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“Like the expressive arts therapies, the arts in healthcare movement recognizes the arts, creativity, and imagination as agents of wellness and their consistent and central presence throughout history as healing practices.” Patients who are involved with the arts require less pain medications, better compliance with treatments, and even, stay in the hospital fewer days. Along with that, art in the hospital environment improves the appearance and decrease the stress levels of both the patients and the caregivers.
After reading the Psychology Today article, I Googled creativity and healthcare and came across a myriad of articles from online health focused sites, as well as publications and books for healthcare professionals touting the benefits to health of creative activities. We know that children get a boost to self-esteem when their teacher and parents compliment their art. For adults it is the same. Another aspect of creativity, for some, is the social benefit of sharing what they have produced.
Love when I get to experience my blogging friends’ creative beings. Along with the discipline of creating interesting reads, they share compelling stories about their daily lives, their history and what they have created. I have used my imagination and sat in fragrant and lovely gardens that my friends have grown. Others have shared day and night photos of a fresh new snowfall. That, with their words, has driven me to hot tea and a warm sweater, despite the lack of freezing temperatures in my home city. Another aspect of creativity that really impacts me positively, are the beautiful photos of the culinary creations that HomeRearedChef and others post. I also like travel stories, home stories, narrative prose, student/teacher experiences, the angst of daily exercising laments and humorous reading about the challenge of working from home when you have children diverting your attention, while still fitting in roller derby queen preparations. There is no doubt that after reading most posts, I am more relaxed and connected, all impacting me in a healthy way.
Now my turn to share: I have a friend, Barbara Brenton, whose art I absolutely love. She describes herself this way: I am an experimental painter and like to incorporate both traditional and non-traditional materials into my work. Ideas for my art come from visual experiences from the external world around me. I then take those ideas and experiment with abstraction and all forms of media, materials, and color combinations to create a work of art that becomes my own. When I look at her art, my mind gets swept up into the colors, the composition and the unique aspects of how she uses the familiar to create the abstract.
Last year, Barbara asked me to create a poem describing her art, as part of an exhibit highlighting her works. I did. Last week, I did the same thing for an exhibit that took place in Bonita Springs, Florida. Would you believe that there is a name for that called: ekphrasis. Yep, that is my newest art form. Below is one of the paintings that Barbara created for last week’s exhibit and my poem that accompanied it. Note that the overall theme was "monochromatic collage".
ONE RED SQUARE AMONGST THE WHITE
One lone dissenter
Standing amongst the throngs.
Waiting for something to happen
Lots of rights, yet many wrongs.
Doesn’t have to be political
Nor self-righteous indignation
But quietly making the point
Without gross exaggeration.
Red Square stands there as my hero.
While all others look so white
Not many do what square has done.
The red sun in the light.
What else do I think about
when looking at this creation?
My mind goes in many ways.
From structure to elation.
It makes me think of bravery.
Then takes me to a wild flower
Its red beauty stands out bright and bold.
In the midst of a lively white shower.
When I focus on the white design
The red isn’t as pronounced.
Its almost as if it stands apart
As a guest whose not yet announced.
Again I take another look.
And see some puzzle parts
Not together but placed quite close
It reminds me of dancing hearts.
There is gauze and cloth and mesh and board.
And indistinguishable additions.
Is it a pirate’s map to a treasure chest
That leads to some search expeditions.
All in all, I love to look,
As Red Square is so engaging.
It takes me away, then brings me back.
And leaves me staring at its white staging.
Honored I was asked to write this poem.
To express what I think when I stare.
To gaze at fine art and study it hard.
I thank you for the chance to share.
I am not saying that the poem was the greatest poetry ever (I still like Edgar Allen Poe far better), but I had fun studying the art and letting my mind be engulfed by it. Also, at the end of the reading, I invited other attendees to share their interpretation and a lively discussion followed. It turned into something far more than I expected and was totally enjoyable. The other participants treated me, as if I was their own personal poet laureate, which made me feel like I was one with the creatives there, but in a humble kind of way
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