Why Bjork art? A happy ending!
Until 2003 I had never heard of her and I probably wouldn't have ever accepted her music because it was too different from what I was programmed to like, but then during a time in my life when I was really down, along came Bjork with her music! In 1996 I found myself trying to recover from cancer, chemotherapy and radiation treatments that almost killed me and left me sick for years. I'm so lucky to have great family and friends in my life, my wife and kids were all that kept me going through that awful time.
As time passed I was slowly getting better but something important was missing. Aside from a few pencil drawings and sketches, I hadn't done any artwork since 1996. Doing art and making things was something that used to come to me naturally. I was feeling pretty down about it because I was stuck in an ugly depressing rut and even though I repeatedly tried to get inspired, it just wouldn't happen. Doing art was something I had always enjoyed, I took pride in my work and it was rewarding to me. It was a big part of me and it was a way to express myself but now it meant so much more than that to me. I Constantlylived with the fear of a recurrence and the lasting effects of the treatments were so strong that I felt like I was dying inside. I could never seem to escape from the negative thoughts. I just couldn't relax long enough to think about anything like painting, drawing or metal work. I know there are things worse than death but when you have two wonderful kids life becomes much more precious. Every day I faced an endless cycle of dark emotion and the stress it's self was not good for my recovery. I knew it that if I could just do my artwork again it would take my mind away from all this for a while, it would reduce stress and help me to stay positive. I needed to stay positive to stay alive. If I could just get my mind to escape from this dark cloud, it could actually help keep me alive! I had been trying for such a long time but after about 6 years I had about given up. Nothing in the world, not even my family could purge my mind of all these overwhelming thoughts. I felt the rest of my life would be spent like this and that end of my life was coming too soon.
Then one night I saw Bjork on the TV. Actually I was working on the computer and had my back to the tv which my daughter had left on after falling asleep on the couch so I wasn't really paying any attention at first. Her music kept distracting me as I tried to ignore it and keep working but the sounds kept entering my brain and it could not be ignored! I kept thinking, what the hell is that music! I finally had to turn around and see who it was.
At first I couldn't decide whether I liked it or what but I was captivated by the sound, I had never heard anything even similar to this before. I had to keep watching and listening. She was so different, distracting, curious,interesting, strange, alien to my ears but so original and this music just sounded so good to me! I had to buy some of her music! After watching and listening some more, I thought to myself, how could this music be so strange and so different than what I liked yet sound so good to me? There were a lot of factors in her music that hit me all at once and over time. Big things and little things. Her music was such a breath of fresh air, so full of new and different sounds and expressions. A different world all in it's own.
Bjork's music made me really restless! It distracted me from my problems and did it in such a nice way. Her music pushed the negative thoughts out of my head and filled it with all this new music. Her music has a positive energy, a healing energy. I was listening to it a lot and It purged my mind with an eclectic spectrum of satisfying sounds and emotions. Bjork's music allowed my brain to take a break from all the bad stuff long enough to think more calmly and to focus on other things. Her music made me think a lot about creativity and expressing thoughts, about trying new things, about taking chances, about just doing it! For the first time in years I felt the urge to start doing artwork again. Whenever I watched and listened to her, she made me feel ashamed of myself because I have hands, eyes and a brain but had not been using them for making art for so long. At the same time, her music was giving me ideas for new things I wanted to make.
Artwork wasn't just something I wanted to do, I need to do it in order to stay alive and to be who I am! I was so glad to be back at it that all the first things I made were related to Bjork and her music. Some were just simple designs with variations of Bjork's tattoo but I was doing art again! I wished I had my own Bjork photos to use for manipulations and digital art but then I have to be realistic. I didn't mean to get so carried away with all this Bjork art but I was so motivated and had to do something with the new energy and inspiration I had. Now I'm back into doing art again including brass repousse. Anyway, I believe music can heal and save lives. I'm ok now but I believe things would have turned out very differently if I had never heard her music. Thank you Bjork!!!
Björk's Music
If you've never heard Bjork's music, you should! No matter who you are, she is making music for you! she makes music in so many different styles, all of them her own, from wild and experimental to smooth and mysterious to sweet and seductive! You can find all her music, images, gigography, forums, news, shopping, info, links and more at Björk.com-unity Björk's official website in Reykjavik Iceland. I'd recommend starting with her early music or the "Greatest hits" CD to get to know her a bit and then move forward. Her music is always changing and her new releases are always a real surprise! I find all of it interesting, artistic and out in front. Even though I don't understand all of her music, I still like it because they're her creations. I especially like the styles of her earlier music! Unison, Isobel, Hidden Place, Pagan Poetry, and "Come to me" are just some of my favorites.
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