In a way everyone is an artist.
Nevertheless as the world changes, most forms of expression considered “art” at this time, are nothing but emotional outlets from the artist. In other words, his or her emotions have an expression instead of being bottled up in the self. Emotional release is what they may be.

That sort of “art” is not creative. It is not original but just a felt reaction with an expression.

Would you consider a boxing fighter an artist? 🙂 If that fighter is able to express his negative emotions as to become angry, that boxer will become fearsome; that expression through a punch is an emotional outlet although, this boxer is not using a canvas or a guitar or paper and ink to express; this trained fighter is indeed expressing emotions and “creating” or pretending to create some “work of art” in another human being’s nose. 🙂

Creative art is meant to uplift human beings by expressing the greatness of the human spirit and not by showing emotional upheavals. Nevertheless, nowadays an “artist” merely displays his own emotional outbursts through a song composition or a painting. When others identify with that emotional issue, that is a “seller,” that is considered to be a successful artist.

I have noticed this in my travels. There are some countries where music is about expressing romantic suffering: “You left me for another. You destroyed our love. I suffered for you,” etc. After hearing these songs over and over in the radio or while traveling in buses, we could even start singing those songs… and believing in them… Easy religion!
🙂
Songs are a powerful mean to “brainwash” individuals who are not aware of what is going on. The same with a painting or a photograph. The more shocking those are, the greater the chances that those will be sold or viewed.

In our world, many times we do not realize all the complexes and “hang ups” that we posses in our psyche. The expression of that cannot be called art in my book, perhaps therapy but never art.

In a spiritual sense, these emotional outlets when unchecked, are a source of issues which will not allow us to freed ourselves from cyclical needy and dependent behavior. Sort of like being addicted.

A musician composing music because that “makes him feel good” is not in the same category as those who compose music because of it. No words to express reasons. The former will have a “needy” relationship as long as he feels good. That could become addictive. The later, will do so as a true expression. His “feeling good” is not dependent on creating music..

Please note that under this condition, no matter how much meditation or yoga or love one may have with God, those addictive behaviors, “hang ups,” emotions, etc. will come up every time we connect with another human being.

That is why some may express that God is in their hearts, but their behavior with other human beings, do not show that. That is their expression (their art) of that so called love, will not show love but other emotions. Then this “spiritual artist” is lacking an important ingredient and that is to be able to go deeper into himself to find the skeletons of the past which need to be taken care of.

Those inner complexes change from person to person. Let me give an example. In Peru social classes are determined by a combination of the way someone looks, their last name, his/her parents social position, and how much wealth someone has. Thus, someone who has accumulated money by selling widgets in the market will not be able to “fit in” in the “jet set.”

In the USA, (the melting pot) is mostly about money. You buy anything with money (except happiness,) you belong.

In India, social classes begin from the time that someone is born into a particular cast. When we look at how this affect us “now” in our perceptions, then we are doing something useful with us. We are freeing ourselves from those ideas.

As long as I have not observed how those issues (complexes) are affecting my life, my views, my expectations and how much they have “brainwashed me,” until that point of inner observation is reached, I will keep suffering from the consequence of believing in those things without my realization.

That is why in Spirituality when we hear spiritual knowledge, we could only learn when we observe in ourselves that which is being explained to us. Then, we understand.

A spiritual artist is like a sculptor. We are sculpting ourselves every time we go deep into those complexes and lingering emotions. The master piece will happen. It is a continuous work in progress and the expression of that transformation is truly the most delicate fine art.