Does art imitate life or does life imitate art? A puzzling question. One as old as time.
We continue to stumble on and unearth myriad cultural artifacts. We discover fantastic Native American paintings on cave walls and desert rocks. Hieroglyphics deep within the pyramids of Egypt. When the Sutton Hoo burial ship was simply “dug up” by an unsuspecting gardener in a remote part of Norfolk, England, it was laden with Anglo-Saxon jewels, artifacts, drawings and more.
In modern times, street art has swept the globe. Young adults (and some not so young) take to the streets painting portraits on walls, pavement and bridges, telling their stories and championing their causes via graffiti.
Large bold print is artistically crafted on a wall in Dublin, where the words “We Need More Poets” dominate the city center, hailing the origin place of some of the world’s greatest wordsmiths. Where there is art there are human beings in every manner shape and form. Art has always been a vehicle for relating stories of joy, pain, tragedy, all types of human experience.
Creativity and the arts are simply an organic part of who we are and how we walk in the world. Even when someone mutters “oh, I can’t draw,” how surprised are they when pushed a little to see what they can produce.
Once a former patient had gone through a particularly brutal breakup of a marriage of 30 years. Her self-confidence was at an all-time low. Doing anything outside her comfort zone was unthinkable.
Yet with encouragement and gentle steps, she sat in on a drawing class, doing something that had once piqued her interest. No time for it … and now there was time.
As it happened, the class was a portal to a part of herself she’d never known. As the weeks went by, a reluctant showing at class time moved into cautious enthusiasm; what eventually unfolded was nothing short of a miracle. Botanical drawing became a passion. After a while, invitations to enter art competitions were a regular part of her life.
What was most encouraging was her drawings revealed so many aspects of who she was. Each precious drawing so full of life. So intricate, delicate, specific. What was even more inspiring was that there had never been a thought that such talent lay dormant. But there it was, just waiting to be ignited.
With a bit of vulnerability and wonder, the most amazing things can come through, even at unexpected times. We must never underestimate our creative capacities. We never know when hidden aspects of who we are will present themselves.
Perhaps all that is required is that we are ready with open hands to see what gifts will be presented, to receive and to explore.
Photo of alleyway art in Galway, Ireland, by Pygment2.