The Astonishing Thing People Say About Art
In this video, I talk about how art makes a difference in people’s lives, but for some reason, not everyone sees that or believes it. I share three examples of how art has helped me and what it’s done for me as evidence to prove my point.
The first example is my favorite television show, Monk. Watching Monk face his fears in each episode has helped me become a braver person. Not to mention how much fun it is to watch with family and friends. I have fond memories of watching Monk with my grandma one weekend when I was in college and went to visit her.
My next example comes from a book. I think it might have been the book on the left. But I’m not certain. I don’t remember a farm in the book that I read. But if it wasn’t that book, the cover looked similar.
As I read and watched the character in the book make an important decision, I was able to make a decision that I’d been hesitating to make.
My last example is from this painting by James McNeill Whistler. I first saw it in a book when I was in high school. It might be one of my first memories of a piece of art emotionally hitting me. I’m not sure if it’s the subject matter or the melancholy mood but I love this painting. It feels a little like a fairy tale, and a little like the artist just took a quick snapshot of a girl standing by a fireplace, and it inspires me as a human and as an artist in a way that I can’t quite describe.
I hope this video inspires you to think about times that art (or the arts) has helped you. Lastly, at the top of this post is the artwork that I started painting in the video and finished later. I hope you enjoy it.