Unfinished: Seeds in Dark Pockets

I find this emergent painting to be the epitome of the existential paradox. We all know seeds need light in order to live and grow. However, there is a stage at which the darkness fulfills a mysterious purpose in the maturation of the seed into a spout. Without this process in the dark, the soft, living part can never be released from its outer shell. Similarly, without embracing the moments of existential crisis, we never grow into our fullest human capacities. If we are unaware of what those dark pockets hold within us, we react to conflicts rather than consciously respond to them with wisdom and grace. Getting to know ones deepest self is the beginning of freedom from the destructive cycles both within our personalities, and the programmed conditioning our past. This commitment to self-process lays the foundation for persons to mature; a maturity that moves beyond self into service of others. Arts-based Self-inquiry is a gateway for the emancipation from the socio-cultural conditions learners live within. In art education, the pedagogical move towards lived experiences, Big Ideas, and social issues challenges the teacher to face themselves in more sober and authentic ways than ever before. Existential question come up in the classroom, and art educators need to be able to address these vulnerably and wisely. Encouraging, or giving courage, to ourselves and the people we serve is a gift we can not afford to give.