The First Step

In front of my rapture backed by one of art galleries we came across, she exclaimed:

" You are an artist then!"
" Not at all. Don't know even how to draw. Just like to watch."

For the rest of our way together, my friend tried hardly to figure it out and to understand that complicated dilemma of how one may love art, especially plastic arts, and be able to communicate with them while not being an artist himself.

Actually, this is not the case of my friend only. It is the normal question heard when someone "discovers" that you read poetry for example while not being a literature student nor a poet yourself.
It is the normal question in any art gallery:

" Are you a Fine Art student? " , the normal skepticism :

" Do you really get anything from such scribble? " to have then a long vivid discussion that turns to be part of my own enjoyment.

In fact, you don't have to "understand" anything at the first sight. You have to "feel" first. Coming to this point, I always remember that scene of Shadia playing that role of an ignorant crashed servant in that old Egyptian movie," Nahno La Nazraa El-Shawk" \ " We Don't Plant Thorns", admiring a painting so much that she begged the lady to take it. She felt that painting seeing herself in it.

Yea, in a way , we can seek ourselves in art looking for our pits and pieces scattered between light and shadowing or carried out in some shape or color mixture or movement of lines. Art is the mirror that one can discover his countenance in.

Thereby, people sometimes fear real art, fear their hidden feelings and thoughts, fear both their uniqueness and their dark sides. Stephen Spender, English author and critic, mentioned once that the true artist awakens geniality in people.

On the other hand, Freud saw that the artist vomits any psychological disorder he has in his art; consequently, his audience do the same when communicating with this art.

However, art has to do with what is more than the mere light and dark sides in us. It opens our eyes letting us into new worlds or rather new conception of this world. Art is a treasure that most people haven't the necessary patience and courage to unfold it. Courage to look in its mirror and patience to find the keys of its secrets.

The first time I stood before a painting, I was in a deep water. Then, something whispered in my ears: " Patience! The artist painted this over several days or probably several months; wouldn't that deserve several minutes to contemplate? Your eyes will lead your feelings and mind."

Then, the crystal ball was opened; I began to feel things, percept others, find out new dimensions and relationships that govern the painting world, and felt a strange wave in my mind as if some sort of light is turned on there. It is like being tired, sleepy, and bored then having a good cup of coffee.

After all, the first rule of art is laid down: Art doesn't provide a ready made answers, it provokes the sighted questions with their infinite possibilities. Before a piece of art, just try to put your questions and a fruitful prologue will be there between it and you.