This course will introduce a comparison and elaboration of C.G. Jung as Artist of the Red Book and Jung’s Analytical Psychology in relation to but not limited to 20th Century artists and their work in search of the spiritual, or the Mysterium Coniunctionis, summarily as Jung did.
A mysterious, unfathomable medium is where the creative process occurs in the Mysterium Coniunctionis, in the unconscious where the emergence of consciousness evolves over time. Jung gives a thorough account of the problems of philosophical alchemy, and in particular of its main endeavor– the synthesis of opposites. He succeeds in showing that “the world of alchemical symbols does not belong to the rubbish heap of the past, but stands in a very real and living relationship to our most recent discoveries concerning the psychology of the unconscious.”
Using the works of modern artists and writers, we will discuss the structure of the psyche as outlined in Jung’s Analytical Psychology, including the concepts of Ego, The Shadow, Anima and Animus and The Self. We will also discuss the components of the Conjunction and the meaning and functions of psychological processes of the Conscious, Unconscious and Individuation from a Jungian perspective. We will aim for a fundamental understanding of the creative process of Individuation as amplified by the instructor’s own art, such as the painting above, Poseidon’s Ear, and that of 20th Century artists. Experiential class participation will include guided Active Imagination of participants’ own dream work.