This is the question I asked myself as I started focusing on a career in art and started working in my studio. Personally,I have always felt it necessary and rewarding to serve some need. It’s the reason I got that “stable job” as a pharmacy technician, worked as an EMT, became a Life Coach and even the reason I painted textile works at fairs and parks – because I felt it was serving a purpose and filled a need. As I moved into fine art and creating more personal works, I had to ask the question, “is art necessary and do we need art?” Going introspective, I realized this is a very personal question for all of us, but I also came to the conclusion that the answer is both a resounding yes and a simple no.
Let’s look at the NO here. When it comes to survival, art is not one of the basic needs to stay alive. This is the fundamental reason why art is seen as not being necessary. However,I see a resounding YES – art is needed.
Why do we need art? Art goes beyond our base needs into the realm of social, emotional and even spiritual needs. The following three items are the reasons I personally feel we need art and why I have chosen this path.
Art enhances social communication:Through history,art has been a basic form of communication and has brought people together. Fine art, commercial art,and arts in primitive cultures have been used as a visual to explain the world we live in. Art communicates and expresses visions and ideas that go beyond words. Yes we need art – to express ideas for which we have no words and to speed communication of ideas that can bring a community together.
Art is emotional: Building off that last statement – art is a way of expressing emotions – it uses color, tone, texture, shape and movement to relay its meaning. Hence the notion “A picture is worth a thousand words“!
Art can be a deeply enriching spiritual process:Once we pass the gate of emotions we touch on something more – the level of something we can call spiritual. The process of creating art, which is inherent in all of us, can border on being a mystical experience and help each individual elevate their lives in their own spiritual practice. Art then is a communication with a higher state of being and can enrich not only the creator but the viewer of the art as well.
These are the main reasons I personally feel we need art and my reasons for working on my own art. Each person has their own reasons for seeking out or creating art – but for the majority of us,art is needed,even if that need is to simply enhance our lives by decorating a room.