Today, I looked in the mirror and thought about … mirrors. I thought of something I’d heard once about how it makes a difference which side you part your hair on and found the site that explains the theory and sells a “non-reversing mirror”. The Hair Theory actually proposes that which side you part your hair on makes a difference. According to the theory, the left hair part draws unconscious attention to the activities that are controlled by the left hemisphere of the brain (activities traditionally attributed to masculinity). A right hair part draws unconscious attention to the activities that are controlled by the right hemisphere of the brain (activities traditionally attributed to femininity). I had read of politicians who changed their hair after learning about this.
Then I got to thinking about one of my favorite ART topics. The topic of artist tricks and secrecy. Artist David Hockney’s Secret Knowledge is a wonderful book that postulates (and, in my opinion, proves) that painters from the Golden Age used mirrors to assist them. Hockney claims that he has rediscovered a lost trade secret of Western art’s grand masters — not just Caravaggio but also van Eyck, Holbein, Leonardo da Vinci, Van Dyck, Velazquez and perhaps even Rembrandt. Hockney has caused jaws to drop with the provocative idea that these masters used mirrors and the strong, hot light of the noonday sun. Living with an artist, I am very aware of “trade secrets”.
“Always be nice to your children because they are the ones who will choose your rest home.”
Phyllis Diller (1917 – )
American Actress
“Sex is a bad thing because it rumples the clothes.”
Jackie Onassis (1929 – 1994)
Former First Lady
