Mysticism, Creative Expression and the Dangers of Using AI to Create Art

How are mysticism and the creative practice related? Mysticism, by definition is an exploration of the unexplainable. Likewise, art exists in the places where words fail or are rendered unnecessary.

Any creative practice is a way for us to develop a deeper relationship with ourselves. This is key. People make art for all kinds of reasons, but inevitably when we engage in the creative process deeply, something is happening, there is an exchange taking place that is deeply rewarding and beneficial to our spirit.

But why is that? what is actually happening here? To understand this we need to ask the question “where does creativity come from, or more specifically, where do ideas come from.” So, let’s look at that question now.

Many artists describe their work as if it’s not their own, as if they channeled it from somewhere. But if that’s the case, and I personally believe that to be true, where exactly did it come from, why were they chosen to create the work, and if the idea didn’t really come from the artist, what role then does she play in the process of bringing it to life? There’s actually three question there to answer.

To answer the first question; I believe it comes from a kind of universal consciousness, call it God if you will, but God, as the Indian poet mystic once said is “thou whom before all words recoil.” Whatever word you use to describe the source of creative energy, is going to fall short of explaining it. It’s ineffable, and that’s okay. We don’t need to understand it, we just need to acknowledge that it is a mystery which is far greater than us. What’s important is that we have reverence and gratitude for the gift.

Secondly, the artist was chosen because they are the right fit for the job, their personal story and experience are in line with the essence that is coming through them. Ideas are seeds and seeds want to be planted in ideal conditions where the likelihood of success will be high. Who’s planting the seeds though? That’s back to the first question, which we already deemed ineffable. But I believe that somehow, an idea is like a living entity which is seeking out a host that it knows is capable of bringing it into being!

And thirdly, if the artist is not really responsible for the idea then their only job is to serve as a translator. To use their learned technical skills and their own sensibilities to bring the idea to life in their own personal style. Style is everything. It is a huge honor and responsibility to be able to do this work.

Eye To Eye : An oil painting depicting the circle of life.

When I was developing my own artistic voice, it was slow to reveal itself. I made a lot of experiments, did a lot of searching to discover what it was I had to say as an artist. I wasn’t really sure what that was until it eventually found me. I made a painting called Eye to Eye which expressed ‘the circle of life and death’ and when it was done I knew that I had finally found my voice. I had found the thing that excited me! My style had developed naturally along the way.

To clarify, when I refer to my voice, I mean what is the message of my work. When I refer to style I mean how do I deliver that message.

Another question that comes up is why. Who is the art for and why should it be made to exist? I think the biggest benefactor of the art is the artist. When they engage in the process of making an artwork they are exploring the depths of their own soul and connecting on a deep level to the mystical, and in doing so they are developing a deeper understanding of who they are. Self knowing is square-one for all healing, and so making art is perhaps the most healing practice we can engage in as humans.

The art we make benefits others as well. A painting or a song may grab someone emotionally and charge them with life and inspiration, leading them to exploring their own creative practice, and thus their own healing creative journey.

All of the healing powers of art and it’s power to connect to another person emotionally are lost however if you do not actually make it yourself. This leads me to another topic: AI generated art.

A word of warning. If you use AI software to create art for you, in place of you engaging in the creative process yourself, you are selling yourself tragically short because you don’t get to engage in that sacred creative dance yourself. Even if you think its your idea, and you entered prompts all day long, it is still not created by you. It’s created by a computer and it’s not your work. More importantly it’s not your style.

If you don’t actually do the work, your style can’t develop and evolve, which means you will stagnate and live in a false state of your own creative awareness. I’ll say it again, the process is everything. There are very few new ideas left to communicate but sometimes how you say something can be more engaging than what you are actually saying!

It baffles me when people get big egos over their AI created art. Sorry, but you didn’t make that. It’s not your work. Maybe it was your idea but you chose to give it away and so you are not the artist. An artist is someone who guides a creative idea from its mysterious origins in the ether, through the human experience and into this material world. If AI software made your idea for you then you are nothing more than a technician, at best.

Conversely, some of the most talented artists are incredibly humble about their work because they understand what a gift it is to be able to make a great work of art. Their art speaks to us because they have learned how to listen to and communicate the divinity within themselves. They may lack the words to express it but their art speaks a thousand words, and they are words of personal truth, and that is enough. That is everything.

Thanks for reading. What is your own relationship with your creative process like? Do you resonate with any of this, and where to do disagree? Leave a comment below.