A frequent reader of this blog wrote to me in response to my post titled, “Does Art Need a Purpose?”
“Just as beauty is its own excuse for being,” she said, “so is art.”
I found the full quote about beauty online. It’s from a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson called “The Rhodora.” It reads:
Tell them, dear, that, if eyes were made for seeing,
Then Beauty is its own excuse for Being
I loved how my reader took the concept and applied it also to art. There are so many things in life for which we can be grateful that justify their own existence: a beautiful sunset, the sweet taste of a summer peach, the song of a whale, the kiss of a loved one. Things like beauty, love, freedom, and creativity exist simply to make our experience on this Earth better. You can’t place a value on happiness or sorrow, yet each gives our lives meaning. Connection and devotion exist only to bring us together.
Artists have been making art since long before it was a profession. Mothers have been humming to babies since long before we wrote music down. Inventors have drawn inspiration from nature since long before money changed hands. Creativity breathes in each of us not just to make our lives better but to keep us alive. Literally.
