What Is Art Good For?
The short answer to that question is “everything” but that doesn’t help us understand how to use art as a tool. In or out of the classroom art affects us in ways that seem intangible because art is around us every single day in many ways. It is so commonplace we almost don’t recognize it. The irony is that we overinflate our appreciation for art while we undervalue the nuts and bolts needed to create a creative artful society. This sophisticated mind bending reality seems a truism because as Americans, we say that we love art but often don’t love it enough to recognize and foster its values. I hope my talk today will help you think of art differently even if you are skeptical that spending time on art will make you better at writing, math, history or science. I am not going to be advocating that art help students improve their grades. I am advocating that art helps us all become stronger and more versatile improvisers. And isn’t that what we all need to succeed in life? Art skills offer individuals a clear ability to think on one’s feet and to address one’s problems with personal agency.
As a teaching tool, art methods are very powerful forces for illustrating a different form of seeing and for giving comfort to the parts of ourselves that are highly protected. We barely acknowledge that deep part of our self, mostly because we don’t know how to overcome the internal pain it might bring up or because it makes us feel unsure of ourselves and vulnerable. We actively run away from those tender feelings by putting up a brave “game face”. But in the duration of being in a state of art practice, there are possibilities to address our selves obscurely. Art lives in the realm of unchecked emotions and as such are never direct, art benefits are always roundabout. That is why we have to stay self-aware to notice them correctly because as humans our brains cannot keep up with all the reality that is being presented to us on a daily basis. Sometimes we operate in the spirit of self-preservation. In theory I am not repulsed by gruesome violence in movies but I find that when confronted I often block my eyes from fully experiencing because I really don’t want to internalize those images. I know that I would because I internalize almost all imagery. But I have to balance this situation out with not being a “Pollyanna” either because my self-image says that I am tough. So what is it? Am I tough or am I fragile? The answer has too many facets and my art training allows me to accept that I am all of the above without too much judgment. Artists are comfortable being in-between states of accomplishment and you should too.
The ancient Celts had a practice of fortune telling called RUNES. They are a set of stones with symbols inscribed that are designed to express the shadow self. It is the part of ourselves that other people see but we do not actually see ourselves. If used in an applied fashion, art can help anyone unlock our greatest mysteries as well as any other kind of therapy. But we must be true. We must be brave and most of all we must look at ourselves without blinking. Cultivating a comfortable way to observe yourself is part of art practice. Don’t be shy, the creative human is almost unstoppable.
The great situation comedy master Norman Lear had an observation about his long life. He said that every day when he got dressed he looked at himself naked in the mirror and was always disappointed but then he did a little dance for himself. He wondered out loud, maybe that was why he body aged as well as it did. Maybe his silly dance was the reason for his longevity. Also, early American choreographer/dancer Ruth St Denis mused that the reason that dancers aged well is because when dancers dance time stands still. Think of that, the concept that making a little dance here and there helps bodies feel good. That alone is a good reason to pursuit art; to revisit a youthful side of ourselves.
Just to be clear, I am not suggesting that you personally pursue being a professional artist. That is not for the faint of heart and is a true calling for those who persist and are ambitious. What I am suggesting is that you find small and unique ways to see more aspects of your life through the lens of art. It encourages everyone to try to please themselves. That is what artists do every day. Ultimately Art is good for changing culture and cultural shifts can either kill us or make us survive. Historically thinking as Margaret Mead so famously stated, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” But the tyrannical factions of the world– think Jim Crow, think genocides on every continent, think Holocaust are cultures too and if we want to have a healthy culture, we also must embrace art and art making principles.
Defining art is like hearing a unicorn’s voice. But just for the purpose of this talk art is more like a verb than it is like a noun. My references to art is defined as being a self-initiating force that at its core is generically problem solving which is why it is so valuable in student’s lives. The expressive nature of creativity and appreciating art is boundless.
But let’s dive into my concepts about using art more broadly to address our present moment in time. I will offer you some performance art pieces for healing troubled souls and just to be clear we are all troubled souls.
Conduct the group through one of these performance art actions.
Movieola
Age Chain
The BIG Chair Interview
Heart Beat
Be Your Smile
Contact Improvisation
Authentic Movement
Copy Cat
What is Art Good For?
Art is Good For Exposing Unclear Parts of Our Personalities.
To advance the human learning experience we have to manage our uncertainty by putting ourselves in situations that have no exact outcome, like art practice. Brains like the challenge of unexpected outcomes and when we mix together our own personal cellular experiences stimulated by the act of doing something creative, there is a learning combustion going on inside your whole being. During that free-thinking time you can see things about yourself because ideas come across our minds in waves of unmistakable clarity, although the best ideas creep up on us while we are thinking other things. The famed Warren Buffet wrote about getting his best ideas preparing for his day in the shower. We could agree that his financial career is reasonably artful. He follows his instincts, built a community and practiced being unique to his ideas. We don’t have to be Warren Buffet, we can just be ourselves with transformative ideas that we act on without delay. If we do not do our ideas then we could still stay lost to ourselves. If there are regrets in life, they usually come not from our perceived personal failures but from the opportunities missed or squandered. Mark Twain opined “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did so.”
What is Art Good For?
Art is Good For Dexterity of Mind and Body.
It is a truism that if you make up your mind your body will follow. The 19th century Eastern European mystic George Guerjieff warned people in his lectures that it is too easy for the lips to agree to anything but then the lips have to get the rest of the body to co-operate. I suppose it is one reason that we must deeply commit ourselves to understanding more about the places around us. We need to develop a place for internal peace by mastering the connection between mind and body. How do we do that in the course of our busy days when there is hardly enough time to be a professional persona and maintain all the parts of family life or personal commitment to essential tasks? The answer is that it is not easy and when you have the spare moment you can explore your body/mind connection through meditation. There are no rules about how or when or how long one has to mediate. It could happen while you are waiting in line at the grocery store or while you put yourself to sleep at night. The best way to start is to observe your body in space, think of expanding yourself through space the same ways as the famed Charles and Ray Eames film “The Power of 10”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0
It is strangely reassuring to recognize how inter-connected we are as living beings connected to our breath. Or maybe you’d like to try mediation as you retire to bed at night. I suggest you start with your toes. Tense them then release them. Move up to your ankles flex and point them, then watch them relax while counting slowly to 10, feel them metaphorically sigh, then bring your attention to your knees, tense the muscles around the knees without involving the ankle, this will take a bit of practice but once you tense them count to 10 and relax them again for 10 counts. Now move upwards toward your hip and buttocks, again tense them for 10 counts and relax them for 10 count. Move over to your hands, clinch them and release them. Bend your elbows in 10 counts and relax them again, all for the count of 10. Go up to your shoulders, move them up to your ears in 10 counts then relax them down in 10 counts. Tense your neck to the count of 10 then release it in10 counts and then smile big and release in 10 counts. After going through this ritual, chances are you will be more relaxed. After a bit of body/mind play then all you have to do is watch your breathing rising and falling. If you are still seeking more connection between mind/body try repeating a mantra that could set you up for relaxing. My go to mantra is “I am at peace with myself and the world.” It never fails to help me put my troubles into perspective. If you’d like to explore mantra for self-healing, I would suggest that you visit Louise L. Hay’s many books for affirmations. The one that I use is called HEAL YOUR BODY. In this book the reader pinpoints affirmation that correlates to places in your body that ails.
What is Art Good For?
Art is Good For a Troubled Mind
There are tasks like knitting that gives one a sense of purpose as well as a tool for quieting the mind. All kinds of art do this too. If you are in a situation where there is strife, like with your family, in your classroom or with you place of business, the use of an art skill to help produce a calming effect on a troubled mind. It could be homemade cards for sick people in your community or it could be creating a picture book of our selves at the same age as your students. My favorite is “Pass-it-on”” drawings or stories. With the drawings… you fold paper in quarters and one person starts by adding their drawing then folding it so the other person does not see it while they add their contribution and when the drawing area has been filled, one of you open it up and the group tries to name it or tell a story about it. Hilarity usually ensues and laughing together provokes calm. Or if you’d like to Pass-it-on stories, start by folding a paper in quarters and write out your narrative on each width-wize quarter and hide it from the next writer by folding the paper over. Do this process for a few pages and once everyone has had a few times at writing time themselves someone should read the product aloud. I have witnessed these Pass-it-on experiences in small groups of people of nearly every age and it is often the silliness that gets people to relax with one another. It almost never fails to be a bonding exercise. Dancing alone or dancing together is a known accelerator for feeling the joy of life. If you are in a confined space or you are orchestrating this event with people that have limited mobility, always start small by proposing that people make a dance with just their faces, their feet or their hands. Movement art is a wonderful to refocus your group if people have “ants in their pants” and need to settle down for the next task, trying doing jumping jacks one by one or one row by row. You can add to this by having them spell out their name or say what they like to eat or name of the book they are reading or whatever you want to create bonding together. Troubled minds are worried about being judged unfairly and some of these suggestions have a way of making everyone feel more equal or to help develop understanding between others. When human collaborate with one another even just for fun we gain emotion traction because we are advancing our own muscle memories and those memories can stay with us a very long time.
What Is Art Good For?
Art is Good For Creating Revenue
I am not advocating that anyone uses art tools to sell their creative products for a job or as a part time cottage industry because that is a serious business endeavor requiring demographic research and a thick skin. But sometimes it happens and it is helpful to be ready. My personal experience is that I wore feather earrings that I made myself. Fashion is never rocket science but it was a cultural influence and every place I went people asked where they could buy them. I did not exactly intend to become my own sales representative but it was too good to pass up. This happened again when I began making fabric accessories and after enough inquiries it seemed advantageous. Sometimes I would find my supplies for free --- you know what they say --- one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. So, this plan will only work if you have a trendy market available. The reason that I mention it here is that many times what we love to do with our hands or imaginations translate well to others and if you could sell your product you should sell your product. The biggest trick to these success stories is to keep your work on a human scale because there is a world of difference between really starting a business and having ambitions to have your work exhibited at MOMA or your ability to sing at Carnegie Hall. You do not want to get a head of your game. Keep it scale to what can be achieved. I suggest that our trendsetter make extra products and have them available for people when they ask. Setting prices on creative products is one of the hardest of any enterprise but circumstances will dictate how you settle this problem. However, I suggest that you consider your costs of materials, your time and place where you make the product. Without a doubt selling creativity is very satisfying and if you have an opportunity you should take it. If it turns out you have a successful income generator then you might want to consider taking some of the more formal steps to creating a business. Look into local Economic Development Corporations (EDC) to learn more about setting up a business.
The first thing you will be asked to do is to write your business plan. You will need to be honest about your pros and cons as well as your location and the demographic you intend to attract. You will have to watch out for what others are doing like you and define how you are unique. It is a great exercise to do, even if your sales are small. Sharing is a strong artistic principle and people want to share their money everyone should be ok with getting a bit of money from time to time.
What is Art Good For?
Art is Good For Fostering America’s Next Inventors
It is hard to appreciate the future when we are stuck in the present. Having artistic skills does not necessarily mean you have better instincts about people but it does mean that it is important to be kind to others. Having empathy is a life skill that comes with art training. For example, you see how Michelangelo made the hand of “David”. Could we do that? Of course, not because we are realistically humble and recognize his great gifts but every day we come into contact with America’s youth and they are watching every move we make, they are watching every word we utter. I cannot overstate the importance of kindness to others. The Dalai Lama states “be kind when it is possible. It is always possible. He also noted “compassion is the radicalization of our time.” Art is good for accepting the most radical interpretation and compassion is always a winner. When in doubt be compassionate if only for our own preservation because it is slightly possible that we have no idea what we are really doing and even more possible that we do not fully comprehend the situation at hand. So, the best fallback position is to exercise patience before passing judgment on other eccentricities.
All of this brings me to the topic of lookism. Just like we should not just a book by its cover. It is unwise to reduce people down to their body parts; skin tone, eye color, height, weight, hair texture, facial expressions, shape, etc…. It is up to every one of us to look beyond the parts to see the whole person. The difference between artists and non-artists is that non-artists lack deep personal dialog. An artist is on a constant state of questioning everything around us. This trait is not exclusive to artists but they seem to have it in a abundance. We would benefit from examining our own internal biases. We all have them, even if we don’t want them. Nevertheless, we are responsible for them and unchecked bias prevents the best possible outcome. It is not only ill informed but we can and should re-train ourselves. For example: you could simply ask ourselves. “Is there a reason to feel this way? Or am I pre-judging someone unnecessarily?” These questions have no answer but they do require instinct and they do require honesty. If we were trained to think in big broad brushstrokes about subsets of people, then we can also be untrained. It starts with being away of your feelings and questioning internal bias. For many years I acted as a guest teacher in public schools and various facility would point out XYZ child as the “troublemaker” kid. There are tons of reasons for this discussion before I began my program; sometimes it told me valuable insight into the different learning strengths and weaknesses in the individual student. Other times it seemed like a form of bullying and bias in action. The good news is that my forte is inter-generalization learning through the arts. Since I am principally a performance artist; I created a performance piece that I have used for every age quite successfully. It is called Boo-Boo Inventory. This is an adaptable process but if the players are dexterous enough, they sit on the ground with their feet in the middle to form a circle. Otherwise for the less dexterous, it also works well to use chairs in a circle. The goal was to model empathy by asking each person to say out loud anything that hurts or troubles them. The facilitator does not offer solutions, advice or attempt to minimize the hurt except to agree with the contributors essentially saying “Yes, what you are saying is very painful.” Then ask anyone who did not contribute to speak. If they won’t contribute, ask them to write the pain in the air. The “rocket science” behind Boo-Boo Inventory as a performance art exercise is that it offers an opportunity where people share pain. Sharing pain is what makes us fully human and biases prevent us from seeing people as fully human. Boo-Boo Inventory is an active measure that builds trust and empathy. Other active measures performance art pieces have to tackle bullying because of the insidious nature of this dynamic behavior. I am here to let you know there is hope for humanity yet. Cultures can change I lived before seat belt and before 2nd hand smoke awareness. So, I have seen I first hand serious cultural shifts. From anti-war to marriage equality, I know that it is possible to create change and that change is the Art “the verb”.
What Is Art Good For?
Art is Good for Advancing Critical Thinking
How many colors are there?
https://genius.com/Stephen-sondheim-color-and-light-lyrics 7:00minutes
How many of you got uncomfortable during that song? This is because achieving anything, even if it is just getting to the end a Broadway tune is a test of endurance. If you let your mind wander, there is not a test at the end of this lecture. No matter what happened to your mind while you are listening your body is absorbing new information and giving you a cellular feedback. My favorite line is
“Your hat so black. So black to you, perhaps. So red to me.”
The reason I like that line is because it affirms for that everyone sees even simple things differently. There are many ways to discover the best way to teach others, in my view there is no better way than to teach the love of learning. The material itself will be more interesting if it is viewed through another lens. Art making is a good time to explore values. We give that value names as Sondheim suggests:
Order
Design
Composition
Tone
Form
Symmetry
Balance
But you well know these are just the beginning. We have many more values present and art allow us to look at them and decide what we like or don’t like about something. We weigh out the differences and we come to a conclusion. Our brains like it and it will help us later when it comes time for other decisions. We will be able to separate false equivalencies easier if we have practice discerning differences. It starts with color and art basics but it ends up with developing craft and confidence in one’s decision making process. It could lead to greater awareness of reading body language, evaluating facts, and adding to purposeful well-being.
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Additional Talking Points:
To act as a diversion to combat destructive behavior
Building self-esteem when all else fails
Has the ability to radically change culture
Advances critical thinking and discussion
Builds character and sustains personal fortitude
Teaches problem solving skills
Art is fun