"Refugium" by Christine Laurel is an immersive and calming environment. It's part of the "Lift Your Spirits" exhibit at William King Museum of Art, Abingdon, Virginia.
Anna Buchanan, curator of contemporary fine art and craft at William King Museum of Art, Abingdon, Virginia, has thought a great deal about the power of art and how it can affect individuals. This thought influenced her choices for the “Lift Your Spirits” exhibit at the museum.
“I think that a lot of art comes from a place of catharsis and healing. Our Director of Higher Education and Adult Learning Laken Bridges has told me, ‘Good art makes you think. Great art changes your mind,’ and I think that that is true. I also think that ‘great art’ is great because it comes from a place of catharsis: raw,human emotion. When we see the raw emotion of someone else that is when we can start to empathize with another person, because they are opening up to us and being vulnerable.
“Dr. Brené Brown (American research professor, lecturer, author and podcast host, she is known in particular for her research on shame,vulnerability and leadership.) has a lot to say about vulnerability. She talks about vulnerability as an act of courage. Vulnerability is often seen as a sign of weakness, but that is absolutely not true.It takes so much courage to open up to others and be vulnerable. Dr. Brené Brown is coined with saying,‘Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy and creativity. It is the source of hope, empathy, accountability and authenticity.’
“I know empathy is kind of abuzz word in the art world right now,but I really do believe that great art is great because it’s emotive,and raw emotion can conjure feelings of empathy, which then has the power to change someone’s mind or allow someone to see from another’s point of view.
“The artwork that is showcased in‘Lift Your Spirits: Nurturing the Human Spirit Through Creativity’ is coming from a place of respective meditation, healing and hope. The artists and collectors involved in this show create and collect for a reason and often that reason is because it is uplifting to do so.
“I myself am not a licensed art therapist, but I do think that art can be used as therapy whether that is through painting, dance, theater, poetry, storytelling, music etc. When we see or hear a representation of our feelings or experience a physical representation of our feelings, it can allow us to reflect on our feelings more easily. When we can look outward at something we’ve created, it can help us look inward and reflect,” she says.
Buchanan believes art can be therapeutic whether you create the art yourself or not.
“I think as long as the art resonates with you, and you see a bit of yourself in the work, that that is still an act of catharsis, and it goes along with my point about empathy. I love hearing stories about museum-goers that stand in front of a work of art and just have a moment and cry. It’s so amazing to me that the artist (whether they are still alive or not) can channel their raw emotion into a work of art, so much so that their emotions echo and ripple across time and space to touch the life of someone in the present moment. That truly is a transhistorical shared experience of empathy and those are the moments that offer up raw, human connection. So, I don’t think that people necessarily have to create art themselves in order for art to serve the same therapeutic purpose. I think that previously-made great art can function in the same capacity as long as someone appreciates it and sees that work of art resonating with themselves.
“I often feel that people struggle to simply put a pencil to paper because they think that their art has to look like something, that it has to be strictly realism and representational. It doesn’t. Art can be about visualizing feeling; this also helps us to think in an abstract manner. For example, asking someone‘What is the color of the feeling that you’re feeling? What is the shape of that feeling?’I think once people break free from their notions of what they think the visual arts should be, they can begin to explore what art can be. This offers people the chance to explore different ways of creating that are unique to them, but if they never try, they’ll never know.
“I hear a lot of folks say, ‘Well, I can’t even draw a stick figure,’ well, maybe you don’t need to draw a stick figure. I encourage folks to start exploring the arts in general, not just the visual arts; find what resonates with you, whether that’s moving your body to music, putting words to paper or arranging stones in the sand beneath your feet; there are so many ways to visualize feeling, and visualizing feeling can be so nurturing for the spirit,” Buchanan says.
Visit William King Museum of Art in Abingdon, Virginia, to see the artwork in “Lift Your Spirits: Nurturing the Human Spirit Through Creativity.” For more information, visit www.williamkingmuseum.org.
