Spirituality is something I’m not too familiar with but it is something that I would say is quite similar to the idea of a soul. There is no doubt that everyone has their own spirit/soul. Both a spirit and soul cannot be seen nor controlled, however an individual can do things in order to connect with it.

For example, Grey introduces the ideas of chakras in this unit’s reading. There are seven chakra’s going down the center of the  body and Grey states that these chakra’s are supposed to “mediate the energies of the auric bodies that surround and interpenetrate the physical body” (2001). Each chakra describes a different psychological worldview that goes from a material level to a spiritual level. The seven chakra, also known as the “crown chakra”, is the goal of yoga – the union with God (Grey 2001). This is the union of the highest spiritual source which means that an individual’s entire being is unified; which includes physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

Another way that artist’s use spirituality is to see. In this unit’s reading, Grey also talks about Saint Bonaventure’s three eyes of knowing:

• the eye of flesh sees the “outer” realm of material objects
• the eye of reason sees symbolically to draw distinctions and make conceptual relationships
• the mystic eye of contemplation which is able to see luminous transcendental realms

Grey states that, “artists need to be able to see on each level in order to bring technical beauty, archetypal beauty, and spiritual beauty to their work” (2001). Artist may use these three eyes in order to build their artwork from a muse or evaluate and understand another artist’s artwork. This was very interesting and obviously the use of the three eyes of knowing is not exclusive to only artists. I believe that all viewers of art should utilize the three eyes of knowing in order to evaluate and understand works of art, just like artists do. Maybe if more people knew how to use the three eyes of knowing, then more people will be able to appreciate art in general. I feel as if art is a very complex subject. There are many artworks that people look at and just think “What is this? What was the artist thinking?” – they just don’t connect with the piece and don’t understand the underlying meaning that the artist was trying to convey to the viewer.

References:

Grey, A. (2001). Art as Spiritual Practice. The Mission of Art (1st ed., pp. 205-233). Boston & London: Shambhala.

1.     How do you define “spirituality”?

The idea of spirituality, to me, is something I automatically link with the topic of “soul”. Everyone has a soul, or we are led to believe that everyone does. It’s just one of those topics that will always be unclear because we can’t see or control it. However, you may access your spirit. In the reading, Grey states that “Inspiration means access to spirit. Spirit brings vision to the artist via the imagination, the multidimensional media center of our minds” (2001). I would argue that the ideas of soul and spirit are either one, the same, or intertwined because “Third, and only in the deepest art, a condition of the soul is revealed, one’s heart is opened, and spiritual insight is transmitted to the eye of contemplation” (Grey 2001).

2.     Does spirituality differ from religion?

I believe that there are some differences between spirituality and religion, but on some levels they do intertwine. Religion is the belief in a high power. There are many different religions in the world, majority but not all believe in God. In the unit reading Grey states that, “The opening of the crown chakra is the goal of yoga, union with God” (2001) – this is an example of how spirituality intertwines with the ideas of religion. Chakras are believed to “mediate the energies of the auric bodies that surround and interpenetrate the physical body” (Grey 2001) – these chakras are a widely believed in by people all over the world, in order to better connect with your spirit. Grey also talks about spirituality using the three eyes of knowing which include the eye of reason, the eye of flesh, and the mystic eye of contemplation.

3.     How do you define “creativity”?

Creativity, to me, is one of those ideas that have no real definition. The definition of creativity may be different to everyone due to how they look at the idea of creativity itself. Personally, I believe that creativity arises/prospers within an individual. It’s the ability to use your imagination & experiences in order to create something. This something may be anything from an object to an idea. Remember in middle school or high school when you had an assignment and your teacher tells you to use your creativity? The process of creativity takes place in your mind.

4.     What is the source of creativity?

Before this unit, I would say that creativity arises/prospers within an individual. Even though this is still true, the idea of creativity is much more than that. In this weeks reading, Grey explains that “First, artists see their subject, which inspires them to create” (2001). With this statement, I questioned whether the artist’s mind or the object that evokes the artist’s creativity to start going is the “source” of creativity. One could debate that both could be considered as a source of creativity. The process that creativity goes through takes place within the artist’s mind but the creativity is usually triggered by some type of object that they see.