The other day I was scrolling through my Instagram feed when I came across a TikTok video of people dancing. Not a very unusual sight: there are millions of TikTok videos out there that feature people dancing. But after watching the video for some time, after getting involved, smiling down at the lives of these happy people making the most of this particular moment in time by enjoying some music, it suddenly hit me that these dancing people were living in a different country from me. The type of music that was being played, even the clothes they were wearing made me automatically assume I was watching people who lived in the states. And my discovery to the contrary made me realize two things. One, that I’m so unfortunately white American. But, two: art connects us all. No matter where we come from.
When I was in elementary school, there was a poster hanging up in one of the classrooms that said, “Everyone Smiles in the Same Language,” and I always loved that so much. It made me feel like, despite different cultures, despite language barriers, as long as I could exchange a smile with someone, we could communicate with each other.
But now, this video has reminded me of something that keeps slipping away from me as I try to live my best creative life. Yes, we all smile in the same language. But we also listen to music “in the same language;” we all dance “in the same language;” and we all tell stories “in the same language.” I use the quotes here because, of course, artistic style varies from culture to culture. But deep at the heart of things, no matter in what way, shape or form it is expressed, our art has the power to reach out and communicate with people all over the world. Like science and mathematics, art is a universal language.
When I was in high school, I worked with some of the most amazing people within the theater program. And I remember often just looking around the room at my fellow thespians–people across varying grade levels, who came from different backgrounds, celebrated different cultures, identified within different ethnicities and orientations–and thinking to myself: Art could save the world.
Actually, at the time I was probably thinking theater could save the world. But once again, my perspectives on art and life have shifted. And even in the slightest shift, it seems like a whole new avenue of creative living has opened up before me.
No matter where we are from, and no matter how we live, our common ground has always been art. And I think this is part of the reason why some artists thrive while others remain stagnant: it takes a special kind of open mind to appreciate and create great art. Only those who truly understand its universality have the power to use their art to change the world. As we’ve said time and again: art is a celebration of humanity–and you cannot have one without the other.
Night Owls, tell us how your art is going to change the world!
