(Originally this piece was to be a part of an art exhibit called “Art Saves Lives” things didn’t turn out that way. No matter, in its entirety the piece is entitled Morpheus. The section shown here is called I.M. Morpheus. I’ve included the Artist Statement written for the piece, as it was meant to be a part of the original exhibit. Please enjoy. Thank you.)

Art Saves Lives

Once upon a time way, way, way, back in the days of antiquity, mankind’s relationship with the GODS was much more intimately intertwined, in every aspect of life, on a daily basis. There were all sorts of deities that governed specific areas of daily living from their residence, Mount Olympus.
Here Morpheus is the God of dreams. Morpheus is a mysteriously elusive God. Every dreaming being has been intimately acquainted with this amorphous deity. Even so, every individual’s dream is entirely his/her own creation. Sleep is the entryway to the mystic, fluid, and porous landscape ruled by Morpheus known through the ages by a myriad of names such as the Demos Oneiroi, The Dreamtime, Sueños among others…
Dreams are not limited to the synapsis we all experience during sleep. We all daydream or have dreams that we cultivate and strive to achieve in waking life. Even though these waking dreams are experienced at much subtler levels that doesn’t make them any less potent or important as the sleep time kind. In fact, they are parts of the same whole. Much like the two sides of a coin or how both day and night comprise the complete cycle of what constitutes an average day on most parts of the Earth.
It happens sometimes that life can seem like a waking nightmare. The lines are blurred and things are just not quite as they may seem. What to do, what to do, when this happens? How can one counter balance the effects when one is faced with this dilemma?
One must seek professional help. This approach has always proven to be effective in my own experience. What do I mean by professional help? For me any of the following on their own or in conjunction constitute professional help.
To me music, the written word (reading literature or writing), painting, martial arts, physical therapy, counseling, and loving are all effective forms of professional help. If you will notice all of these things have something in common all, or most, are considered an art form.
Therefore I conclude that living itself is an ART. It is impossible for me to pin point the one specific element of art that has saved my life. The human experience of life is a combination of the physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual – and all of these continually strive, in each one of us, to achieve symbiosis within us. This process is happening all the time whether we realize it or not.
All of the subjects in this series called “Morpheus” have taught me in one way or another that having a good quality of life is what makes living an art in itself. In other words they have all taught me how to make my own truest dreams be true. This series is dedicated to Morpheus, of course, but also to all those who have served as my inspiration. Thank you all.