The Artist and the Wound.
Life and death are a symbiotic dance. Once cannot exist without the other. Death is the fertilizer for the new life that emerges. Life that springs forth from the dark womb of creation. Take for instance a new art piece that I’m currently working on…., I’m trying to give birth to an image that was first created in the ‘dark womb’ of my mind. What was the inspiration for that image? Often, when I get inspired to create a work of art, it was first sparked by some emotion. I’ve always felt that art is all its forms, is a reflection and release of some kind of emotion. We can think of emotions as the fertilizer, or ‘muse’, for an artist. The symbiotic dance between art and emotion. This is how beautiful, ethereal pieces of art are born. The bleeding artist dies and brings life through every work of art. This is a story of transformation through pain, trauma, heartbreak, and even joy. Artists have often struggled with illness, sensitivity, and mood swings. Art can be a way for artists to express themselves and even survive.
Pain and hardship are the chisels that carve into the soul, shaping the artist in ways nothing else can. Every wound, every heartbreak, every loss leaves an imprint, creating depth where once there was only surface. It is through suffering that the artist learns to see beyond the ordinary—to recognize beauty in sorrow, meaning in struggle, and light in the darkest corners of existence.
Pain forces reflection. It strips away illusions, leaving raw emotion exposed, demanding to be acknowledged, to be felt. It teaches patience, resilience, and understanding, all of which become woven into the fabric of one’s art. The most profound pieces of writing, painting, music, and expression often stem from moments of deep suffering—because pain makes us honest.
For me, hardship has been both a tormentor and a teacher. In the echoes of suffering is where I’ve been able to find my most authentic voice. And through this voice, I don’t create just for myself, but for those who have felt the same but lacked the outlet to express it. My own pain has made me more attuned to beauty, love, and even the suffering of others. Even though hardship has been the fuel for creative works of art, there has also been just as much inspiration in those moments of pure happiness.
It’s definitely a dance between dark and light. The bittersweet nature of being an artist: feeling everything deeply, never truly escaping the emotional spectrum. It’s beautiful being able to express those deep emotions but at the same time, it can be very exhausting.
I consider myself a gnostic, so art to me is also alchemy. I love how emotions transform pain into something tangible. How art can move people, connect you with people, and in some cases, even heals people. That’s alchemy.
It is a curse and a gift to feel everything so deeply. It gets very heavy at times. I have so many artistic gifts to share with the world but sometimes emotions of self-doubt, imposter syndrome, or fear of vulnerability can creep in. I can say that despite the pain, I wouldn’t trade this depth of feeling for a numb existence. I love the fact that I have the gift of expressing things that others just cannot. That ‘the divine’ works through me to bring beauty and life to this plane of existence. For me, it’s like giving birth to a baby. Creating new life.
Art will always be a part of my life and an ongoing process. As long as I’m breathing, I will create.
To be a bleeding artist is to embrace the gift and curse of feeling. To be able to turn scars into something beautiful. It is to know that pain is not just about suffering but it’s about transformation. And in that transformation, there is beauty—because to create is to birth new life, and to remind the world that even in suffering, there is art.
