It's All About ART

Blog 20


Shortly after my 30th birthday, I immigrated to Canada from Germany. Despite an English and Spanish language and business degree, I was afraid to speak English. I felt stupid because I could not express myself with the subtleties of my mother tongue.


After my move, I became an outsider. I was not allowed to work during the first year while I waited for my permanent resident papers. I felt very alone and homesick without support from my family and friends. I craved connection. I returned to art, my first love, to express myself and to find new friends.


Art has always had a role in my life. Sometimes the part was bigger, and other times life events took precedence. I have created art since I was a child. I remember a visit to a large construction site. My father, an architect, took care of work while I drew his office from all directions.


Art allows you to express yourself in a non-verbal way. However, art is not only used to capture the beauty of our environment, our dreams or visions of our imagination. Art helps people deal with traumatic experiences and is a fantastic visualization tool.


When people think about art, they often think of the beautiful nature paintings of the Group of Seven, van Gogh, Monet or any other master painter. Others might think of art as a means to address and capture social issues and wars or a way to process personal experiences, like the art of Frida Kahlo.

 

When many people think of art, they don’t consider the everyday use of drawing and sketching as artistic. However, when you create a map for someone, a drawing to describe an object, a pattern for a sweater, the shapes and forms used in geometry or the illustration of mathematical divisions, these are all based on visual communication using art. 

The definition of art can describe the

1) creative visual expression in paintings, drawings or sculptures to capture the beauty of life

2) various creative activities like painting, music, literature, and dance

3) skill you achieved through practice doing a specified activity, the art of small talk, the art of cooking

I capture the beauty of nature in my artworks to provide joy and a piece of outdoors for the living space. As a German instructor, I use art to help my students visualize new materials for faster and longer-lasting memorization.

My art has helped me cope with difficult situations in my life, like the terrible fall last year that bound me to a wheelchair for weeks and made it impossible to leave the house for months. I don’t know how I would have coped with the pain and frustration without immersing myself in my world of art. Despite the pain, I started drawing on the first day in my hospital room and continued with daily creative projects.


I want to inspire you to see more ways to use creative expressions. I want people to see their creative potential and embrace their uniqueness. Art and language go hand in hand to enrich our lives, provide relaxation and build bridges of understanding. I aim to bring people to support and inspire each other. 

 

 

If you are intrigued and want to bring more art into your life, contact me at info@KerstinPeters.ca. I offer needle felting sessions and German Through Art courses

Here are my current specials if you want to join my needle-felting workshops: