Topic: Spirituality
Unit Objectives:
-Become familiar with ways in which spirituality influences artists
-Discuss the differences between spirituality and religion
-Examine spirituality as a generative force and a well spring for creativity
Artifact: Creative Spirituality Reflection
- I would define spirituality in two ways; the first way would be having the belief that there is a greater power at play that is greater than oneself. My second definition of spirituality would be having awareness of your purpose and meaning in life. My first definition stems from religions, while my second definition is from personal experience. My aunt, who passed away 3 years ago, was an extremely spiritual person. She believed everything happened for a reason, people had a path that they are meant to take in life, among other faithful beliefs. She was not, however, religious by any means.
- My second definition adequately answers the question of whether or not spirituality differs from religion. I think that when one is religious, they are spiritual because they believe in this higher power. I think it can differ because one can be spiritual by believing in miracles and destiny, but not necessarily a God. I would argue that there is no correct answer to this question, because it depends on the reasons behind why someone is spiritual.
- I define the term creativity as the use of one’s imagination to produce original ideas. Creativity is unique to individuals; for an artist, creativity is present in their artwork, but in a doctor, creativity is present in their solutions to difficult health problems. There can be many forms of creativity, just like there are various forms of spirituality. Differences in creative thoughts just depend on the person, their background, and their way of thinking.
- I would argue that the source of creativity depends on the task at hand, or as the author stated in the reading, the formulation step in the creative process. As an artist, one would become creative about a subject to create a piece of art. As a researcher, I think the use of the cognitive thinking is involved, assisting in problem solving by arriving at creative solutions. Both types of situations would use the creative process to come to their conclusions.
Reflection: This assignment required a full understanding of the unit objectives in order to be successful. Spirituality strongly influences artists, especially when related to religion. While I would argue that the two can potentially be very different from one another, they can also go hand in hand. Many artists in history have impacted the church in immense ways. Michaelangelo, specifically, created various works of art for the Catholic church. The artist was able to create masterpieces that are still preserved today, hundreds of years later, because of the impact they have upon viewers.
Future: In hopes of traveling, I plan to continue to view the differences in art work and determining whether something was influenced by religion or by faith/spirituality. Specifically in Europe, i believe there are endless opportunities to discuss differences between spirituality and religion. Unrelated to art, I also hope to have intellectual discussions with those who regularly practice religion, as well as discussions with those who do not.