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Introduction
Art, whether it is performing arts or the visual, has very reflective and philosophical result on the human mind. Art has inspired and shaped thousands of years of the society, as made obvious by the countless galleries, museums, venues and theaters around the whole world to the present day. The art affects each person in a different way, which is true exquisiteness of the art. The art is performed by the artists. The artists have used different mediums as a mode to influence opinion of the people all through the history, for both gracious and crooked reasons. In doing this, the aspire of the artist whatever type he is to express the particulars of a topic and influence the opinion of the people to also garner shore up or condemnation for a exacting cause.
The artists are considered as the heart of the society. They think based on the running situation or changing situation and express the idea by their medium like poem, novel, painting or performing art. They bring out the joy or sorrows of the society, highlight the corruption or upcoming disasters of the social life and make the people aware about these. Not only that they can even bring the revolution in the society to change it to good situation. The perfect example of this is the impressionist revolution. This revolution brought magical change in the thinking of the people. Many great artists of all forms have come and spread the influence of the power of art on the human mind. Influences of some of them are discussed here.
Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire a poet, who was obsessed and drawn to dark matter, wrote mainly about Metamorphosis, depression, urban corruption and alcohol. Throughout his poetry we can feel, see and breathe the mix of sorrow, anger and pain hiding deep in to the ink. Baudelaire used creative healing through his all live, subconsciously or consciously he used to tame the anger living inside him (Selected writings on art and artists, 1981)
“It is the hour to be drunken! To escape being the martyred slaves of time, be ceaselessly drunk. On wine, on poetry, or on virtue, as you wish.” --- Charles Baudelaire
We can see he wants to escape the rotten reality of his surrounding, to run away from the world full of sadness and monotony, so he uses some kind of vice that helps him and places poetry and virtue next to alcohol. In his case poetry is on first place. Art can`t kill you, it can only soften the pain and make existence more bearable, but in his case eternal (John Sturrock, Penguin, 1994). Charles and most of the poets like him use poetry not for material benefits nor for becoming famous, it is a way to bleed out their feeling and get out of them all of their doubts, all of their negative feeling, to express their love and to heal their soul by any means, it’s their only way to survive and escape from the boredom, pain and suffering.
“Any healthy man can go without food for two days - but not without poetry“--- Charles Baudelaire
This creative energy Baudelaire used it to enlarge his power of will and vitality and reduce the other sufferings that poisoned his brain. He replaces poetry with medicine, some kind of spiritual cure. It is interesting that in this case he says any healthy man he means physically healthy cause he talks about food, but a healthy man cannot live without poetry.
Through poetry Charles Baudelaire tries to find some relief from the emotional and psychological damage that he experienced through his entire life. He writes poetry not to make the best piece of art but to feel the freedom of expression, learn more about him, heal old bad thoughts and improve the vibration of his creative healing.
“The Poet is a kinsman in the cloudsWho scoffs at archers, loves a stormy day;But on the ground, among the hooting crowds,He cannot walk, his wings are in the way.”
― Charles Baudelaire, Les Fleurs Du Mal
Friedrich Nietzsche
“Here, when the hazard to his will is supreme, art approaches as a saving the sorceress, specialist at healing. She knows how to twist these woozy thoughts about the absurdity or horror of survival into ideas with in which one can exist: these are sublime as the artistic humanizing of the horrifying, and the comic as the creative release of the nausea of illogicality. The satyr choir of this dithyramb is also the saving action of the Greek art; which is faced with the mediator world of those Dionysian escorts, the feelings explained here bushed them.” The Birth of Tragedy and The Case of Wagner (Aschheim, Steven E, 1992).
One of the brightest and most influential thinkers in history, who dedicated his life in persuading man that it is not God who has the central place in man’s life, but he himself is the center of it, was Friedrich Nietzsche. Nietzsche was one of the best students; he was appointed professor at the age of 24 even without a doctoral degree. Sadly his poor health led to his early retirement, at this time his was despaired but he recovered from this period and came out with some of his best works, including Thus spake Zarathustra (Rüdiger Safranski, Nietzsche, 2003).
Thus spake Zarathustra
The story of Zarathustra is about the healing process of one’s soul, the healing is said to have three phases: first is the phase of the camel, where he is bears the burden of the tablets and all illusions that come with them, second is the phase of the lion, in this phase he breaks the tablets and returns to his own, he becomes the center, the third phase is the phase of the child, the phase that brings balance to his mind and becomes whole again. Zarathustra story is about the creative usage of the suffering, to understand what suffering can teach us. Nietzsche says “What does not kill me makes me stronger.” (Georges Bataille & Annette Michelson).
It is art that Nietzsche life revolves around, he believes in the pureness and the independence of art, that art should never be part of any political and religious movement. His love for music is great, he admires Wagner, but in the same time he is contra Wagner, but it is Wagner music that made him say that “Without music, life would be a mistake.” “And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
“Love all God's creation, the whole and every grain of sand of it. Love every leaf, every ray of God's light. Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things. Once you perceive it, you will begin to comprehend it better every day. And you will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.” -----Fyodor Dostoyevsky, the Brothers Karamazov
The forerunner of Russian existentialism Fyodor Dostoyevsky speaks of love and life as if he has never suffered, but it is said that he has suffered a gruesome faith during childhood in the hands of his father during his drunken rage, he was also suffering from epilepsy from early childhood, he later also suffered from severe depression. He knew suffering and pain since his first words, “Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart. The really great men must, I think, have great sadness on earth.” he says. Through his entire life it is his works that keep him sane, his novels are like studies of human psychology in times of troubled Russia on political and social level (Halliwell, Martin, 2006). No matter how dark it looks, he states that “I can see the sun, but even if I cannot see the sun, I know that it exists. And to know that the sun is there - that is living.”
In Punishment and crime, there is a presentation of a battle that probably is constant in the heart and the mind of Dostoyevsky: “The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there and the battlefield is the heart of man.” He cannot embrace the gift of life fully so he express himself in his works (Power), so later he can adopt this belief: “We don't understand that life is heaven, for we have only to understand that and it will at once be fulfilled in all its beauty, we shall embrace each other and weep.” -------Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
“I used to analyze myself down to the last thread, used to compare myself with others, recalled all the smallest glances smiles and words of those to whom I’d tried to be frank, interpreted everything in a bad light, laughed viciously at my attempts ‘to be like the rest’” it is the writer that speaks through Raskolnikov, he speaks of how he attempts to understand his own value and save himself from doubt and suffering (Struc, Roman S, 2012).
Jim Morrison
Jim Morrison was an artist, poet and musician suffering from depression, a state that made him start writing poetry. For him poetry was a way to express his inner and deep thoughts that gave him no peace, he wanted to feel free, he wanted to be healed, as he says in one of his interviews:
“A true friend is someone who lets you have total freedom to be yourself - and especially to feel. Or, not feel. That's what real love amounts to - letting a person be what he really is“--- Jim Morrison.
Morrison`s has never felt really relaxed so he commuted back in his previous years and memorized about a car accident where he witnessed a dying Indian. This Indian has become his leader; he called him the electric shaman. As he says the soul of this dying Indian jumped in to his body and stayed there through his entire life. This Shaman was his biggest motive and his great inspiration, he wrote many poems about this Indian inside him.
“There will never be another one like you There will never be Another one who can Do the things you do, oh” --- Jim Morrison
His songs and words are about the freedom everyone must fight to achieve, to be acknowledged by society as he really is, not as society would want him to be. He states this in few words: “The most important kind of freedom is to be what you really are. You trade in your reality for a role. You trade in your sense for an act. You give up your ability to feel, and in exchange, put on a mask. There can't be any large-scale revolution until there's a personal revolution, on an individual level. It's got to happen inside first.” The poet usually focuses on freedom and freedom of speech. The poet believes that everyone must have the freedom of speech and he believes that everyone must be equal and have right to speak what he wants without any fear. The style of poet is really attractive and polite; he has ability to convey his message in a very decent way.
“O great creator of being grants us one more hour to perform our art and perfect our lives.” ---- Jim Morrison.
He was physically a free man, always trying to break free, his art was always meant to break the chains of society and destroy the vicious circle, and finally bring oneself to calmness and peace (UXL Newsmakers. 2005).
Vincent Van Gogh
The man
One of the most unique painters in the world Vincent Van Gogh, known for his rough beauty and emotional sincerity is one of the most influential painters in 20th century art. Vincent was silent and shy child with low self – esteem, above all he was suffering from epilepsy from an early childhood. There is a belief that the treatment applied to the sickness, altered the way he saw the world and this is the reason for his original style. Vincent had a life of misery and suffering, his anxiety, severe depression and mental illness through his whole life led to his eventual suicide. He knows his madness and openly speaks about it, he even embraces it “Normality is a paved road: It’s comfortable to walk, but no flowers grow on it.” There is duality in his thoughts “The sadness will last forever.” but he also says that “Love is eternal”, there was constant battle in his consciousness, but his work is the creations of the curiosities of nature and the present of life.
The Painter
Regardless, all the suffering his work is full of colors and vivacious energyfull and life, beautiful and mysterious. He would state in his letters to his brother Theo Van Gogh: “Though I am often in the depths of misery, there is still calmness, pure harmony and music inside me. I see paintings or drawings in the poorest cottages, in the dirtiest corners. And my mind is driven towards these things with an irresistible momentum.” He was in love with nature, he loved the day and he loved the night, he had so much passion in him that he would have died out of passion, rather than of boredom, as he said (David Minthorn, 2010).
The philosopher
His work of art came out of the battle between the helplessness he felt and the urge to help others. “There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.” he says and “It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done.” It is love that helped him through the years of suffering. At his letters to his brother, there is clear evidence that his work of art was his way of healing, although he also says: “I put my heart and soul into my work, and I have lost my mind in the process.” (Hubbard, Sue, 2010).
How art healing severe mental illness
The material and visual qualities of an art work and the art media are unique rudiments to art healing therapy. These present alternatives to additional strategies in treatment as they work from side to side sensual, visual experiences. That can frequently be perceived as eccentric in therapy settings and so simply misunderstood. The art treatment can hand out as the means of figurative speech, this is particularly helpful for the clients who have a high-quality mastery of oral communication or the words, but are not capable to exactly articulate their emotions (Liebmann 1990).
The creation of art is recognized to persuade the knowledge of flow as a shape of optimal knowledge producing excellence of the life augmentation through the feelings of psychological development, enhanced life excellence and the well being (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). Our initial human knowledge is believed to exist in auditory and illustration forms, proceeding to the progress of verbal abilities. The progress and use of these abilities are frequently ignored or underrated as we connect in a mostly verbal society.
Conclusion
Art plays always a vital role in building the society. It is told that the prosperity and depth of any society can be measure by the presence of good artists in that society. Not only they focus the present situation or visualization of the future but also they can heal the mental illness or diverse mind with their art and creativity. Their creative thinking influences the people to think with artists thinking. This helps them to get rid from the mental depression and help them to think in new way. Poetry is one of the most important fields and the author holds the great responsibility of conveying the message in a decent and appealing manner. Every writer or poet must take this responsibility seriously.
Reference
John Sturrock, Penguin, 1994, Concerning Baudelaire in Proust, Marcel: Against Sainte-Beuve and Other Essays, p. 286, trans.
Baudelaire, Selected writings on art and artists, CUP Archive, 1981, Introduction, p.17.
Aschheim, Steven E (1992). The Nietzsche legacy in Germany, 1890–1990. University of California Press mr Neil at sarinna teacher. p. 56.
Rüdiger Safranski, Nietzsche: A Philosophical Biography(trans. Shelley Frisch), W. W. Norton & Company, 2003, p. 161: "This work [Denken und Wirklichkeit] had long been consigned to oblivion, but it had a lasting impact on Nietzsche. Section 18 of Human, All Too Human cited Spir, not by name, but by presenting a "proposition by an outstanding logician" (2,38; HH I §18)
Georges Bataille & Annette Michelson, Nietzsche's Madness, October, Vol. 36, Georges Bataille: Writings on Laughter, Sacrifice, Nietzsche, Un-Knowing. (Spring, 1986), pp. 42–45.
Halliwell, Martin (2006). Transatlantic Modernism: Moral Dilemmas in Modernist Fiction. Edinburgh University Press. p. 13. ISBN 0-7486-2393-0.
Power, Arthur; Joyce, James.Conversations with James Joyce. University of Toronto. pp. 51–60. ISBN 978-1-901866-41-4.
Struc, Roman S. "Kafka and Dostoevsky as 'Blood Relatives'". University of Toronto. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
Liewer, Steve (November 28, 2008). "George 'Steve' Morrison; Rear Admiral Flew Combat Missions in Lengthy Career". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Accessed November 18, 2010.
"Jim Morrison". UXL Newsmakers. 2005. Retrieved 2008-08-24
Hubbard, Sue. "Vincent Van Gogh and Expressionism".Independent, 2007. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
David Minthorn, NYC exhibit highlights Van Gogh's impact on German modernists, USA Today, 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2010.
Liebmann M. (1990). Introduction: Art therapy and other caring professions. In Liebmann M, editor. Art therapy in practice. London: Jessica Kingsley. p. 11-20.
Csikszentmihalyi M. 1990. Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper Collins.
