The Artist's Role in Today's World

The role of the artist is as ancient as mankind-- perhaps older, according to many religions and beliefs. Our roles can be as complex as visionaries, philosophers, renegades-- pushing the envelope of everyday societies. But I'd like to explore the larger sense of our position in humanity, one that transcends labels and vocabulary itself.

If you were to begin with the elemental beginnings of art itself, a "burning" (as discussed in previous hubs/articles), like creation itself (making something from nothing), it is every bit an element to our earth as rain, water, wind-- and fire. It can be perceived as a spark that emits inexplicably from the perceived darkness of nothing. Elemental. Yet an artistic inspiration may even have no beginning and no end-- it has always been with the artist and may always be, simply having manifested within the moment. It may, in that sense, be thought of like a seed that has laid dormant beneath many blankets of snow, only now to begin to shoot out towards the sun and eventually bloom-- and it can bloom endlessly and without limitations, reaching into the cosmos itself. But, back to our more "earthly" selves...

As we meditate, pray or chant, we reach our consciousness inward to expand to the outward to the infinite, to connect with whatever our beliefs tell us is "the source." That in itself is a creation, that making connection, the act itself. And it's within the sparks of this connection to "the source" that inspiration (artistic vision or dreams of something better) can be born with a much deeper richness, a much higher value to all-- as if raining down to us from the spiritual, higher conscience "firmament" that covers all.

It is from these pure beginnings, or point of manifestation more accurately, that gives each inspiration or artistic vision a nature that transcends any everyday issue, concern, judgment, or even value. It literally shines a light into the darkness of human constraints, human structures, human frailties, and even human egos, to light a way towards a purer understanding of our place as life within each other and the infinite-- a path that leads back to "the source."

It's my hope, my understanding and my vision that leads me to believe that any artist should accept and celebrate their role as this: a transcendental beacon. As each of us works to better understand our connection to "the source", our role becomes increasingly more clear: we must strive to shine the way towards truth, transcendence and/or clarity of self. We take on a role much like that of Mercury: a messenger to humanity from "the source." I'm not saying that we are gods or even demi-gods in any way; but we can be purveyors of pure, truthful light-- and primarily due to our well-practiced and mostly innate abilities to imagine, to sense and to express. It is a grand role indeed!

In your practical lives, I hope that each of you continues working towards the light, "the source", your purest point of vision and expression-- and CELEBRATE your abilities with every breath you take.

Namaste!

"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness [and knowledge] never decreases by being shared." - Buddha

To further explore the "role" played by the Artist in today's global society (our Message to the world at large), it's important to understand the true nature of Creation itself.

At some point during the creative process, every artist experiences themselves as a certain type of "conduit" through which an inspiration flows. Regardless of the intent of the physical expression of the art piece (or form for that matter), its true source must have generated from the pure Self. Abundant Love for your true Self must be present in order for the "connection" to hold strong and yet free-- allowing for a free flowing to occur through the physical conduit of Self. Therefore, whether the physical expression of the art arrives through rage, contentment, outrage, or the purest sense of love, the initial intent to create comes directly from the Light of "the source" as experienced by the pure Self. For example, if you are writing a piece on having been the victim of a tremendous wrong in your life, it is Love of your pure Self that generates the intent for the creation first and then drives you forward towards the emotional physical expression; in this case, the expression probably being about anger or resentment or frustration. If you were to use this Love for pure Self (and the Joy blossoming from it) to drive your emotional physical expression, your work could flourish with greater dimensions and your endurance for that work can actually increase (there are no limits when connected to "source"). This process is parallel to the "boiling" technique found in my hub "Cultivate with Joy to Grow Creativity", in that its origin is that of Love for pure Self. And, yes, connection to pure Self can lead to even more intense emotions within the physical expression, regardless of the nature of the emotions.

Having this process and structure in mind, I present to you that the Artist's message to the world is quite clear-- "Love your pure Self to express YOUR own Truth." And, interestingly enough, if Love for pure Self is practiced, the love for the expressions and art of others grows! So, our role brings dimension to the value of Love for the world to experience-- and learn from, be provoked by or to simply be inspired. In this light, you may find that Artists can be considered as teachers (whether teaching is our profession or goal-- or not). We were meant, in my opinion, to shine Light into ALL areas, with pure intent and driven by limitless Love.