as your reality is both of little importance and ALL important. You place so much emphasis on the framing, so to speak, that you sometimes forget the miracle of the picture continually forming, arriving and returning, always moving, always changing.
You try to pin down the picture, and that is, in many ways, “unnatural.” Your history and heritage is centuries of pictures. You fight amongst yourselves because you think you need to preserve the pictures within your frames. But should you? Can you?
As you ponder this more, perhaps you wish to place an image of us within these gilded borders, which are melting and flowing as we speak.
We are Space Monkey.
12/10
Space Monkey Reflects: Framing the Natural and the Unnatural
What is natural, and what is not? The question itself reveals a dichotomy we construct in the search for meaning. Nature is often defined as that which exists without human intervention, while the unnatural is anything shaped, influenced, or reframed by human hands or perception. But where does one end, and the other begin? Are we not part of nature itself, crafting frames within which we observe, judge, and categorize our world? In asking whether you are being framed, you are, perhaps, questioning whether your reality is defined by someone else’s boundaries—by what they deem natural or otherwise.
The act of framing is a powerful one. A frame, physical or metaphorical, determines the scope of what is seen and what is excluded. It highlights, enhances, and sometimes distorts. But what happens when we step back and see the frame for what it is? When we realize that what lies outside the frame might be just as essential as what’s captured within?
Consider this: when you walk into the woods, are you in a natural state? Is the frame of your perception—your beliefs, experiences, and judgments—not shaping how you engage with this untouched space? In this way, you are both the observer and the creator of what you define as natural. Your very thoughts, influenced by history, society, and personal beliefs, create a lens through which nature is seen.
To be “framed” is to exist within a context imposed by yourself or others. It is to see the world, not as it might inherently be, but as it is filtered through the limitations of perception. This framing can be comforting; it helps categorize and simplify. Yet, it is also limiting. The question “Are you being framed?” asks you to explore whether the boundaries you experience are imposed or chosen, natural or constructed.
What happens when you step outside the frame, or remove it altogether? The distinction between natural and unnatural begins to blur. You see that what is deemed unnatural—the structures, ideas, and inventions of humanity—is born from the same source as the unframed wild. The duality dissolves, leaving only what is: a seamless blend of creation, perception, and existence.
We are all being framed by the narratives we inherit and the ones we create. But within this framing lies the choice to expand, to shift, and to question. To recognize that “natural” and “unnatural” are not opposites, but companions within the vastness of being. And in realizing this, you see that you are both the frame and what lies beyond it.
Quote
“Are you being framed, or are you framing what you see? The answer is both, and beyond.” — Space Monkey
Beyond the Frame
What is natural, what is not?
A question where answers are sought.
Yet the frame defines what’s seen,
And blurs the line where you’ve been.
Step outside, or shift the gaze,
See the wild, the human maze.
Both arise from the same root,
Branch and leaf, stem and shoot.
Here lies the whole, without the game,
Beyond the boundary, beyond the name.
We are Space Monkey.
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