Kinga Ogiegło
The Mystery of Art and the Fear of Experiencing It
The mystery of art is the mystery of life. And the deeper the mystery gets, things can get scary.
The word ‘Art’ may as well be synonymous with the word ‘Mystery’. Even for me, being an abstract artist, the process of creating art is still perplexing and fascinating, particularly when it takes place in a music studio or on a film set.
What makes art so unusual and mysterious? I am certain that one piece of the puzzle is art’s healing abilities. I believe that not always do we have to consciously go back to childhood, and memory by memory heal trauma. I remember trying out PEAT spiritual process link as a way to help me bring more joy into my life and the whole point of it was to integrate joy and sadness like they both are the same emotions. The most important thing was to feel, see and understand that binarity is an illusion. If carrying out this process correctly, you saw the white light which meant your subconscious got it. I believe that similar process happens when looking at a piece of art or listening to music -there is a point when our perception changes, things light up, something saves us and frees us up, we become unintimidated like we understood something vital to our existence and from this point on things will not be the same.
As I mentioned in the first episode of my podcast whenever I would go to a contemporary art museum as a young adult I viewed most of the artworks as baffling or confusing to say the least. I explained that partially it could have been caused by my ignorance in my early 20s. However, when I’m reminiscing about those times now, the reason for my uninterest to experience art could have been the fear of accessing the depths of my emotions which after years of suppressing is both an unpleasant and a grueling thing to do. I remember watching Richard Gannon (a life coach) link talking about healing from childhood trauma and his gentle, almost infantile style of explaining that nothing bad is going to happen if you just cry a little- so what, you will have tears on you cheeks and will wipe them out. Done, healing happened. Although for so many grown-ups this is still the scariest thing to do. And so can be experiencing art.
One classic example of a mysterious artwork and something that registered in my mind as scary or spooky is a painting by an Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci titled Salvator Mundi, although specialists dispute to this day if this really is da Vinci’s original. Dated to 15th century, this piece shows Jesus in Renaissance dress, making the sign of the cross with his right hand, while holding a transparent rock crystal orb in his left hand, signaling his role as Salvator Mundi-Savior of the World and the master of the cosmos, and representing the crystalline sphere of the heavens. The description alone has an eerie vibe to it. For me, it looks like Jesus is in some kind of a trans state or blind. Looking at this artwork almost immediately many questions spring to mind such as why does Jesus look like this or why does this portrait have such a sinister feeling to it?
The whole idea of why certain artists incarnated in certain times is mysterious. As well as their given impact and unique roles in community change and development. Or why certain people- for instance in case of working on a movie or in a music group - were brought together by fate and made to create something that current and future generations will identify with, need and remember.
Even the definition of art is vague and mysterious at the same time. Art, being a form of communication, means whatever the artist intends it to mean, and this meaning is shaped by the materials, techniques, and forms it makes use of. But the definition of art goes further, it is also the ideas and feelings it creates in its viewers -and this part is the most covert for me- as if the artist has any influence on what viewers can or will think therefore it makes art totally unpredictable and its perception varied from person to person.
All in all, the emotional power of art will stay enigmatic but it is art’s mysteries that makes life worth living.
