Art Therapy To The Rescue
Can brushstrokes help someone to recover from agony? Is it possible to heal spiritually with just a painting?
When Michael Jackson tunefully asked ‘will you be there in my triumph and tribulations’…when Leonardo Da Vinci kept the portrait of Mona Lisa closest to him for years, were these artists trying to heal their spirits through their works of art?
It might sound strange to many, but many forms of art work, like fine arts, oil paintings and contemporary arts that design the canvas possesses the capability to mend your soul.
Ufaq Ehsan, through her paintings tells us how to use art therapy for healing the soul. One after another, her paintings portray diverse messages that link the basic aspects of human existence; motherhood, rebirth, knowledge, and love.
Here is a fantastic read about the world of soul searching through art!
Numerous intricate patterns and watercolor paintings are used in all her works that look as if they are printed show is named Her’Cosmic Harmony’ on the SF Studio and her paintings have a powerful feel to them.
Symbols and Photo Art
Because of her background of an artist as well as art therapist, she had always studied the effects of color on people with the spiritual healing. She is also deeply interested in the language of symbols. The literature, colors and symbols of Sufism play a very important role in her photo art.
She believes symbols act as a universal language and they express any emotion perfectly. She says, “They (symbols) are used in such a manner as to create a piece of art pleasing to the eye and mind and beautiful to a degree that it obeys the cosmic order and therefore reflect universal beauty.”
The importance of symbols in art work has been there right from the beginning. This blog explains it in-depth!
Her aim as an artist is to bridge the gap between all schools of thought and spread the message of peace and love taught by Sufis. She is especially influenced by the teachings of Rumi. She compared her artwork to cosmology as both treat the universe as one unit.
Her paintings give a message of unity where she considers the entire unit to be one unit, united in their love for God. Painting has become a medium of spiritual discovery for her.
Healing the soul with Contemporary Art Forms
Red, is the predominantly used color in almost all her art work. She uses the shade liberally across her fine art to depict strong emotions of love, motherhood, and strength.
Her oil paintings,watercolor painting and contemporary art are a result of several emotions combined together and that is what makes each piece different from the other. Ufaq has been an art therapist for 14 years and it shows in her works. Her paintings offer solace and contain cosmic harmony in them that reflects the beauty of nature.
Motherhood remains the most important aspects of most of her paintings like oil painting and different art theraphy. Her work, ‘The lady and the rose’ depicts strong emotions on motherhood. She has infused motherhood in most of her works as it said to be one of the strongest emotions that human beings project. “From the time that a single painting begins, to the time I complete it, the personalities, auras, and moods of my visitors present shape my work.” says Ufaq Ehsan.
Emotional and Spiritual Healing
Art therapy is gaining popularity with due time as it helps people with their spiritual healing as well as emotional healing. Art therapists help a person recover spiritually and emotionally by allowing them to express themselves on canvas with colors as well as various forms of mixed media art. One need not be an artist to attempt this and it is slowly becoming a widely acceptable form of counseling.
However, Ufaq Ehsan has redefined the term by infusing it with motherhood and thus making it more affective to an onlooker. Each of her painting has a depth that attempts to heal a person spiritually. The tagline of her show is, ‘message of peace to heal the ones who gaze upon it’ and her paintings keeps her audiences at ShowFlipper absorbed and wanting more.
Ufaq has participated in numerous art workshops in the past and has gone about attempting to use her work to heal people. She has also counseled various healing centers and galleries. She strongly believes that colors deeply affect the human mind and soul. Her paintings continue to be powerful pieces of work and she keeps adding more into her collection.