When Charles Hale realizes his son is discovering his creative side, he does the only thing he can. He encourages him to cultivate and cherish it.
Between my son Chris’s sophomore and junior years in college he spent half the summer in Barcelona, studying art and architecture, and the other half in Ireland at Waterford Crystal where he completed a design internship. Prior to that Chris hadn’t paid much attention to his creative side. Midway through that summer, however, he began sending letters that suggested he was awakening to his own creative nature. This is a letter I sent to Chris in response to his thoughts:
Chris,
A number of years ago I came across the word sentience, which means having the capacity for sensation or feeling. As you’ve grown, I’ve often thought of you and that word. I’ve thought of the way you feel and experience music, art, and on a larger scale, how you view the world. Recently, your comments from Barcelona confirmed for me that your capacity for sensation and feeling are worthy of note.
Do you remember writing this: “Seeing the Transfiguration by Raphael literally took my breath away, Dad. Intuitively, I can understand how the figures in the painting interact with each other, but I’m lost for words. It’s breathtaking. It made my heart race. Genius, pure genius.”
Chris, most people don’t see things as you do. The people who are moved the way you are by art, music, and world events are, in my opinion, in the minority. I’m sure it’s often difficult for you to describe the way you feel, but I’m confident you intuitively sense when you are with someone who feels similarly.
For instance, do you remember what you wrote about your teacher Annie? About Van Gogh’s painting you said, “Annie and I stood in front of one of his paintings for twenty minutes discussing what might have been going through Van Gogh’s mind. You could literally see that he was beginning to lose himself. In the painting the sky was a bright green; the rest of the picture was mostly very dark and disturbing. Annie pushed me to think of painting in a way I hadn’t: “Why this perspective?’ ‘Why this choice of color?’ and ‘Why this brush stroke?’ It was as if she wanted me to feel what Van Gogh was feeling, to live through his art. I thoroughly enjoyed those moments. I had never experienced anything like that.”
Clearly, Chris, when you were with Annie, you sensed that you were with someone who viewed life through a similar lens. Of this I am certain: It is a gift to find someone who experiences not only art, but also life, the way you do. And know this: It is easy for people who don’t understand the way you feel about art and creativity to dismiss what you are seeing, feeling, and thinking. Be mindful of that. Creative people shouldn’t be deterred by others lack of understanding. What if Van Gogh had been?
It is rare to be blessed with a creative mind, Son. It is not something to dismiss or devalue but rather something that should be cultivated and cherished. The creative people I know feel compelled to find an outlet for their creativity, compelled to feel a sense of joy and fulfillment, even if it’s just something they do for themselves. Anyone can be schooled in the “skills” necessary to do a job in most businesses or industries, but creativity cannot be taught; it is inherent, a talent, as opposed to a skill.
People with creative minds think, learn, and view the world differently than the mainstream. It’s no surprise that children “diagnosed” with ADD or other “learning disabilities” are often creative and more unique in their thinking. Children with diagnoses and “labels” such as these are often forced into the “normal” template in school; however, their different (often creative) learning styles and abilities are not applauded, but are often considered disruptive and often damage the child’s self-esteem. It’s also no surprise that many such children have abilities and talents that go undiscovered until they have attained the physical and emotional freedom to take risks.
Pursuing a passion and being able to make a living doing it, is, in my opinion, the path to success and contentment. Consider the creative nature of some of the artists you have known and met over the years: Jimmy Grashow and his woodcuts; Anders Gisson and his paintings, and Louis Mulcahy and his pottery.
Each of these men told you how they were “called” to their art. Be mindful of that, Son. Listen for the calling. Your life and happiness depend on it.
Love,
Dad
Originally published at www.artistswithoutwalls.com
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
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