Using Phi as Structure in "Structure and Chaos:
One of the things about working with Phi or the Golden Section is that a lot of people have seen or at least heard about it in some context or another. Several theories regarding its origin have been proposed and it has a long history, yet it's very possible that its human discovery predates any written, historical references.
After 40+ years of exploring geometry based on its ratio, I still find new things unfolding each time I use it while developing a Structure, at least for myself. It really is uncanny in its "relative" nature. I can see why it has been identified as spiritual or sacred. Although known by many throughout its history, I haven't found evidence that it has been explored to any thorough extent on a strictly visual, aesthetic level beyond simple geometry.
For myself Phi or the Golden Ratio goes beyond metaphor. I see it as actually working relativistically and visually in geometry much the same way I understand Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity. As a relative structure it is an "open" system; most grids or structural systems are seen as "closed." It is also visually intuitive and intellectually insightful at the same time. Very few phenomena found in "visual perception" can say that. It can be applied in a strictly intuitive way that can reveal uncanny relationships at every turn. This ratio is a "fractal" and its resulting geometrical configurations can generate in either increasing or decreasing values, sizes, complexity or simplicity. The fact that it can be found in Nature makes it the most viable of Structures I can use in my paintings.
Ever since some of our early human ancestors created some of the first paintings we know of found in a number of caves in Southern France and Spain, painting has been a representation of something we have experienced. The images of bison, lions, and other animals on these pre-historic cave walls are described quite beautifully, however, their purpose we can only guess. Abstract "drawings" or symbols (we don't know their significance either) found along side of these images demonstrate that "abstract" images have also played an important role in this very human activity of picture-making.
Finally, painting is a uniquely human activity that is deeply rooted in the very things that define ourselves, I believe that creating images is an intrinsic part of us that runs deep in our subjective and collective psyche. Also, creating art as well as experiencing the art of others connect us on a level that is both unique and universal at the same time. We will no doubt engage in this form of interaction well into the future. Because it is based on the workings of Nature (human-nature and nature-nature), it represents our very real human experiences within it.