Artmaking and the act of creating is empowering because it multiplies the options for expression which dramatically impact one's ability to experience being in the world. By its very nature artmaking creates an awareness of thought processes, how a person experiences visual space, both imaginary and real, the power of color on emotional states, how one responds to organic and inorganic materials and the sensations they produce in the body, how texture changes perception, how one experiences the power of the imagination and memory, as well as an awareness of the richness of being fully present in the moment. Artmaking in the hospital environment opens the door on the world of the artist's studio and offers to share the beauty, power and inspiration inherent within the artmaking process. In this context it is capable of engendering a restoration of the purposeful functions of art from the history of global traditions. Parallels to the role of the artist in the hospital environment can be drawn to spiritual practices such as mandala sand painting found in the Tibetan or Native American culture.
Tibetan monks create mandalas as a means of centering the self and the community.
Native American medicine men create sand paintings for the healing or blessing of an individual or the tribe. At the heart of their practice is the emphasis on participation in a ritual that creates an awareness of wholeness. The universal thread that is woven through these traditions have care and compassion at their core, for the individual as representative of the community and for the community as a representative of the individual. The modern artist can draw inspiration from these traditions which foster the awakening of the individual and collective spirit to reaffirm the power of the imagination. I was writing a critique of a particular sculpture in a response to a class assignment.