Take heART!
Many traditions affirm the heart as the fountain of our motives, emotions, and affections. It’s “control central” for our lives… that mysterious movement within that compels us toward that which we believe will give us real life, joy, and meaning. This proverb written by Israel’s King Solomon around 900 B.C. is a quintessential example of this idea: “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life” (emphasis added).
Those who don’t align with any particular tradition tend to affirm this idea, too. Our American culture certainly does, as proved by countless characters celebrated in modern books and movies (which are artworks, actually). In this scene from The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003), Aragorn asks Gandalf, “What does your heart tell you?” And in this scene from Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999), young Anakin Skywalker’s mom asks him the same question. For better or worse, practically all modern romance stories – from Hallmark Channel movies to cheap romance paperbacks – are examples of hearts run amok. If we strip away all the cheese and chintz of many modern heart-tales, we’re still left with the basic idea that the heart is the fountain of our motives, emotions, and affections.
If this is true, then it’s fair to say that our hearts (as defined above) have a huge impact on our overall well-being throughout life. And if that’s true, then it’s really important to consider how we take care of our hearts. To “take heART” suggests that beautiful and meaningful art is a good way to support true heart-health.
Not convinced? Consider a sky-swallowing sunset. I mean the kind of sunset that spans the entire horizon with vivid oranges, fiery reds, pastel pinks, and intense yellows. Think of a time when you may have been driving and noticed one of these beauties. Did it not affect you? Didn’t something deep inside you come alive? Just before that very moment, your mind may have been consumed with some tragedy, sadness, or crisis. But then, artistic beauty passed the portals of your eyes and invaded your heart. And though none of your circumstances had changed in that moment, your heart was lifted up. This is a “take-heART” moment when beautiful art revived the fountain of your motives, emotions, and affections with joyful life.
Sometimes these “take-heART” moments are so profound that we pull the car over and gladly gawk at the beauty before us. We may even pull out our smartphone and take a picture. Then we post that picture on Facebook because we want to share the overflow of our fountain-hearts with others. We want them to “take heART,” too.
This is just one proof and reason why beautiful art is so important (emphasis on beautiful). It’s heart-lifting. Sure, no human artwork can compare with a sky-swallowing sunset, the Grand Tetons, Finland’s fiords, a sparkling ocean, or a crisp, clear, star-studded sky. But beautiful art (and fixtures, furniture, etc.) in our homes and workplaces can echo such things. It can still lift our hearts, positively affecting the fountain of our motives, emotions, and affections.
What I am trying to say is that beautiful art is an investment in our hearts. It’s a definitive step toward heart-health.
That’s why my entire focus as an artist is on creating beautiful art. Believe me, not all artists share this life-giving philosophy. In fact, a great deal of art that’s created today is both subjectively and objectively ugly – designed to assault our senses, to offend and dismay, and to do nothing more than serve the artist’s narcissistic bent toward self-expression. I can’t tell you how many modern art exhibits I’ve visited that were overrun with this kind of art and that left my heart whimpering and depressed. They made me feel as though my heart-fountain had been poisoned. After visiting these shows, I always wonder, “Who in the world would want that artwork hanging over their living room sofa, in their board room, or in their mom’s senior living residence?”
So, on behalf of your own and others’ hearts, I encourage you to “take heART!” – to invest in beautiful HeARTWORK! It doesn’t have to be mine, of course. Just seek it out where ever you can – please! Let’s celebrate and encourage true heart-health!