What is the world, if not for art?

For all that we’ve witnessed as a population, for all that we’ve grown into as humans, we owe more than we imagine, to the power of art. In the paintings that adorned cave walls of pre historic times to the powerful grafitti that stands the test of time on the Berlin wall, art has been a weapon of emotions.

It may sound surprising when we list them down, but art has been so normalised into our lives, that we often fail to recognise it adequately. In the smile of a child, in the bangles that adorn hands, in the clothes we wear, to the way we eat, there’s an art of doing everything; an art in everything. And it hits you like a train that it is absolutely impossible to take art of out of our lives.

From being a support system for those with ailnesses to conveying powerful emotions of love and peace, art has done it all. For countries in hostility, people have found ways to establish peace through music, paintings and literature. For the oppressed, art becomes an outlet to convert historic rage into positive change. And subtly and powerfully, art hits us right where it is supposed to.

Art, therefore becomes liberation. It becomes a voice for those silenced and a solace for the ailing. It becomes an inevitable part of our life as an individual and our progress as a community. We are the art.

JASMIN NAUR HAFIZ
BA Honours Economics
Lady ShreeRam College, New Delhi