In outlining the area between sacred and profane art Van Der Leew is clear about how art is meant to come into existence. “Art is meant to seek out what is already there, not to construct it.” I absolutely love this quote from Sacred and Profane Beauty and I find it’s meaning bleeding over to other aspects of my life as well.
I have always been fascinated with the great impact an environment has on an individual, and this trip has opened my eyes to so many new sights, peoples, languages, works of art, and parts of myself that were never a element of my world just three months ago. Much of the topics we’ve dealt with this semester have been highly spiritual and have greatly affected each one of us in more than we know. Just as the creation of art seeks to highlight something that was not yet visible, but already present, these travel experiences have worked the same way within me.
My reactions to the amazing landscapes, art, people, and cultures we have seen were all aspects of my personality and consistent with the core of who I am, but they needed to be provoked by travel in order to emerge. I am so excited to see all of the ways in which this trip will continue to shape my beliefs, thoughts and actions in the world. We’ve all had the privilege to be on this incredible trip and see things many people just dream about. It is up to us to take on and face the experiences we’ve had and the people who have surrounded us and form our own understanding of the world, where we fit in it, and how we want to live in it.
I’ll end this with one of my favorite quotes of all time:
“We shall not cease exploration and at the end of all our exploring we’ll be to arrive where we started, and know the place for the first time.”
-T.S. Elliot
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