Can a painting, song, or a play save the world?  A silly question?

I like to sit down in front of the paintings at my studio. I’ll spend an hour just looking…giving in to the paintings to see where they take me, just delighting in the color relationships, shapes and textures: their intricacies. I look at the paintings as an observer; like I’m looking at them for the first time, with fresh eyes, seeing new things.

After spending time with the paintings, I leave that world and come back to our physical world in an altered state of mind. If I go home and my kids are noisy and teasing each other, instead of getting upset I find myself (as I was in front of the paintings) in the role of observer, delighting in the colors and textures of their relationships with each other. I find myself able to tactfully and joyfully interact with my children and redirect their energy in a meaningful way. We spend time enjoying each other’s company. Our relationship increases in love and understanding.

What if parents, workers and politicians would spend time with a good painting or some great music every day? If a world leader could take that same spirit of the delighted observer instead of one advancing a biased agenda to the negotiation table, what might be the outcome?

Perhaps a painting can save the world.