Today was a sick day for me, and maybe for some of you also. To anyone who spent the day in bed, hopefully this post can help you heal and get well soon.
I’m not much of a chicken noodle soup girl when it comes to staying at home sick, so today I cuddled up with my tea and said to myself, “what will make me feel better?” Suddenly, I found myself browsing through art on my computer – illustrations on Pinterest, our own gallery on Zatista, and national gallery collections.
Art can immediately change a person’s perception of the world – we all get lost in a work of art, or the chords of a song, and they bring us out of reality and into another world – perhaps a world of our former selves, or one in the near or distant future.
Art and music have been shown to effect every cell in the human body and initiate healing physiology that boosts the immune system and blood circulation. Many of the famous artists we know today used art to deal with their own health challenges.
Henry Matisse used his art practice to help after being bedridden from a serious operation. He began to develop a new style of art, his paper cutout technique, as scissors were easier to wield than a paintbrush.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir suffered from severe rheumatoid arthritis in the later years of his life. Nine year before he died, he was bound to a wheelchair for mobility and was unable to pick up a paintbrush. Since art was his passion and his coping mechanism, he would not give up his practice and tied a brush to his wrist.
I did not turn to creating art to heal, however I did find peace and distraction in appreciating it. So, I thought I would share my favourite pieces with you here. These are the pieces I got lost in, and the pieces that captivated me.
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