SV107

oliverart.com says:

Thanksgiving – giving thanks. In the United States this holiday has deeply religious roots – but with a cross-cultural sharing. The history/mythology says the Pilgrims, religious refugees organized a feast with the local natives/neighbors to give thanks to God and their neighbors for a bountiful harvest.

Harvest festivals are common. Thanking the higher spirit is common. Sharing thanks with your neighbors who have different cultural background and beliefs, is not I think, quite so common.

Art is perhaps one of the best cross-cultural methods of communication. The Tarot cards separated from the spirit the foretelling, were also used as a means of communication between persons without a common spoken language. Carl Jung posited a collective subconscious or a set of universal themes and symbols that are common to humanity, artists including writers have used references to these symbols and myths to communicate and sometimes such referents assist in cross-cultural communication.

Other psychological theorists have posited that there is a hierarchical set of need and want fulfillment – and that people will spend time and resources generally on that set of needs and wants. I haven’t studied these in specific in a while but as I recall art was pretty late in the list as a “luxury” item.

To the extent that the “art” is spiritual or practical teaching or adornment/decoration of the home, house or spiritual center I disagree. The list went, as I recall something like food, shelter, reproduction/family, spiritual life and then on to other things.

Art can play an essential role in teaching how to procure food – the hunt – farming or building of shelter, religious or spiritual development, can help with the attraction of mates – clothes, jewelry, symbols of prowess and can make a more attractive shelter in which to live.

So on this day of cross cultural thanks, I think about where art fits in the world and am glad I have elected to move toward simple things that are intended for people’s walls, to be enjoyed daily and occasionally a little spiritually uplifting. Hopefully, my work is cross culturally attractive.

We should give thanks to our friends, neighbors and the spirit(s) in the hope for a bountiful harvest next year too.
Posted 26 months ago. ( permalink )