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ART - A SELF-EXPRESSION
Marian Baltazar
Class of 1980, University of the Philippines College of Manila
AB Political Science
Art can be a way of self-expression when a person needs to put out and make known his feelings. There are a
lot of good and bad things that happen in our daily life. There are times that we are overjoyed with the special
people and events that surround us. Of course we don’t just feel overwhelmed but we also encounter horrible
and nerve-wracking incidents as we go along with our daily living. Then we need to escape from all of this
reality that we are faced with and art proves to be a panacea to get away from all the hullaballoos of life itself.
Although, it looks like we are running away from reality, but the truth is we would like to express our inner self.
As a matter of fact, every individual has the right to decide whatever art or entertainment he would want and
not want, that is, the freedom of expression. Freedom of expressing your inner thoughts and emotions is just
like what Mahatma Gandhi has once said, “I want freedom for the full expression of my personality.” This holds
very true for art, for expressing oneself is what art is all about. Call it an escape, an evasion, an eschewal or
simply an outlet; it is an outright show of self-expression, of what is truly lurking inside that vast emotion of
yours.
As for me, the expression of art is a documentation of what you think and feel inside of you. It is a record of
what’s going on with the world and how you see it, a record of our emotion and a record of what our minds
can perceive and ever imagine. It is the greatest way of escape in every needs of our life. Moreover, it can be a
quick stroke of a paint brush in a canvas or maybe a subtle detail of a pencil. If you want to feel better, then it
can plainly be a sketching of a little picture or anything under the sun and even sculpting clay.
Putting out our thoughts is an art. Others express it in singing, scribbling or writing like what I have been doing
for quite some time. This only means that there is no exact way of showing whatever you have in mind because
it can be very simple and yet be very complicated. Art is anything we want to be, of what we make out of it. For
others it can serve as a therapy too. To put it plain and simple, art is a way to be yourself, letting it come out in
your masterpiece.
In reality, art is delving into one’s feelings and emotion and even the spiritual agony within us through seeing
and listening. Self-expression reveals the sources of personal struggle, trying to figure out what brings about or
sparks spiritual discomfort. Despite our varied skill levels, we can all be connected through art, for art
generates personal exploration through self-expression.
Questions for discussion:
1. Do you express your inner self through art? In what way do you do it?
2. Is it rewarding to use art as a self-expression? Why or why not?
3. Do you believe in the diversity of art? How do you show it?
4. What is the true meaning of art for you?
5. Are you an art-lover? How does it manifest in your life?