A Journey of Refuge - From Exhibits to Lighthouse of Peace and Calm

I enter the exhibition room shortly before the museum closes. It features small pastels by the German artist Adolf Hölzel with abstract color compositions

The pastels are simple yet masterful. I think, 'Here is someone who has perfected his art.'

Days later, the pastel compositions are still alive inside me. I ask myself: Why is this memory so vivid? My body is providing information—something about the pastels was soothing and comforting. Something in the exhibition room gave me what I miss in life. What is this something about?

I realize that there was more than just pastels on the wall. I sit down and listen to my body, visualizing the exhibition room again and again

An inner rhythm emerges as a feeling. Then, it shifts to a movement. I feel as if I have found a rhythm that matches my inner bodily Felt Sense. This rhythm is connected with verbalization

I know a word is coming, but it's not in my native language. I instinctively know the first letter of the word. It starts with a capital 'S'. I try different words beginning with 'S'. No English word matches

I realize that the match must come primarily from the body. The body holds a knowing. Then, a very strange and complicated word shows up: Serenity

This word has never been part of my spoken English vocabulary, but I own its rhythm

There is a deep shift inside. Something good has been around this 1920s-1930s art, which was not meant to be grasped at first sight. Now, a symbolization has occurred, opening up to something further, and it comes from an embodied rhythm

Se-re-ni-ty. The rhythm of the word makes me think of something spiritual, like the word 'Trinity'. I am surprised looking up the dictionary. Serenity is defined as the quality of being peaceful and calm. Is that all? So simple?

One insight from Prof. Eugene T. Gendlin, the founder of Focusing, is this: 'Life is thicker than theory'. There must be more about the word 'serenity' than a dictionary can convey, I tell myself

I decide to recapture Adolf Hölzel's pastel compositions through artistic practice. I feel that I must experiment with them to truly understand them. Reproducing them might transform them into new forms. Will those new forms embark a More of....?

I know from experience: Any form that comes from the body sense conveys meaning in a new way. A 'More of' comes from a form that matches the Felt Sense

I feel as if I have found something meaningful to work on in the long term. A part of me has always felt lost in the world, seeking belonging. Engaging with Hölzel's pastels in an artistic way seems like a good way to explore this part with empathy and curiosity

Hölzel's pastel compositions illuminate peace and calm amidst disastrous times. They hold a 'More of' and are like a lighthouse — an art refuge for building compassion, resilience, and action for good

© Freda Blob https://www.artsfocusing.com/creative-compassion/blog

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