Why I Started Art in Real Life: My Manifesto

We search for meaning.

Cave paintings weren’t meant to spotlight the artist, but rather to understand where we fit in the environment. To learn the ways of the world. To experience the bigger picture. Together.

Art is how we capture the universe. How we explore the soul. How we look for meaning.

Drums summon us to the party.

We join the dance around the fire. We move in unison, synchronizing our movements, synchronizing our heads and our hearts. Rituals and celebrations strengthen the power of the group.

Art is how we build groups. When we share common stories. When we synchronize our movements, we tighten that bond.

We take our place on the stage.

We act out the social scripts and rituals that keep our communities in harmony. We dress to conform to our group’s rules. We learn how to be good. To be loved. To be safe.

Our cultures use the arts to constantly define what they expect.

We awaken.

At some point in our lives we are ready for our own path. We learn about the world, about what it means to be human. We become aware of the uniqueness of our own experience.

The arts bring us into reflection, to explore our identity and our emotional worlds. The universal aspects of humanity are exposed. We see we are not alone.

We broadcast.

We are wired to connect. We send out a beacon to the world, “See me. Love me.” We are always in choice – evaluating whether to send “I belong” messages or to send “Aren’t I special!” messages. But, ultimately, we all want to be seen for who we really are.

The arts provide us with a daily palette – how to present ourselves to one another. Somehow we find each other. We find our tribes. We belong.

We thrive in community.