Elliott Benjamin uses the term “creative artist” to include “various creative
disciplines such as music, writing, painting, dance, mathematics, science, etc., as
well as socially creative innovations that are beneficial to humankind,” and the
successful creative artist as “a person who has received the respect and
acknowledgement for his work by a community of his peers or society-at- large,
and who is also considered both psychologically and ethically to be a “well
adjusted” member of her society and the greater world
.
Being human is about making a human ecosystem using creativity and foresight.
Making art is probably the behaviour that most distinguishes us from other
beings. Why is this so?
In primitive societies, the pursuits of hunting, agriculture, procreation in relation to
the natural seasons and forces of nature, and even healing, is linked in various
ways to the areas of spirituality and art. Even at the dawn of human culture, cave
paintings were created to depict the activities of daily life. Since that time,
throughout history, humankind’s recording of life and spirituality through various
forms of art has changed from epoch to epoch, from media to media, and from
artist to artist. Yet the basic theme remains—to communicate with an audience
and express a personal philosophy of life and the environment.
Art is the result of inspiration, and inspiration in itself has its basis in spirituality. So
any definition of art must include the understanding that it is a form of
communication that delivers the artist’s understanding of existence, the source of
all things. And the theme of any particular piece of artwork, along with the
techniques and style used, are just the means for communicating that message.
Usually the form chosen, along with the subject matter of the artwork, has been
imposed by whatever society the artist was a part of. In primitive societies, the
content of artwork was often religion and religious intuitions, but over time artists
have gradually expanded upon those themes to include limitless implementations
of individuality.
Yet religion and spirituality have made the deepest impact on art throughout history,
and this is certainly the result of the fact that, throughout history we have
continuously sought to express ourselves as individuals through both art and
religion. The two activities have dominated the human conscience in a multitude
of ways. From cave paintings to ancient Egyptian cuneiform, to Renaissance
paintings, art has served to provide a concrete visualization of the contemporary
ruling ideologies. In ancient times, artwork was sometimes treated as a craft that
should be learned and studied, and artists lived modest, subservient lifestyles.
Early cultures used artwork to worship divine beings, and in the Middle Ages,
artwork was used to canonize religious themes and spiritual leaders. During the
Renaissance period, painted images began to gradually move away from
society’s spiritual ideologies and become more and more individual. Personal
creations of crafting was being defined as art. The craftsperson was becoming an
artist.
Since the Enlightenment, our view of what is real has been
organized around the
hegemony of a technological and materialist world view...we no
longer have any
sense of having a soul.'' Spirituality and ritual have been the first
casualties of
this attitude, but the most profound reordering, Gablick says, has occurred in
the
area of social relations, as the spread of individualistic philosophies has
weakened or destroyed the cohesion of traditional communal structures--leading
to the modern artist to be concerned only with presenting the self, without
reference to the needs of the audience.
In modern times, artists have become completely independent from societal
ideologies, and instead of communicating the realities of life, artwork has
become a means for the artist to communicate personal ideologies and spiritual
themes through visual and other elements. Modern art is often characterized by
abstract concepts, constructivism, and formal and technological researches, which
make the artwork a reality unto itself, more complex and independent than the
artwork of centuries past that reflected societal influences. Today’s mental and
spiritual art, where the idea of the artist has become more relevant than the
materialization or crafting of the art itself, has sharpened the understanding of
art’s sense and place in society. The hand-eye coordinated craftsmanship is
often completely neglected because of the assistance provided by modern
technology such as computers, photography, video systems, and
telecommunication, all of which enable instant simple expression with merely the
press of a button. Performance art, body art, video art, and photography are
examples of such expressions. New art forms have come into existence that
more closely resemble the manifestations of everyday life, and as a result, they in
essence transform everyday life into a form of art. Robert Wuthnow has written a
brilliant, insightful exploration of how contemporary artists struggle to express their
deepest spiritual yearnings. At a time when the notion of spirituality seems
inchoate, artists, writers and musicians can often eloquently articulate the
mysterious otherness of our lives
. They are spiritual models for our time—people
who cultivate spiritual depth through sustained practice, or doing something that is
fresh, expressive, and worthwhile.
Since artistic inspiration is the base of every work of art, the ideal form of art is the
direct transmission of the artist’s enlightenment into the mind of the spectator.
The two fields of art and spirituality merge to enable the artist to function as both
a craftsman and a philosopher, with spirituality infusing every moment of artistic
creation. For an artist to achieve the goals set out during the creation of artwork,
the viewer of the piece should experience the same passion, inspiration, and
spirituality felt by the artist during the creation of the piece—and such an
accomplishment is, by definition, the origin and purpose of art.
