The Visual Arts: Good For Your Mind, Body and Spirit

I always knew that exposure to the arts made me feel good, but I never thought about the reasons behind my reactions.  It turns out that our systems are hard wired to respond to works of art, and the benefits of artistic interactions go much deeper than simply pleasing our eyes and ears.

My personal journey into the arts began when I was a kid.  I used to obsessively listen to all genres of music for hours on end.  As an adult, I continued my passion for music as a senior executive at radio stations across America and as the CEO of School of Rock, the world leader in music education programs for kids.

While at School of Rock, I discovered the book Your Brain On Music, by Daniel Levitin, which describes the brain’s biochemical response to music.  Dr. Levitin, a neuroscientist, says that listening to music stimulates more areas of the brain than almost anything else, and has a profound impact on our emotions.

A similar phenomenon occurs with the visual arts and the brain.  Nobel Prize-winning neuroscientist and Columbia University professor Eric Kandel highlights this in his book The Age of Insight: The Quest to Understand the Unconscious in Art, Mind, and Brain, from Vienna 1900 to the Present.  Kandel examines the intersections of psychology, neuroscience and art, and explains how our brains perceive and engage art—and are consequently moved by it.

Eric Jensen, a neuroscience researcher and author of the book Arts With The Brain In Mind, found that the visual arts have strong cognitive, emotional, social, collaborative and neurological effects.  He notes that teachers whose students receive regular visual arts instruction report stronger academic skills, including increased retention, higher levels of confidence and more highly developed independent thinking abilities.

I experienced the positive response to the visual arts when I began taking art courses, visiting museums and galleries, reading art books, and attending art shows and seminars.  My newfound passion inspired me to create One River Gallery (which features the works of important emerging and mid-career artists) and One River School of Art and Design (which educates students of all ages who wish to develop their multimedia artistic skills), both in Englewood, NJ.

Last December I was introduced to the work of Joshua Abelow at the NADA Art Fair, an annual art event in Miami, FL that coincides with the Art Basel shows.  These fairs are the world's premier art shows for modern and contemporary art, and I, along with other collectors, must sort through a visual cacophony of choices.  Josh’s simple, colorful paintings really connected with me.  His creations not only convinced me of his tremendous talent, they also made me happy.  When I see artwork that I like, I feel it in my body, as if it enters through my eyes, swirls around my head and redistributes itself in my gut.  It’s this literal, physical feeling that allows me to make decisions on what to buy for my own collection and what to present at One River Gallery.

I recruited Josh along with another young artist named Steven Truax to curate the group exhibition “Love” at One River Gallery (November 14 – December 21, 2012).  Together, we’ve programmed a show that rivals what you’d see on display in important contemporary galleries in New York, Berlin, or London.  The exhibit’s vibrant paintings are capturing the attention of art aficionados and helping us meet new collectors and others who are “art interested” in a community that’s thirsty for artistic input in their lives.

My goal with One River Gallery and One River School of Art and Design is not only to share the visual arts with collectors and to educate students, but also to spread the healthy mental, physical, emotional and spiritual benefits that the visual arts have on those who experience and create them.  I derive great joy from the visual arts, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to bring this powerful sensation to others.

Look and feel:  that’s the best way to experience the visual arts.