Through art, we instill values and provide the background for cultural change in individuals and communities alike. During a lockdown, we are restricted from viewing theatre, music concerts, opera, films, art galleries, poetry readings, even outdoor exhibits, and installations. Everything we see now is on a screen and we are disconnected from the ‘live’ portion of experiencing the artistic form.
Because nature hasn’t necessarily been altered by an artist, some would say that it is not art. I disagree. Ever since I embarked on a journey walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain, alone in the winter, I had no choice but to embrace the opportunity to look around while walking on average 30 kilometers a day over 28 days. During this time I became keenly aware of art in nature. I saw colors, smelled scents, felt textures, and heard the sound of the wind, hail, and rain. The notion of oneness became a possibility as I soon began to see myself in each tree, weed, insect, animal, in each cloud in the sky, and my connection with the earth. During this time, I was forming philosophical ideas in my mind about universal truths and virtues. It changed me forever and now I know there is an art in nature.
This biohack is to take an opportunity to find the beauty in ICE since it’s all around in the winter. Pick up a piece of ice and look at it. Find an icicle on the eavestrough of your house and taste it. If you are so blessed to live on or near water that has frozen, go to it and get up close. If there isn’t any ice around you outside, then get an ice cube out of the freezer or make an ice cube. Really look into it, touch it, rub it. What do you see that you never noticed before? Notice the ice melting in your hand. Think about the feeling of the shift in form from ice to water. What are the shapes and angles that appear? How does that design of experience reflect on your life in isolation?
Encourage your family and children/teens to look closely at the ice. No two pieces of ice are the same. If you go outside later in the day or the next day you will notice that the ice has changed. It’s organic, just like nature and humans. We are not the same as we were when lockdown started so there is no need to act the same. Grow and evolve just like nature and you will survive.
Be an artist in life.
Feel free to share your experiences so others can learn from you. Tag #lockdownbiohacks #iceart Tag me on Instagram @caminosue FB Sue Regan Kenney
Sue's book My Camino is the story of a woman confronting her deepest fear.
Soul to sole,
Barefoot Sue
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