This is a statement by the great Pablo Picasso. And I can't agree more.
I see art as an integral part of humanity and our lives, but for a lot of people, it just doesn't work like that in daily life.
Art is often taken as something extra and limited. It's extra beauty, or extra entertainment, extra perspective on something. Besides, it takes an extra effort to see or hear the art.
Most people need to spare some time and travel to experience the classical creations, pay a lot of money to get a chance to connect with the beautiful, and wait in lines and overcome other challenges for a unique opportunity to have a chance to maybe feel something different when being exposed to art.
But I believe any opportunity to be exposed to art is well worth it. As much as we need to dust off our homes every so often, we need to dust off our souls. And art is the best way to do so.
I was lucky to be born in a culture-focused city (St. Petersburg's nickname is the Cultural Capital for a reason) and also in a family that valued art a lot. Art has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.
In my early years, I was exposed mainly to classical art of all kinds. Every weekend grandpa took me to museums. (It was poor back then, and, as I realized later, something that made it possible was that, unlike other entertainment, museums were free or almost free for kids and seniors).
Every so often we would go to a philharmonic for classical concerts or get some complimentary tickets for operas or ballets. I liked Disney princesses a lot growing up, but my visions of paintings by the same Picasso and other great artists displayed in local museums as well as beautiful ballerinas and live-theatre characters were the centre of my own drawings as often as Belle, Arielle or Anastasia.
Later, I had a chance to explore contemporary art, sometimes presented in classical settings, other times being scandalous, inappropriate and controversial. By then, I had the base to try understanding it and judging it for myself.
And no matter what kind of art it was, it always touched the special strings inside me – the ones that have nothing to do with daily life and its problems.
The same I felt recently when, thanks to my work and the need to know everything and be everywhere, I was able to attend a classical music concert by Rachel and Audrey Andrist – two brilliant pianists who were in Estevan for a visit and spoiled the local audience with a beautiful performance. I left the concert feeling light and inspired.
Classical music deserves many separate columns, but I'll try summarizing why I value it so much. It ignites your imagination and as you listen to it, it turns you into a creator. If you allow yourself to let go, you can become an artist of any kind, painting whatever you hear and feel in any colours, shapes and ways you want. There are many levels and layers; there is a story being told and a vision inspired; there are emotions and feelings. Unlike songs with words, classical pieces allow for freedom, for a flight.
Another art project that touched my strings lately was the Reconcil-onialism mural currently being created at the Estevan Art Gallery. A very different type of art – the one with deep meaning, the one that works almost like an interpreter, whose job is to connect two people, speaking different languages, two cultures, and two worlds.
The mural is to be completed and presented to the public during the artist meet and greet on Sept. 15 starting at 6:30 p.m. I sincerely recommend that you come, it's a very beautiful piece and the artist is a very interesting person.)
And we have more art here.
Despite its industrial nature, Estevan, for the size of the community, provides us with some regular (and some indeed awesome) opportunities to experience art. We have the arts council bringing in concerts and other experiences; we have the art gallery focusing on visual art; we have murals taking art out to the streets. There are some other opportunities. But every time it comes to an art project or event, there are not too many people eager to experience it.
Art is definitely not about our day-to-day life. It's extra. But it's an integral extra that we need every so often.
So, no matter how old or young you are, or how busy your life is, try to make sure you take those somewhat rare opportunities we have, and wash the dust off your soul every so often, as Picasso instructed.
