Art is...

Art is... a question mark in the minds of those who want to know what's happening.  ~Aaron Howard

This post is not meant to be a rant, although it may sound like one. This blog is designed to make people think about a subject in a different light, or perhaps put you in someone else’s shoes. At times, I feel like I’m ranting because I generally talk about something that is bothering me, or something that made ME think. I write in hopes of changing at least one person’s perspective, I want to broaden their horizon. Today, it is all about art.

Recently I have become more in tune to my artistic side, something I always knew was there, but never had to use it. I have come to appreciate art as if it were the greatest thing since sliced bread or peanut butter.

This is where my questions begin to surface and I become flustered with things that I don’t understand. Do I think too deep? Or do I just think, and others don’t?

Just like many things in life, I feel, art is highly underappreciated, and to many, unappreciated. People fail to recognize the beauty of art, whether it is architecture, paintings, drawings, pictures, tattoos, sculptures, etc. Everything around us is art and art is all around.

Why is it that people fail to recognize the true beauty that coexists within a single frame? Each line, brush stroke, pixel, etc. means something significant to each artist. When we don’t stop to recognize the beauty in each individual segment of the art, we can’t appreciate it like we should; as it deserves to be appreciated.

As a professional photographer, it bothers me when someone quickly flips through a photo album of my photographs. Something I put so much thought into, and countless hours of editing, composing, and developing thoughts, that someone can flip through in under two minutes.

I had a conversation with an artist a few weeks back where we discussed a painting he was working on. He said, “It’s a button.” However, the plaque underneath the painting would say, “It’s not a button.” Such an interesting concept that many people may not recognize or comprehend as an artist does. It’s not a button…it’s a painting of a button.

The point is this: Art is a passion that many people share, and if you don’t share it, at least try to recognize and appreciate those who do. Stop and stare at a picture or painting that you pass daily; you will be surprised what you find that you didn’t notice in the past.

Art is beauty in its purest form…recognize!

When you’re me, you think about it.

Life in Solitude

Whoever is too great must lonely live.
Adored he walks in mighty solitude;
Vain is his labour to create his kind,
His only comrade is the Strength within.
The great are strongest when they stand alone.

-Savitri

   As my first blog post, I wanted to hit on something that everyone encounters… romantic relationships.  A subject that I have put a lot of thought into over the years, yet never seem to figure out. Not only why we want relationships, but also why we long for them and they become a need instead of a want.

               

  Having only one serious relationship under my belt, I am the furthest from an expert on relationships; and on the same note, the opposite sex.  Although, romantic relationships are not my focus, or the opposite sex my concern.  It is what goes on within us that makes me wonder why we force ourselves into something we are so unsure of.

             

   Face the facts, we are social mammals; we all have the need to belong, and if we don’t interact with others it can cause severe psychological effects. We all have general interpersonal relationships, but they cannot fulfill the needs that we so desperately search for in a romantic partner. So what is it that makes us search for someone who we fit so perfectly with, tell everything to, spend every minute with, and share out hopes and dreams?
  
     Are we tired of being lonely, or are we scared to be alone? Although they seem to be the same, I feel that they are two very different aspects within us. Are we truly ‘lonely,’ or do we just want to be with somebody as we are taught from birth? Are we alone, or have we just not found the one we have been searching?  After all, who is to say what being lonely really is…or feels like? Could it possibly be a universal feeling?


    To further the thought above, what is it about loneliness that we dislike so much? Do we want to be needed? Need to be wanted? Need to be needed? Want to be wanted? Loneliness is so complex; by experiencing it in the wrong way, happiness seems so far off, until we find the one with which we belong. However, if we experience loneliness in a positive way, loneliness = solitude, happiness is only a stone’s throw away.


     In addition, who is to say being lonely OR being alone is a bad thing? Those who enjoy themselves when they are alone (not in a relationship) are solitude in that way. They thrive in their own world and become the greatest they can be. Therefore, we must find power in ourselves and love our lonely life in order to be happy with another.

    Either way, in my overly extensive years of being single, I’ve come to realize many things by analyzing others romantic relationships; or quite possibly, the need to be in a romantic relationship. As a more recent Facebook post, I stated, “I find it interesting how many people base their LIFE around LOVE.” When in reality we should be doing just the opposite and base our LOVE around LIFE. We must lose ourselves in enjoying what is given to us, before we set forth to search for what is not.

Stand tall when you're alone, for that's when you're strongest. 

When you’re me, you think about it.