How Art Practice Boosts Positivity in Life

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The darkness is always followed by light and so are our lives. Some days are rainy and some are sunny. But what keeps us moving forward is the hope that comes from cultivating positivity. Though there are different ways to generate positive feelings, art holds one of the most significant places in this regard. Here, we will explore how a proper approach to the practice of art brings positivity in life.

WHAT IS POSITIVITY IN LIFE?

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Positivity in life means having a positive attitude or a positive frame of mind towards life. Life is not always rosy. Many times, we face difficulties in our lives, somewhat expected or totally unexpected. Sometimes these difficulties are not overly challenging, but at other times they are very hard to withstand.

A person with a positive attitude remains optimistic about life and expects favourable outcomes all the time, i.e., in normal times as well as in very challenging situations. So, having a positive attitude does not mean complete avoidance of the negative aspects of life but seeing the brighter side in any adverse situation and acknowledging your own capabilities in a positive way.

Some examples of the practice of positivity in life:

• In a sudden financial crisis, continuously planning strategies and implementing them to get out of it instead of feeling burdened and getting numb with the thoughts of failure and depression.

• Going through an ugly breakup but still putting a bright smile on your face.

• Always uplifting others with positive words.

• Helping others without any expectations from them.

CAN ART BRING POSITIVITY IN LIFE?

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Art has the unique healing power that eventually brings positivity in life. Nature has so many elements of art, like the sunrise and sunset, the various shades of greenery, the colourful flowers, birds and animals, the melodious chirpings of birds, the sounds of the leaves of trees moving in the breeze, the rhythm of flowing river water, etc., that rejuvenate the minds of everybody with renewed energy and inspire the artists to create new artistic instances.

The practice of art is not only confined to artists but can be practiced by anyone. Even a layman can indulge in art practice in his free time. The colours, the canvas, the paintbrush, the clay, the handicraft materials, the pen and paper, the musical instruments, etc., engage people’s minds in creating artistic instances, which make them joyful and energetic, ushering in positivity in their lives.

POSITIVE BENEFITS OF PRACTICING ART

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Practicing art has several positive benefits:

• Stress Release- The practice of art is like feeling a sudden wave of cool breeze in the scorching summer heat. Engaging in painting, sculpting, photography, clay modelling, singing, playing musical instruments, dancing, writing, etc., gives you a respite from the constant building of stress due to various reasons.

As these activities require concentration and full attention, your mind gets diverted from the unwanted thoughts and anxieties. The creative process relaxes your mind and eventually reduces your stress levels.

• Builds Patience- Visualizing the artistic theme or subject and putting it on the canvas or sculpting or writing perfectly the thoughts and the plots that you have imagined on paper requires a lot of patience. The time that is taken between the visualization of the theme and finally producing the artistic instances based on it is very crucial, as it’s the time you are waiting for your mind and body to sync to produce the final outcome with the help of your abilities, which builds your patience in the long run.

• Increases Imaginative Power- The more you create artistic instances, the more you are using your imagination. In everyday life, dealing with different kinds of issues and witnessing various things like people, nature, cities, or your home, as well as our experiences, enriches us with many ideas. While writing, painting, singing, composing music, etc., we use these ideas to create unique artworks. The urge for producing innovative concepts increases our imaginative power.

• Boosts Confidence- Your confidence level gets a boost whenever you complete your artwork successfully. With each accomplishment, you feel more confident about your artistic abilities, which influences your overall personality.

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• Develops Aesthetic Sense- Practicing art develops your aesthetic sense as you spend a certain amount of time witnessing many things happening around you. As a result, you find beauty in places where you have never imagined.

For example, beauty found in dilapidated buildings or in a slum area where small children are playing or in a park consisting of old, rusted metal benches beside a green-coloured, algae-filled pond and many more.

• Determination- While creating any kind of artwork, many times you face creative blockages. This happens when your imagination can’t go beyond a certain limit temporarily or your ideas don’t easily come into your mind.

For example, having issues in visualizing the exact backdrop that is supposed to exude warmth and romance of a painting exhibiting a couple leaning against each other in a seated position.

Sometimes you encounter certain challenges during the process of artistic creation. For example, encountering issues while putting a particular group of words of a lyric into your composed tune as the rhythm is breaking.

However, with determination, artists can get past such hurdles and complete their artwork successfully. So, the practice of art makes a person more determined in life. 

• Ability to Solve Issues- As already discussed above, the process of art creation is met with difficulties many times. The artists, with their perseverance, eventually get past these challenges since they constantly seek to find solutions to these issues. In general, the practice of art helps an individual to develop their problem-solving techniques.

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• Better Communication skill- Art means communicating one’s feelings, thoughts, emotions, views and opinions through the creation of artistic instances. Thereby, artists are good communicators, i.e., through their artwork, they express their feelings and opinions. Thus, the practice of art develops a person’s overall communication skill.

• Being Aware of Your Abilities- The practice of art unearths your hidden talents and skills that you were not aware of before. It makes you explore yourself from a new perspective and know yourself and your abilities much better.

• Getting in Touch with a Dynamic Community- By getting involved in artistic works, you step into the vibrant world of art where you get to meet dynamic people and communities through events, exhibitions, museum visits, etc. Therefore, your perception of people, different customs, values, beliefs and cultures widens, which builds your overall character.

STRATEGIES OF PRACTICING ART TO BRING POSITIVITY IN LIFE

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There are some simple steps by adopting which a person can include the practice of art as a habit in day-to-day life:

• Art is for Everyone- The joy of practicing art is for all and there is no discrimination in this matter. Stop feeling inferior since you need not have to be an artist to engage yourself in artwork. Making art is a process that everyone has the right to enjoy.

• Select your Mode of Art- Analyze yourself. Explore and decide which mode of art making you are interested in. Does it involve singing, dance, clay modelling, painting, sculpture, or theatre? Which one is it? Decide it first and then start to learn and nurture it.

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• Make it a Habit- Make the practice of art a habit, like other essential activities of life. Just like everyday work such as eating, sleeping, jobs, household chores, etc., at least spend an hour on artwork, a minimum of five days a week. If you are not in a good mood any day, engage yourself in artwork more, as creativity will always bring a smile to your face at the end of the day.

• Attend – Attend the events related to the art form you are interested in. These could include workshops in painting, sculpture, music or dance, art and handicraft displays, concerts and events featuring music and dance, theatre, etc. Experiencing beautiful and engaging artworks of the masters live is such an out-of-this-world feeling as you get into the soul of that particular art.

CONCLUSION

In our everyday lives, we are dealing with a lot of negativities, harsh realities and unpredictability, due to which depression and anxiety can dominate our lives at any time. So, it’s essential to practice positivity in our lives and one of the best mediums in this regard is the practice of art. The beautiful, mystic and mesmerizing world of art shows us light when we are engulfed in the darkness of harsh realities. So, let’s make the practice of art a priority in our lives because life is short. Therefore, our main aim should be to live happily and peacefully in order to make a positive impact in our life and society.