“Art can be many things to me. It can be an off-trail walk in the woods, a plunge into the depths of the oceans, or a climb to the top of the highest mountains looking down to see what I can see.  It’s amazing the places creativity can take you if only you let go for the ride. The flow of creativity can rush you away in its river reminding you to lose yourself to the creative forces of the universe.” –Sheila Coughlin

Art truly is so many things to me. It’s one of my many blisses. I’ve actually never, yet, sold a piece of my art, had my art exhibited beyond the 5^th grade classroom, or contracted my art services. I still consider myself an artist. My personal belief is that everyone is. The concept of art sure has changed drastically over time, and I’d be curious of the actual amount of time we, as a society, have been stuck in a judgmental rut of what art is and should be. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard from people, “I don’t have an artistic bone in my body” or “I really can’t draw anything.” Substitute draw for paint, sculpt, sing, or dance, the list just goes on and on. The fact that present day society seeks to judge any sort of artistic expression is truly saddening. Our children hear this and quickly learn that it is not OK to fully self-express through any type of art form. The fear of judgement seeps in, and their ability to freely create is stifled. They lose that innate ability to tap into the creative source they are so connected to.

When I was a student of Art Therapy, it took me nearly a year to work through some of the creative blocks I had related to art. Even though, I never lost my love for art at a young age, my perspectives related to the art I created were highly twisted to that of perfectionism. I still feel those clouds pass by when I’m in a moment of creating, but I let them pass. I make a conscious choice not to cling. There is so much one can learn about themselves when they surrender themselves to the creative process. For me, it’s like surrendering to the flow. What happens there, I can take back to my everyday life. It brings insights, different perspectives, and creative solutions. It can manifest healing in my life helping me to work through things I may have otherwise been unaware of. Sometimes, the act of creating with free-flowing energy blends positive thoughts and melds this creative energy into my piece. It can be more like a prayer. It can be my way of putting intentions into visual form, sending these out into the universe, and breathing this creative energy into being.

I’m fascinated with art, with myth, and with dream. My favorite mythologist Joseph Campbell wrote, “For nature, as we know, is at once without and within us. Art is the mirror at the interface. So too is ritual; so also myth. These, too, bring out the grand lines of nature, and in doing so, re-establish us in our own deep truth, which is one with that of all being.” The Inner Reaches of Outer Space, p. 132

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Art Journaling is one of the many ways I play with some of the forms that come alive in my art. Once you get past all that surface stuff related to art, you find a place within that goes much deeper. Once you get to the bottom of the well, there is a lot to bring back up. Art, myth, and dream serve similar purposes in my mind. To quote Joseph Campbell, “Myths are the world’s dreams. They are archetypal dreams and deal with great human problems. Myths and dreams come from the same place. They come from realizations of some kind that then have to find expression in symbolic form.”

Joseph Campbell’s assertion was that the artist is the modern equivalent of the shaman. How much he understood about shamanism I really don’t know. Cross cultures, many have different perspectives on shamanism, or they choose to use other words to describe a similar concept. Shamans, medicine people, and healers across so many different paths have many different ways of describing or not describing their experiences. Truly, it can be such a debatable topic for some. So much controversy for so many things on this planet. The place I see society in today, really needs less controversy. Perhaps, I’m wrong though. Perhaps, everyone needs just that. Debate, controversy, and clash of the egos. I guess whatever it takes to crack the nut. Really, I’m just waiting for us all to wake up.

Until then, get out your paintbrushes, have fun finger painting, drip glue, and get messy. Let go of yourself! Even if only for a moment. Getting into this flow, is a practice. Carrying the practice into other areas of your life can be life changing. I’ll leave you to following your bliss with one of my favorite quotes by Joseph Campbell.

“If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living. When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in your field of bliss, and they open doors to you. I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.” –Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth

Thank you for joining Nature Art Exploration. I hope you enjoyed these ponderings and reflections! Please, feel free to join in with your comments below. Nature Art Exploration loves to hear from you.