Art: The Unrecognized Essential of 2020

Locked libraries and somber studios. Coffee shops gone quiet. These places, and the traditions within them, are the ghosts of the lives we led not long ago. To acknowledge as much is to recognize that there has been death, both literal and figurative, within our lives. Grief, amongst many other emotions, is as universal as it is individual, and as simple as it is complex. In a time as unprecedented as this, it is appropriate to grieve everything and anything, as this one emotion is responsible for so many others.

I think it fair to say that now, more than ever, the human race craves normalcy; a return to the familiar, however that may look. For me, familiar is the embrace of life's little indulgences. It is a small, yet intimate homemade dinner on a Friday night, made complete with candles, soft jazz, and close friends. Familiar is the laughter at a quaint Sunday brunch; a perfect compliment to the pleasant aroma of French-pressed coffee, and the symphony of silverware.

If only for a moment, I implore you: reflect upon your own familiar. Find the art within it, because regardless of how your familiar might resonate with mine, I can guarantee a singular similarity...There is art in how we live our lives, and it is the practice of that art which we now mourn.

In writing the example above, it became clear to me the degree to which I crave music, and the culinary art that is a carefully crafted meal. To mourn these aspects of our lives is to cherish them. In our mourning, so many are developing a deeper appreciation for art , while some are acknowledging its importance for the first time.

For too long, science, technology, engineering and math have been praised for their necessity, and prioritized over art. I say this not to discredit these fields, as they are of great importance, especially now. Yet, in the absence of concerts, movie screenings, gallery walks, and evenings at the theatre, our world has been forced to access art elsewhere, if not for entertainment, than as a coping mechanism.

How then, can we proceed beyond this pandemic with the impression that art is anything but essential? In these historic times, it's been said that the world is navigating a "new normal", and while I look forward to the subtle changes which will represent our return to normalcy, our newfound and worldwide embrace of art is something I hope never changes.

Let us recognize art as essential. Let that be the new normal.