Evidence-based Art Reflects Overcoming

The Power Of Love Over Hate

Some people insist evidence-based art should be 100 percent peaceful and serene and without any reflections of human challenges or difficulties. Based on my physical recovery experience (2 major operations within 30 days and over a year to recover), I politely disagree.

In the recovery process, people need lots of rest and relaxation—but we also need to feel hope. We need to feel encouraged to overcome our difficulties, even when that means complete restoration, only certain improvements, or sadly even acceptance.

One way to see this overcoming in art is to see a challenge or negativity in the background of a work and then have the foreground colors and images overcome it.

Here’s another video clip with a painting that does just that.

Below the video you can read the—not so peaceful and serene—actual story behind this evidence-based work called The Power Of Love Over Hate.

Here’s the story behind this evidence-based work:

I got trained to paint when I was only 7/8 years old. Today when I paint, I still go to that childlike, very vulnerable, and authentic part of my being and channel my art outwards. I live a happy, minimalist lifestyle, so most of the time when creating florals, I paint lovely art for the health and healing of others; however, on the rare occasion, the negativity of our world invades and can be seen inside my work.

When I began this painting, I was invaded by a worker doing a minor repair in my home/studio who started talking radical politics and would just not shut up. In his many words I kept hearing this message: I hate this group. I hate that group. Did you know this racial group is to blame for this? Did you know that cultural group is to blame for that? You need to support my political guy. If you don’t support my political guy, there is something wrong with you. Are you my enemy? Are you one of us?

As I laid the background stems for this painting, I was still processing how negative and dangerous this seemingly everyday American citizen was, and it inadvertently came out in the overly dark blue stem color I selected and in the over-intensity of my strokes.

Loving and hating others are human choices, and as I continued to work on the canvas, I kept choosing colors and images that overpowered the negativity of the stems and reflected the beauty and THE POWER OF LOVE OVER HATE.

Life Threatening Illness and Evidence-based Art

Have you ever had a life threatening illness? Most of my life was major illness free and then—WHAM!—I ended up in the hospital with 2 major operations within 30 days. It was no picnic, and it took me over a year to recuperate.

From this experience, I learned on a life-or-death level about fears of dying, overcoming physical trauma, fighting for hope, and the need for real evidence-based art. Real evidence-based art uses design principles based on “real medical studies” for human health and healing.

I went on to become EDAC (Evidence-based Design Certified), and often when I paint, my goal is to create beautiful, happy art that soothes and relaxes—but also stimulates. In the recovery process, it’s important to heal (rest and relaxation) but also essential to stay upbeat and in motion (stimulated) for recovery.

Here’s another evidence-based art video for you!

Visual Dynamite From An Interior Designer

The art of interior designing has always amazed me. As an acrylic artist, I mostly work on canvas rectangles or squares from 11”x14” to 5’x 8’ but interior designers often have to consider WHOLE ROOMS…ENTIRE AREAS…ENORMOUS SPACES! How cool is that?

Recently I had a really awesome “How Cool Is That?” online experience with a designer I had never met. Here’s the story:

“As I usually do, I got on Instagram early in the morning to see what’s new. I noticed one of my paintings got a LIKE from a design company I didn’t know, so I clicked on it. Wow!  Was I blown away!  Pamela Hope Designs pamelahopedesigns.com had posted a photo of the coolest mahjong sofa set I had ever seen. Hyper-vivid reds, greens, yellows, super cool patterns, all arranged Asian style! It was like visual dynamite going off inside my head, so I clicked on her website link for more—and I wasn’t disappointed. What a lovely site! What talent! (You’ve got to check her out!) I went from photo to photo to section to section until I ended up at her blog. Her 2020 predictions were to “go bold with color” and “blues and greens” would be popular this year.  So impressed with Pamela’s blog, beautiful website, and color selections, I decided to make green my other “it” color in a painting on which I was working.  What I didn’t know—which is what makes this story so cool —is after I had added all the green flowers to the painting, I found out my business manager had sent Pamela an intro to our studio letter and she also liked dorotheasandra.com enough to start following my work on Instagram. Hurrah for social media and destiny and fabulously talented interior designers!”

Here’s a photo of the painting “BEFORE” being influenced by Pamela Hope Designs.

What a “blah” beginning “BEFORE” being influenced by Pamela Hope Designs!

Here’s the same painting “AFTER” reading Pamela’s blog. See how her “interior designer” talent added to this painting getting more POP! 

The “greens” definitely added POP and gave it more credibility as an “evidence-based” restorative/healing work of art.

Here’s the finished painting! Heartfelt Happiness by dorotheasandra.com. Acrylic on 36” x 48” heavy duty gallery wrapped canvas. Can you see the heart shape inside the painting? Can you see how much Pamela O’Brien at pamelahopedesigns.com had a big impact on my art? How cool is that!

Are you suffering from "Prisoner of the Wired World" syndrome?

Are you suffering from “Prisoner of the Wired World” syndrome?

If so, you might also have a bad case of eco-anxiety, eco-grief, eco-trauma, or even eco-despair. How in the world do people end up there? Simply put—many humans (and species) have lost their connection to Nature, and this “disconnect” from Nature has the potential to cause huge trauma and distress.

I now live in a town pretty much bordered by state forests and state parks and the 5th largest freshwater lake in the world (Lake Huron). Whenever I need a break from my “super-wired online business/fine art/graphic design world” I just take a drive or go outside and walk around my lakeside town.

Yet, for so many millions of people on our planet, easy access to an abundance of Nature just isn’t part of their reality. Is there any hope out there for the eco-deprived and wired-to-the-world weary? From someone who has lived in Boston, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Toronto, and Tokyo, the answer is “Yes!”

According to numerous studies, viewing psychologically appropriate ART benefits human health. In fact, viewing “evidence-based” restorative/healing art can even “significantly affect medical outcomes such as blood pressure, anxiety, intake of pain medication, and length of hospital stay.”

Here’s an example. When I was younger, I created art for “my” self-expression. It was dark and dramatic and met “my” needs.

Layers Of Death (not for sale) by Dorothea Sandra

An Abstract Mind (not for sale) by Dorothea Sandra

Swamp Ghosts (not for sale) by Dorothea Sandra

Today, I create art for the health, healing and happiness of others. I “deliberately and strategically” use beautiful colors and flowers and landscapes to help “reconnect” my viewers to Nature. Connecting to Nature, even in the form of art, has been shown (by one study after another) to help us. Also, as you can see from the photos below, restorative/healing art doesn’t have to be boring. It can have movement and POP and dramatic beauty.

The Creative Thinker’s Garden by dorotheasandra.com

Flowers Going Ziggy by dorotheasandra.com

Great Lakes Flowers Singing by dorotheasandra.com