Art has always been associated with power. It can influence perception, opinion, and values.
The power of art played a role when I started creating my pieces. My influences as a creative started mainly with films. You know that saying " Television will rot your brains" well the opposite happened to me. The moment I was able to understand and connect to a movie, I was filled with fresh ideas. The ability that these films could awaken all my senses and make me understand so many different perceptions or realities. It made me believe in the magic of the un-ordinary.
Am I losing you yet?
I started to appreciate this value in creativity. This new sense of power in my art would help me be able to express the things that I couldn't say or communicate with words. The way each film inspired me, was when it created scenes that would display significant details that involved things like props, wardrobe, and most importantly special effects. There was one artist that took me for a wild ride when it came to opening up my imagination and that was "Jim Henson". I mean anyone who grew up in the '80s knew that name instantly. There was one movie that really sparked my fascination as a kid and that was "The Dark Crystal" The way Jim Henson fabricated life-like puppets that captured raw emotions as actors would. The amount of time spent on these small details during every scene just blew my mind. I can almost remember this particular scene when Aughra shows Jen The Great Observatory and she says something that stuck with me...
"My life was made complete. On the day I gave one eye to see the splendor of the Three Suns, a new joy came to the World."
As Aughra would best describe it. I believe my life was made complete the day my creativity was unleashed. I knew that making my monster mugs would be the start of creating from raw emotions. I wanted the magic of special effects to be shown all different things. As a kid, I would never think I could ever make or see things that were in my favorite movies. I didn't think I could possess that ability to fabricate these magical things. But how did they? What makes me so different from those I see on the movie screen? They were challenged and faced with trials on their journey or quest.
In my next upcoming chapter, I have been invited to speak with a panel of artists about our mental health. This would be my very first workshop as an artist. When asked I knew that saying yes, would mean I would really need to be honest with myself and on how I would introduce my work. This would be the first time that the power of art would be represented in my work. I knew when trying to come up with a workshop, that my art, my mental health, and my power of healing needed to be cohesive. And it brought me back to "The Dark Crystal" and the lengths people will go to in order to hold onto their power.
When I think back on battles with my mental health while trying to be creative, I knew each piece would become a vessel to store every emotion onto. I knew I didn't have to carry it with me and that these emotions would be stored safely with every work of art. I could breathe again.
I sometimes wished I could drink a potion and all my fears, heartbreak, and troubles would diminish instantly. It reminded me of films like; Love Potion #9, The Witches, and Hocus Pocus creating their concoction for either love, heightened abilities, or great power. That idea of relying on something so small to bring you ease and so much hope.
We have been through so much with the madness of this pandemic, most recently, war, and increased social justice issues. Sometimes getting lost in the world of fantasy served as an escape from the reality that we are facing every day, and for others even worse. I wanted to challenge myself and formulate my own magic. I wanted to concoct my own potions. I knew it was time to bring that comfort of fantasy. I wanted to create pieces that would help with healing and give back the power to fight through the challenges you face every day.
Magic Potion? Mental Health? It sounds silly right?
Ah! but its' not silly at all. The power of our imagination and believing these small things like potions can protect us can be believable. That feeling to imagine yourself like characters in these films like Harry Potter or Alice and Wonderland and encounter a great adventure.
Did you know that South American Amazonian shamans from indigenous tribes would make a psychedelic brew as a safe psychiatric medicine to treat depression?
The power of believing in these perceptions can be weary for some folks but for me, it has been a significant help to my mental health. Not everyone will agree and that's ok. It's all about the power of what you believe in, and where you find your source of healing. Even if it comes from a small bottle.
Lastly, I can't forget to remind you all about the newest mugs released. The Shuar Collection is up on my mug oddities page. This collection was heavily inspired by the roots of my culture. When some deemed shrunken heads to be distasteful, we forget that this was a respected ritual by the Shamans of the Shuar Tribes. A time before colonizers made Tsantsa a crime and banned it. I will make sure to talk more about this in my next post. If you want to inquire about any of the mugs, please email me.
And don't forget to leave me a comment.
I'd love to hear from you.
Stay weird my loves.