Liminal Space

By Ethan Cheng

I still remember the meetings in Professor Casey’s office,
before the semester began, when we would discuss the
course and our ideas. I wanted to create a space that contained
elements of what I wished my discussion-based courses had had.
In my head, I was modeling the space as a cross between Reddit
and an ELMS discussion board. I never thought I would get so
excited about ELMS.

I sometimes think of the creative process as one artist’s
careful, yet unbound, trip to the fringes of human perception,
where they collect the essence of that unique experience (constraints)
and bring it back in a controlled manner to the realm
of “normal” perception. When done effectively, it gives us all
a piece of that indescribable experience, something to pass
around, reflect on, and feel.

The Liminal Space was designed to be a transitional space
for ideas and thoughts, an interactive outlet for the class’s
discussions beyond the physical classroom. We pasted
in links and drew connections to YouTube videos, TedTalks,
old movies, and various artists; music became a tone-setter
for the space, and I organized a playlist for the songs we
shared (see below). I felt touched by all the support and
insight we ended up sharing, as well as all the connections we
made between our personal experiences and interests. The part
that excited me most was its “meta” nature, the ability to learn
through application—these discussion boards were a huge part
of the synthetic, multimodal feel of the course.

Below are a small selection of quotes from the Liminal Space
(by the end of the semester, the LS could have filled its own
book), including one quote from each member of the class. Inspired
by many artists, we reflected, responded, and jumped in
ourselves.

Here is the “Narrating Madness” Spotify Playlist. It contains
songs from artists such as Daniel Johnston, Audioslave,
The Feelies, Kanye West, Twenty One Pilots, Bo Burnham,
The 1975, and Mac Miller.

It was nice to hear your faces and see your voices!
Professor Casey on a Zoom Call
Liberate my madness.
Slipknot

I don’t know . . . it’s like when you go to read your own poetry,
you get all choked up.
Daniel Johnston, “The Story of an Artist”

If you guys want these crazy ideas, crazy stages, crazy music there
is a chance it might come from a crazy person.
Kanye West

***
In many ways, some artists who are painted with [the tortured
artist stereotype] are limited, as they are forced within the limitations
of this trope, and are not generally provided the means
to transcend it, due to the lucrative nature of this brand of
personal mythology.
Jack

‘Do I need to emphasize this part of me to be understood?’ and,
if you do, then the obvious: ‘will anyone be there to hear me by
the time I have finished explaining myself enough to be understood
and, once I have, is that first part really so important now?’
Michael
*
We don’t have the answers to what was going on in [Virginia
Woolf’s] mind. We only have the breathtaking works that beautiful
mind created.
Benjamin
*
Artists need to be careful not to push their audience over the edge,
but to push them far enough to understand a new perspective. It’s
dangerous territory, especially when discussing mental illness.
Lexi
*
All artists need to be painfully aware of their limitations in order
to make good art. . . The most memorable failures come
from the misuse of success.
Katie
*
It can often feel like experiencing something strange or shocking
has a way of ‘waking up’ the mind in a way that is stimulating
and makes a person [want] to learn more about it.
Martin

*
I wonder how often we search for that “tortured artist” as the
easiest proof that there has been a “life lived.” In other words,
while I don’t think you need some great pain or torture to be
an artist, I do think one needs to have lived in any capacity, and
strife is one of the easiest ways to determine a lived life.
Dakota
*
That’s why, I think, static characters and characters who don’t
challenge any preconceived notions are boring—they’re predictable
and reinforce our own feelings of being stereotyped or categorized,
out of our own control, by others.
Ray
*
In the struggle to be vulnerable and honest, I think artists, especially
those who reach meteoric fame, sacrifice an essential
component to the happiness equation.
Lorraine
*
I always found that even novels that come close to capturing
something that I relate to haven’t fully captured it. There is
always some suspension of belief in order to fully buy into the
world/character/experience the writer is portraying.
Ellie

*
Just because a bird can fly doesn’t mean that walking might not
be special for some. People are too different and complex to
not want to be understood by someone. I think a lot of people
look to art for that someone.
Andrew
*
I think faking it until it is no longer fake anymore can be beneficial….
For example, faking confidence until you actually are
truly confident in yourself.
Alyssa
*
However, a society of my own creation would be founded on
vulnerability and humility. I prefer settings in which people are
honest about their faults. . . There is also a point to be made
about the fact that if everyone were vulnerable, perhaps being
open and honest would lose to seriousness once more. Seriousness
is alluring because in a way, it shields the mystery of
vulnerability.
Leigh
*
I personally think that everyone is here on their own journey.
Whether you take the time to be honest with yourself is completely
up to you. There’s no pressure on living the life you
think you should have. There shouldn’t be a limit to how someone
is supposed to live.
Morgan

*
Maybe we can treat recognizable traditions or conventions as
a template. If we do that, we can use our imaginations more
broadly—rather than following a set of rules and restricting our
imagination. It’s like drawing. You may start off copying other
work to get the gist of drawing, but after a few practices, you’ll
be able to draw without relying on that template.
Lachael
*
Even conversations can be considered art, and it is hard to be
an effective storyteller just like it is difficult to write a poem or a
song. There are countless ways an artist can express their mind
and conversation may be one of them.
Noor
*
I don’t think anyone can necessarily predict the future but I
feel like we do have [a] sixth sense about us . . . Never coming
to Alabama again nuhuh no way.
Kevin
*
It’s just that a lot of the people in the crowd don’t see [comedian
Bo Burnham] for what he is, just what he’s doing.
Alan

*
The issue is that that stuff isn’t as cool or as interesting to the rest
of us as it might be to the people writing it. More explosions and
gore for me.
Alex
*
There are many artists who I would like to go back in time to,
and on their death bed whisper in their ear to tell them that
they are remembered and valued. . .
Madison
*
To be able to convey the personal jumbled thoughts that
bounce around our heads in a first person perspective would
be very interesting to experience.
Chris
*
Maybe a better summary/guiding principle is that good criticism,
like good art and good work in general, requires time and
sustained effort….You have to put time, work, self-reflection
and deliberation into engaging with other’s work and content
(like we did here [in the Liminal Space]). The more we do that,
and not just act and react constantly, the easier it is to maintain
that balance between quality and empathy.
Ethan