Friday, June 3, 2011

The Shamanic Influence in Art by Van James




Throughout history and across the planet, spiritual practices are revealed through the medium of art. Outside the structured doctrines of traditional religious practices stand the artistic-ritualistic expressions of indigenous spirituality or shamanism. From rhythmic drumming and decorative costuming to creative movement and symbolic imagery, the language of art bridges the inner and outer experiences of primal spirituality and mediates the existence between a divine-elemental and a material world. Even today the images of shamanic practices appear in the most unlikely places...