Last week, I looked at art from the perspective of the observer. This week, I plan to show you the many benefits art can bring to the participant. My focus here is mainly on the visual arts – so I can include photos. But really, the arts span a great range of activities from music, to dance to literature. All of them have similar benefits. All of them are life enhancing.
Observation studies
The greatest gift that studying art, in my very amateur way, has given me is to enhance my vision. Subsequent to taking an art class at my local school with a truly gifted teacher, I started to see the world differently. The shape of things, the details and the colours all became more vivid and more alluring. The world, in a nutshell, became infinitely more fascinating and beautiful.
And with that came the desire to capture that beauty in my own way. Because art doesn’t need to be gallery worthy to be a joy. We can keep a private art journal and never show anyone if we wish. But if we are willing to share, encourage and inspire each other, so much the better.
I took a photo of my pencil shavings because I loved the combination of the orange and green and the contrast between the tiny shards of colour and the wiggly forms of the shavings. Later, I incorporated them into a picture.
And the best thing about participating in art is that it allows us to focus with some intensity on our project. If meditation is a struggle, I’d advise trying some form of art. Whilst chewing our pencils or practising our piano scales, we are seldom able to concentrate on anything else. Our mind clears and we find ourselves in the zone – a Zen like state of peace.
An antidote to a crazy world
With the current news cycle, one might be forgiven for thinking that the making of art was a rather frivolous occupation. This Saturday was emotionally enervating as we stood with Mariia at the vigil marking the second anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It’s been a tough week.
Yet, rather than being less important, art and creativity become even more important during such times. Nick Cave puts it perfectly when he says:
Yes, the world is sick, and yes it can be cruel, but it would be a whole lot sicker and a whole lot crueler if it were not for painters and filmmakers and songwriters – the beauty-makers – wading through the blood and muck of things, whilst reaching skyward to draw down the very heavens themselves.
Nick Cave, Red Hand files 274
And as if to prove his point, on the Sunday, we attended a music fundraiser for Ukraine. Many of the same folks were present, but here they joined in song and dance and amazing cake. The tears were swept aside by the act of creating together.
Art therapy
Ever since the First World War, when soldiers were given simple tasks such as basket weaving to soothe their frayed nerves and tortured souls, we have been aware of the very great benefits art can bring to those suffering from mental afflictions.
‘Art has the power to heal wounds and soothe souls.’
Grayson Perry
The mental health charity, Mind, lists some of the benefits art can bring including giving participants an alternative way of expression than talking. It can help flexibility in thinking and aid in self-awareness. It even seems to make participants more comfortable in therapy.
For those dealing with physical impairments, it is something that can be enjoyed at home. If you are unable to work, it is a great boon to be able to create. We all want to give to the world, and this is one way that we can. My amazing friend Sarah Rose (see below right) has used craft as part of her campaign to improve hospital care for patients with multiple and complex needs. They were invited to create their own bunting and together it creates a powerful message.
Create!
In a time of destruction, create something.
Maxine Hong Kingston
Wise words indeed. Just as kindness is an antidote to cruelty, art is an antidote to destruction. And the act of creation helps relieve the sense of helplessness we may feel in the face of so much annihilation.
Art supplies
So let’s get started! The great thing about art is that you need so little to begin. A pencil and a piece of paper will do. For colours, only the primary ones plus black and white are necessary, since every other one can be made from them.
I confess that I have a bit of a stationary/art supplies addiction – but as addictions go it is pretty harmless and inexpensive. What I would recommend is buying the very best supplies that you can afford. I recently indulged in four Caran D’Ache watercolour pencils. They really are superb!
Of course, with so many amazing things on the market, it is rather easy to get carried away. I love the convenience of pencils and paint pens, so I’m sticking with those at the moment. You may prefer watercolour or gauche. The mediums you enjoy viewing are likely to be the ones you’ll enjoy using.
Many people shy away from art with the refrain ‘But I can’t draw.’ Of course, Da Vincis are few and far between, but we can all learn. A great way to start is with colouring, since the design is there and you simply have to work out the colours that blend together nicely. Postcards double as thoughtful missives and the act of colouring is a perfect way in to mindfulness practise.
Once you feel a little more confident in your fine motor skills and colour choices, you can work on copying. (All the best artists start this way.) My 15 Minutes Art book has encouraged me to work with different mediums – soft pencil, bold paint pens – and is helping me learn to draw efficiently
And of course, there are endless options of courses, workshops and videos on YouTube and the internet.
Playing
And once you are feeling a little more confident, you can start to play. I use the word very deliberately, because if we make our scribblings more formal, we may just lose the creativity and zest that we are looking for.
Everyone has the potential to be an artist; you just have to tap into your imagination and let it flow.
Grayson Perry
In play, we allow for mistakes and imperfections. Should we be pleased with an idea, we can always do it again more carefully. Just as in writing, we need to get thoughts on paper first before we try compose more formally.
Home economics
The great thing about making art is that it can fund itself through what you save on cards, gifts, wrapping paper etc. In a time of mass production, a bespoke card or carefully wrapped gift gives more pleasure than its store bought counterpart. It is also a very cheap form of entertainment!
You have everything you need
All day and every day, we are bombarded with messages to buy, buy, buy. Yet, we already have everything we need.
And then, I have nature and art and poetry, and if that is not enough, what is enough?
Vincent Van Gogh
The best things in life are (or nearly free). Foraged seed heads and feathers, pine cones and pebbles make elegant arrangements.
Image: Karen Costello-McFeat
A song in the morning will lift the spirts; a doodle a day and journal writing helps to keep me sane. When we make art part of our way of living, we can start to make our world a truly beautiful place.