‘It is sinking in, as I approach 50 years of age, that each getting out of bed in the morning is another experiment.
‘Am I ever going to wake up and truly know what I am doing?’
In Human Being Experiment artist Elizabeth Haidle explores the awe, paradox and ridiculousness of being alive.
With illustrations, diagrams and poetic consolations, it asks fascinating questions about the process of learning to become who we are.
What should we try? When do we learn to let go? Is revenge ever a good idea?
And what's the point of feeling your feelings, anyway?
Funny, captivating and hugely original, Human Being Experiment will fit in your back pocket like the guidebook you always wished you had.
Words on HBE
"The title comes from my growing awareness that how I talk to myself - the story I tell myself about myself - is like 80-90% of my life experience. The less rigid I can make it, the more infused with curiosity and willingness and amusement, the more I seem to enjoy the experiment.
"A guidebook doesn’t necessarily prepare you for what lies ahead, but I think the good ones get your imagination involved. It helps to imagine ahead of time how you might respond to something, to think ahead about your choices and what you might prefer. And of course, what you might prefer to avoid.
"The feeling of having a plan is a good thing, even when things don’t go according to plan. There’s a kind of confidence it imparts. Even a brief or temporary confidence feels helpful, maybe it’s like leaping across stones in a river.
"We have to be good scientists, studying ourselves. We can be good comedians too, zooming out and laughing from a comedic distance. Sometimes the best plan just involves getting relief. Stopping and reflecting or pausing to laugh. Books are very useful tools, to this end.
"There has to be some kind of inner urgency to get a thing ‘out’, or expressed. It’s kind of a punishing path if you look at it in terms of hours of work, the repetition of creating iterations and tossing drafts, striving for professional consistency and still plagued by doubt…so, from a number of angles it doesn’t make sense.
"Curiosity usually gets me to the finish line - I want to know how something will turn out, and I don’t really know for sure until the last five minutes.
"Books and visual artworks can reach across time and space, they are magical things, really. I feel like I owe much - having gathered meaningful experiences with artists and writers through their books and art - it feels right to toss some offerings back into the mix of human creations.
"In the end, it’s all an experiment, and we have to keep trading notes. Our solidarity depends on it."
Q&A
What is your favourite book? Fiction: The Hearing Trumpet by Leonora Carrington Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger Nonfiction: Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake 4,000 weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman
What is your favourite quote? Nothing is ever lost. Nothing is ever gained. - Thich Nhat Hanh
What's your favourite word? Changes often, but lately it’s mycorrhizal.
