"All these people in the street make me think of exhausted gorillas, every one of them tired of imitating man!" - Emil Cioran Piece by William Blake - "The Ghost of a Flea" (c. 1819-1820) ![[IMG_1651.jpeg]] John Varley, who was an artist and a close friend to Blake, reported in his 'Treatise on Zodiacal [[The Foundation Of Physiognomy|Physiognomy]]' that Blake was once visited by the ghost of a flea - and that ‘This spirit visited his [[Imagination]] in such a figure as he never anticipated in an insect.’ While drawing the spirit it told the artist that all fleas were inhabited by the [[Spirit And Soul|souls]] of men who were ‘by nature bloodthirsty to excess’. > I’ve always found it difficult to derive meaning from art. Have never found it interesting or been able to feel anything from it. What this is this a sign of and how can one learn to appreciate real art? It's a learned skill for most but well worth the investment. Art is man's greatest (and arguably his only) achievement. 🤍