The Empty Artist
All human beings have an art, a gift to share with the world. That art is just as unique as the individual. Each human knows what their art is, but few ever seek to develop that art due to the demands of the modern world. The challenges are many; the time-consuming run-around for money and survival, the societal pressures to focus on mundane tasks instead of the quietly bubbling inner fountain of creativity, and the ridiculous way we have made “art” to be something that either earns insane amounts of money, or destroys the artist trying to gain the insane amounts of money.
Children are well-equipped from a very early age to be artists, and there are some schools and programs that do the good work and ensure that children are allowed to express and develop their art form, whatever it may be. But these schools are too few, and the arts seem to have been brushed aside for “science and engineering” and the like.
The plethora of dopamine distractions available nowadays is also a major hindrance to the would-be artist, especially to the young ones who trade screens for imagination, movies for theater, social media for journaling, Spotify playlists for musical curiosity, etc. There are so many talented artists and people capable of great things out there, but the avenues for expression and sharing have been limited to monetized digital ghettos and “who you know” elitist clubs.
Those who do develop their art over the years and stick with their practice usually end up finding a whole new world within themselves. Art can exalt the human being; it can raise us up into inner realms where few have tread. The artistic types are usually the ones who stick with it (I still believe all humans are the artistic type but I can’t deny there is a distinct difference between the artistic-type and the non). The artist has the blessing/curse to feel their feelings stronger than the non-artistic human. They are often sensitive, often introverted, often confused in a world that clashes with their inner understanding of beauty, truth, and harmony.
Because the artist can reach higher emotional highs through their art form, they are stretching out their emotional muscles in a sense. This means that although we can reach up and touch the sky, soaring freely in planes of imagination meant for all but accessed by few, we also experience the lowest of the lows. Oftentimes the artist is labeled by modern medicine as “bi-polar” and “manic depressive”. Jimi Hendrix wrote a great song about himself in this regard.
The mind of the artist can be full to the brim of unheard music, new imagination, all-new visual beauty, tapping into the higher realms in order to bring down what they discover and share with the rest of us. Unfortunately we can’t stay full of our art forever (if you have discovered how, please share with me). The artist will find him or her self empty from time to time, and it feels exactly like it sounds. It’s miserable. There is a level of discipline needed to push through the empty times, even to practice when you don’t feel like it.
As a songwriter I am feeling rather empty today and writing helps. So does going for walks, exercise, doing the mundane tasks, anything to keep the mind from slipping below ground. If you struggle with this feeling, know you aren’t alone!
