Owl In Sight May Spring Forth Sapience | Mixed Media Project

Wisdom, also known as sapience, is the ability to apply knowledge, experience, and good judgment to navigate life's complexities. It's often associated with insight, discernment, and ethics in one's decision-making.

Throughout history, wisdom has been regarded as a key virtue in philosophy, religion, and psychology, representing the ability to understand and respond to reality in a balanced and thoughtful manner. Unlike intelligence, which primarily entails problem-solving and reasoning, wisdom involves a deeper understanding of human nature, moral principles, and the long-term consequences of one's actions or inactions. ¹

Why does society associate wisdom and insight with one specific fowl...an owl? And what quality makes one wiser or even wiser?

The answer lies in ancient times. An owl is a symbolic creature that rose to prominence during ancient Greek culture's belief in mythology with numerous gods and goddesses they worshiped. One particular goddesses, Athena, was hailed as a valued strategist, possessing keen insight and knowledge, with the ability to interpret future events. Her sacred companion was an owl. During those times, the Greeks came to associate the owl with the attribute of Athena. ²

If a human person exhibited those qualities believed to be inherent in an owl, then they were recognized as being wise, have the wisdom to interpret situations others were unable to.

I've often wondered whether experience or time invested in a particular venture makes one all-knowing to the point that the term is attached to that person.

There is a saying that once individuals "go through some things, they know a few things." In that adage, I agree. For one can't know that one hasn't experienced personally.

But I also feel that wisdom doesn't come automatically. Knowing things by experiencing them is different from applying that knowledge to better ones self, others, or society as a whole. Only if a person learns or grows in whatever manner that's required does she gain insight into a deeper meaning of the situation and apply it to the present or future.

Perhaps that is what determines wisdom.

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For my current mixed media art project, I happened upon an image of a female whose facial feature resembled someone chiseled. I use that term because the face looked young, but tattered. To me, the vision signaled that the person has been involved with some perhaps what seemed insurmountable issues, but came through them.

Below are my creation procedures. I utilized Canva, my design program, to blend the different type images, adding layers of elements.

Images I blended with the female depict a projection of one's thoughts and insight with subdued colors, patterns, and shapes.

^{Female ~ Abstract background ~ Owl ~ Blood splatter}