Artistic Adventure
Exploring the Self Through Art and Travel
Traveling is an opportunity to explore new places and experience different cultures. It’s also a powerful tool for personal transformation. When we travel we experience the suspension of our everyday lives. We interrupt our intrinsic patterns and allow ourselves to be more intentional. In many ways, we become conditioned to our environments. This can provide comfort but also can be confining. From the environment we create in our homes, to the conditioned responses we have to our communities, we can go through life mindlessly stuck in a pattern of behavior and feeling that isn’t necessarily the fullest experience of ourselves.
It’s like our true self develops a shell of conformity. We fit in. We adapt. We limit and expand parts of ourselves based on perceived acceptance and propriety.
Travel can launch us into the experience of our true selves. We learn who we are at our core by throwing ourselves into a world that barely resembles our typical surroundings.
As we explore foreign lands we find what within us is actually foreign. If we allow ourselves to question what feels natural to us in any context, we can learn so much about our true selves. We can even discover parts of ourselves that might desire a little more expression in our lives.
Art does this too.
When we see a piece of art that resonates, we are using expression without words to explore our inner depths.
We are journeying into our deepest selves by confronting sensations, emotions, and ideas presented to us through a canvas.
Art communicates at a deeper level than words. We respond to it at a somatic level, often without conscious thought.
Have you ever had the experience of looking at a piece of art and just knowing you love it, or knowing you hate it, without necessarily being able to say why?
It connects at a subconscious level. It forces us to respond from our inner selves before the outer self can process what’s happening.
Taking art with you when you travel can provide a shortcut to self.
Packing little reminders of what resonates with you can encourage that part of you to come out. You’re bringing a token of expression with you to an environment where it can be embodied. Allowing our deepest selves to come out can feel incredibly vulnerable, and is even harder to do when you’re in an environment where it’s been hidden.
We resist change to stay safe.
Travel provides us the opportunity to explore our expression without sacrificing our safety.
We can become a chameleon and try on different aspects of ourselves as if they were outfits.
So when you’re traveling, consider subtle ways to infuse your luggage with art. We certainly can’t be packing canvases in our carry-on, but we can always select items that resonate to travel with. Toiletry bags, luggage, accessories, and even the clothes we choose to pack can provide an opportunity for growth and development.
Surrender to the suspension of the self you know yourself to be, and allow the expression of your essence to steer your adventure.
The you that comes home, will have built some resilience in authenticity and can begin to show up in your day-to-day life. Slowly allowing you to drop any masks you’ve put on that are suffocating who you truly are. Letting any parts of you that have been caged finally roam freely.