Art In Effect
Well, it’s a new year and already I have my mind on a million things! Including a recent conversation with a friend about the impact that various art forms can have on us as we develop as a person. This, of course, requires a willingness to look inward, but the results can be quite incredible when you consider a book, a movie or even a song can change our trajectory overnight! And just as God is the ultimate creator, we too are invited into the creative process. It speaks to how powerful art really is and why it’s important to exercise your creativity if you feel called to do so. Here are a few recent examples of this impact in my own life…
Around Christmas, I watched the movie The Man Who Invented Christmas, a loose biopic on the inspiration behind the Charles Dicken’s classic, A Christmas Carol. And while the movie itself was good, the portrayal of Charles Dickens resonated with me most. I related to many of his good and bad qualities which caused me to reflect on those things about myself. One quote, in particular, stood out to me as he was lamenting to a friend how alone he felt and struggling to feel understood. His friend candidly replied, “I’ve got news for you…none of us understand you. You’re a freak of nature. I’m exhausted spending two hours in your company.” How often I have wondered if I make people feel this way when I get in one of my brainstorming moods. His wife further complains, “You have no idea what it’s like to live with you. You have two selves—one who is kind and gentle, and one who no one is allowed to question.” Ouch! Perhaps my vanity has gotten the best of me at times. I try to be fair-minded, but there are certainly times I am so confident in what I believe is right for me that I shut down any critical feedback. I could learn to be a little more patient and receptive to those who want to speak into my life.
Soon after, I went to see Mary Poppins Returns in the theater. Silly as it sounds, I had an almost spiritual moment watching that film! It spoke to my very core as one who values preserving that child-like wonder, who understands Walt Disney as a visionary and can appreciate such a wonderful tribute to one of the greatest examples of what he was able to accomplish in his lifetime. How inspired I am by the beauty that comes from such purity and wish to embrace more of it in my life! It affirmed to me once again the hope and optimism I hold so dear at a time when I was feeling stressed and overwhelmed. Tears ran down my cheeks as I determined to return to that state of mind in the face of everything that was weighing me down at that moment. What do I truly value in the grand scheme of things?
Then a few months ago one of my current favorite bands, The Midnight, released a new song called “Explorers”. This song helped me to more clearly understand what drives me. As one who would regularly refer to myself as “adventurous”, upon further reflection, I realized that the term “explorer” is a far more accurate depiction. Adventure for the sake of thrill-seeking (ie bungee jumping, skydiving, going over Niagara Falls in a barrel) really has no appeal to me, but discovery is altogether appealing. I have always loved taking a turn down a road I’d never ventured onto just to see where I end up. As a child, I would look out over hills, beyond the horizon and imagine what worlds await for those who dare to venture there. Passing through small towns and big cities alike ignites my imagination of what it might be like for those who dwell there. I have traveled and moved to faraway places just to fulfill that strong desire to experience something new that this big world has to offer. My song, “Deep Blue Sea”, also speaks greatly of my longing to go beyond the usual boundaries, but it’s not just about going somewhere new…you can explore your own backyard and be filled with wonder! It’s a state of mind. A need to go deeper. It is even the exploration of ideas. I believe that so much of what Believers have to look forward to in the next life is an eternity of enjoying those uncharted territories created by a God of endless resources. We will never grow bored of exploring!
These are just some ways I hope to grow as I embrace that which speaks to me. Art helps me to more easily define who I am, what I don’t want to be and what I want to become. As artists, we also have the power to do that for others! I certainly have friends who have pushed me in unbelievable ways through the use of their gifts, but it’s easy to get discouraged. This is why it is so important that we support others to use those gifts to influence people. You never know whose life could be changed for the better and what they might do with that newfound inspiration! And what could be better than knowing you have made a difference in someone’s life? That perhaps simply by doing what you love, you too could have changed someone’s trajectory overnight!
“The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.” -Pablo Picasso
