NOOOOOOOOOO!
Whatsa matter, don’t you like turtles on your flute?
Just a couple…
not afraid of spiders are ya!!! 
No Black flies? No mosquitoes?
If this is really a flute from New Hampshire then where are the state’s favorite critters?
Yeah, and a whole bunch of other Nordic, Germanic, ancient English and Celtic stuff, Cork…for starters. Hardly a revelation!
But his dryad equivalents sure weren’t pixies, nor were C.S. Lewis’s, nor indeed the originals in Classical Greek mythology…
I’ve worked my way through a pile of that stuff, too, and I can see their influences on Tolkein’s work. Yet, the influence of Kalevala Tales goes more to the literary landscape, the structure, of his work. Unfortunately, Kalevala Tales is written in a very dense fashion, and could otherwise be skimmed through in a matter of not so many minutes, but perhaps a more reflective reading could reveal another world, and that’s the world I’ve found at the core of Tolkein’s work.
Well, at least we’re back on topic. This thread is about dreams, right?
No, it’s not about dreams. It’s about ignorance.
Whatever one’s schooling or vocabulary or background knowledge, the distinction between expressing one’s own sense of what is beautiful, and presuming to dictate what beauty is or is not in absolute and objective terms, is the distinction between an artistic and creative soul and a soul that suckerfishes itself to things artistic as an outlet for some neuroses or other. The desire of the critics on this post to, with the wave of a few mere words, elevate themselves above the level of the artist in question (for having the gall to create an object that challenges the narrow borders of their undergrad-mythology-class-bought aesthetic sensibilities) is transparent and laughable.
Unfortunately, words exist in the public domain so any moron can appropriate them freely (and get his little hit of self-importance from those too foolish to see through to his actual motive). But reflexively demeaning the work of those who dare to create, simply because it challenges expectation or denies easy categorization, is to demean what artistic creation is. And, as such, is beyond lame.
Yeah, you forge a less “trivialised” dryad with a <2mm face out of 18K gold, affix it to a flute body, and post us all a photo, and perhaps we’ll respect your critique a bit more. This may come as news to some, but dryads don’t actually exist. They are a product of human imagination-- as are your fantasies of yourselves as enlightened purveyors of talent and taste-- and a bit more open to interpretation than the average subject.
On the other hand, the flute in question is real, it exists in the world, and having seen it personally (no, I am not John Lunn, nor a member of his family), I can attest to its beauty both as an art object and as an instrument.
Oh, not that “If you can’t do it you aren’t allowed to evaluate/criticise it” argument again!
Otherwise, nice diatribe!
This moron is entitled to a subjective opinion - and at least was able to give a rationale to his distaste. I don’t ever expect, let alone presume to dictate that anyone should agree with me, though clearly some do. I also expressed respect for the craftsmanship (which I full well know I cannot emulate) but I see no “challenge of expectation” in it save perhaps in its application to a flute - and as I illustrated, even that is hardly unprecedented. I also made that effort to illustrate both verbally and pictorially things I prefer by way of comparison (scarcely “absolute and objective terms”) - not so narrow-minded, I think. And I’d say it was applied artisanship rather than creative artistry if you really want to bandy words. If applying however finely crafted a mishmash of assorted Disney-esque zoomorphic and vegetative ornamentation to an intrinsically attractive functional object is high art, well…
As I see it, something was flagged up to elicit a reaction so, whaddaya want? Unstinting and uncritical adoration? Or simple, unexplained rejection? Or a tolerably analytical critique?
I don’t think it’s me that needs to hobble off to nurse my neuroses. Save maybe my mental allergy to cutesy-ness.
Oh, and don’t go attributing hidden “motives” or “souls” where none exist any more than do dryads and other figments of imagination. Did anyone suggest that dryads do exist? Hardly, though a comparison of various imaginings of them was implied.
I can’t even draw well, let alone chase gold - I could never begin to approach Lunn’s level of crafstmanship: but I don’t need to try to “elevate” myself above his artistic taste on this showing, assuming that you wish to posit a hierarchy in such matters. I’m quite good at imagining!
Ah, but … When one considers archetypal manifestations of antediluvian cryptobiota as individuated in the octad of Hellenomorph _hama_dryads, one must map their aesthetic numen, mutatis mutandis, to orthogonal contemporary abstractions in the context of a post-ikosachronic nexus of instrumentarium praxis and theory in order to calibrate their probability of inducing nausea.
Uh … cool flute.
Yeah, I guess the best arguments tend to be overused. Damn! I should write aphorisms for a living!
Look, it’s a cool flute. Cool is more important than how cool. No amount of atmospherically intellectual posturing changes that. The world is a better place, not a worse place, for it having been created. However, the world is a worse place, for your mean-spirited-- original, i.e. pre-rationalized-- response (and that of several others, I guess you responded first because you felt the guiltiest) having been foisted on us all.
Otherwise, I hesitate to banter further with anyone who seriously uses “indeed” as part of a conversational vernacular. But please, continue to tear the room apart, you cant help yourselves!
Oh Guru, I assuredly could not have put it better. (Or even thus! Outdone again! 
) You are my Icon!
I have a degree in Gobbledegook. I’m a professional. 
Ahh, go deconstruct a novel.
And the worst. Indeed.
Look, it isn’t cool, it’s tacky. I said so. Degrees of coolth don’t come into it. I’m not “intellectually posturing”. Are you? I’m just being me. The world is neither better nor worse for the flute’s existence - it has virtually no impact, any more than anything you or I do or say or think.
You’re making unwarranted assumptions again. I don’t feel guilty, but I was probably circumstantially the first to have an opportunity to respond, or the first who could be bothered… and I nearly didn’t. My original comments were NOT “mean-spirited” IMO, (that’s your gloss/take) just a genuine reaction expressed quite light-heartedly and humourously, without malice. No-one “foists” anything on anyone in these situations - you choose to view and participate here, or in any other forum of debate, virtual or in-the-flesh. I no more foist my opinion on you than Jessie foisted the thread upon us or Mr. Lunn foisted his flute upon the world. And opinions don’t need constantly to be labelled “IMO” to have that subjective, evaluative status. My value-judgements (or yours, or anyone’s) are self-evidently just that - they may be explained or elaborated upon, but they remain subjective reactions and are perfectly valid as such.
As I implied before, if one puts something one produces out in public for appraisal (including one’s opinions), anyone is entitled to react however they actually feel (within good sense and reasonable behaviour) and to express that reaction and, whilst others may disagree and the creator may be hurt by such reactions, they/he can counter-argue (as you have) but have no right to expect universal approbation or immunity from critique. I have occasionally been upset and slightly more often mystified by negative or (to my view) uncomprehending reactions I have received to my own artistic efforts - but as a performer or displayer of any kind of art or craft, one has to accept that or else keep one’s product private.
Indeed. Or even, “Indeed?”
???
don’t worry, be happy!
yer doin’ fine!
bicker on!
Alright, alright! I accept your apology.
Assume away, however misguidedly… not to say downright obtusely!
Or should I (indeed) say “Dream on”?
Sheeesh