Can art really help us to heal?
Anahata Yantra
I discovered for myself that art can heal when I was painting a Mandala. I was in the middle of painting it when I lost my creative drive. I was going through a healing crisis and just couldn't seem to complete this painting. So I just kept it aside and knew that one day I would finish it - all in divine timing. Then on my birthday my best friend gave me an easel, so I decided to get out that painting & have a go at completing it. I did it!! I finished the mandala over a weekend and it felt & looked awesome!! The mandala I was working on was the Anahata Yantra. Unbeknownst to me at the time, Anahata means “Unstuck”. It is also described as meaning “Un-hurt & Un-beaten.” Since completing this painting, I have not stopped creating. I was no longer stuck. I was "un-stuck". I felt healed & my creative energy began to flow once again and it hasn't stopped. I have this painting hanging up in my bedroom and I still feel very open and grateful every time I look at it. It changed my life.
Creating art is very healing for the artist and also healing for the person that receives the art or is observing it. It is an energy exchange. I find this is especially so with art that has a spiritual message. This is why Mandala's are used in meditation. They help us to focus and find stillness. I love to apply Reiki to my art. It is very receptive to receiving it also. As soon as I start to focus on sending the Reiki energy to my art I can feel my hands heat up and the energy begins to vibrate around my hands. I feel like the art draws it all in like a vacuum. When I am creating, I also feel that I am being guided by spirit. Like spirit is saying to me, "I want you to create this, with this message". Then, I believe it finds just the right person to take ownership of the art piece and receive the healing energy that is enclosed in the piece. I especially love to make custom pieces. I get the chance to channel in the clients energy and make the piece that is just right for them & their needs. My clients really feel connected to their art piece as they feel the energy within. They become friends with their art, perhaps even life partners. The relationship grows and whenever they are with their art piece they feel at home & never alone. There is communication between the two and it is often felt very strongly. This energy lives on. Art is energy.
The Dream catchers I create are mostly made from nature & natural materials either found or purchased from recycling centres. This is another way that I feel my art holds energy. Nature is life force energy, Prana or chi and is naturally healing. We are all made of energy that vibrates at different frequencies. Art is no different. And when imbued with healing Reiki energy, well...no wonder it holds space & energy. I love to use symbology with my wall art. Most of my art comes with a story & meaning that has been channelled and then forwarded on to those that are open to it. You don't choose my art, my art chooses you. Actually...I think it is a mutual feeling, like a knowing. You are meant to be together. Perhaps it is like love at first sight?
Creating art is very healing for the artist and also healing for the person that receives the art or is observing it. It is an energy exchange. I find this is especially so with art that has a spiritual message. This is why Mandala's are used in meditation. They help us to focus and find stillness. I love to apply Reiki to my art. It is very receptive to receiving it also. As soon as I start to focus on sending the Reiki energy to my art I can feel my hands heat up and the energy begins to vibrate around my hands. I feel like the art draws it all in like a vacuum. When I am creating, I also feel that I am being guided by spirit. Like spirit is saying to me, "I want you to create this, with this message". Then, I believe it finds just the right person to take ownership of the art piece and receive the healing energy that is enclosed in the piece. I especially love to make custom pieces. I get the chance to channel in the clients energy and make the piece that is just right for them & their needs. My clients really feel connected to their art piece as they feel the energy within. They become friends with their art, perhaps even life partners. The relationship grows and whenever they are with their art piece they feel at home & never alone. There is communication between the two and it is often felt very strongly. This energy lives on. Art is energy.
The Dream catchers I create are mostly made from nature & natural materials either found or purchased from recycling centres. This is another way that I feel my art holds energy. Nature is life force energy, Prana or chi and is naturally healing. We are all made of energy that vibrates at different frequencies. Art is no different. And when imbued with healing Reiki energy, well...no wonder it holds space & energy. I love to use symbology with my wall art. Most of my art comes with a story & meaning that has been channelled and then forwarded on to those that are open to it. You don't choose my art, my art chooses you. Actually...I think it is a mutual feeling, like a knowing. You are meant to be together. Perhaps it is like love at first sight?
What did this piece, "Out on a Limb" teach me about life?
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Like many others, I suffer with the "not good enough" syndrome & have made an art out of procrastination. Even though my creativity was flourishing at the time, I was unsure & somewhat fearful of putting myself out there in the big bad world to promote my art. As I began to work on this lovely tree branch a story began to evolve. I heard a voice say, "If you want to make something of yourself you need to put yourself out on a limb." There it was! A divine message from within that would help me to take a leap of faith. It was only after creating this piece that I actually found the courage to, "put myself out on a limb". Who says Art can't heal?
So the story of this piece is this... All the magic happens when you put yourself out on a limb, it's where you take your leap of faith. And just like a spider that spins it's web, what we weave, we conceive. I attached a nest on the limb & placed a Chrysocolla egg in it to represent "birth & new beginnings". (The nest is made from a piece of coconut shell). Yes, there is danger when you are out on a limb, fear of falling & failure. But how will you know what you are made of if you don't put yourself out there? Eventually every little birdy has to leave the nest, (our comfort zone) and learn to fly. If we don't, then we are really just shitting in our own nest! Freedom only comes when we learn to let go, which is represented by the falling Autumn leaves that are made from recycled leather, The triangle represents Mind, Body, Spirit. I put my whole self into my art and this creation represents all of that. This creation hangs in my lounge room and inspires me every day to keep putting myself out there. Every day is a new beginning. What can you create today? |
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