Art | Otiti Jasmine

Imagination. A driving force behind every visionary. A light to dispel the darkness of restriction and stagnation. Imagination is the ability to take the sights and sounds and colours of our dreams, and express them through art. Melodies, movies, poetry, literature, sculptures, mosaics … they bloom when we dream but fade away as we wake. The illumination of imagination guides us to those lost treasures, makes it possible to capture and recreate the richness of expression, and helps us explore the worlds we carry within us.

We are all artists. Each of us creates something beautiful through one medium or the other. When I was a child, I thought artists were only those who painted on easels. I didn’t understand how anyone else could claim that title, but then I didn’t understand the true nature of art. It is all around us, present from dawn till dusk, in everything we do. Now I realise that there are artists of the spoken word, of written rhetoric, of visual brilliance and auditory pleasure.

You can be an artist through dance and sport and intellectual avenues. It is simply the level of intensity that separates the professionals from the amateurs. You may not be able to earn a living with your particular art form, but you do have one. The question is, are you aware of yours?

Art is my craft. My expression is art. Love is my passion. How do I know? I am an artist of the mind. I express myself through my journal, poetry, my blog, and my drawing. I believe in intellectual bliss, in the power of the written word, in the beauty of love as an emotion and a lifestyle. I read, I write, and I observe. I am inspired by life: the triumphs and defeats, the flow of time and creation of history, the constant search for something higher and purer.

So when I speak of the illumination of imagination, I think of the bright fire burning in my soul and exciting my spirit to reach until I touch the stars. The same fire burns in every child but snuffs out when the joy of discovery fades after childhood. Fuel that bright blaze. There is so much to be enjoyed that way: vibrancy and diversity of sounds and colours in dreams, a richer life as an individual, and a greater range of expression and emotions. Try the illumination of imagination. I promise you it rocks. 😉 Shalom.

Imagine your hands as part of your personality.

Who you are shows through in your handwriting. It’s a unique expression of your true self. So how sad is it that there aren’t that many opportunities to write anymore? I mean, with so many gadgets available these days, one doesn’t really need to pen words as such. Okay, cheques and greeting cards still require a pen, but what happens if/when those go electronic as well? Will handwriting become obsolete? Now there’s a freaky thought.

I don’t know, I was just thinking about it one day. Blank Hands. Our fingers can fly like crazy over any keyboard or on any screen, but what about our hands? Can they still paint a portrait of one if they remain one step removed? You know, bring on any communication device and they’re raring to go, but when it comes to pen and paper they’re suddenly blank? Yeah, like that.

I think it’s important to write with your hands often. Not just because one should know how to form legible letters, but also because it is a facet of one’s character. Writing anything by hand adds a personal touch, you know? Shopping lists, notes to remind yourself or someone else to do/get something, scraps of paper with your ideas on them….all these bear your mind’s indelible print when they’re handwritten.

Anyway, maybe I’m making a big deal out of nothing. Or not. Whatever the case, don’t let your hands go blank.

Otiti Jasmine

Unleash your bold.

Tag Archives: Art

The Illumination of Imagination

Blank Hands