Artist Masha Ermeeva of ‘Transforming States,’ a series of 7 paintings telling a story of personal and interpersonal relationships, teaches others how to transcend deep emotional and psychological transformation. She claims, “Our lives consist of different engagements with ourselves, as well as other people, and those interactions with others may have a profound effect on us in a positive or destructive way. When we decide to trust and build something with others, we start changing as well. By touching upon intimate subjects like relationships, it is important for people to connect with art on a personal level, evoking memories and thoughts within.” Below she describes the 5 reasons art is important for mental and emotional wellbeing as well as connection:
1) Art helps with disconnecting from daily technology and stress in our lives and here is how to disconnect using art: You must allow yourself to let go of expectations and overthinking. In our daily lives, we have different tasks, to do lists, errands, etc. Art is an activity where you feel free to create, and make mistakes because in art there are no rules. Technical art is boring and not unique. Another aspect you should let go of is comparison and judgement of yourself and your art. This releases your brain from control and allows you to feel more at ease, feel fun and engaged with the present moment. This is how you really disconnect from the outside world, and withdraw into within, into your true inner voice.
2) With art, you can explore the human form and shapes and translate that into how you treat your body- We identify human form with self image, idealized or not. By exploring human form we also can explore our own form and identity. I believe the image of a human body reflects your idea of self, your character; is the figure angular, rough, with sharp edges, or is it soft and rounded?
3) Art brings people, allowing for human interaction and live engagement rather than being glued to the screen- I like going to figure drawing workshop every Saturday. It usually takes 3.5 hours and this is the time when artists just paint and sketch, completely off the screen and not disturbed by other things. I think there is a magic to it and I really like going there to feel peaceful energy and tranquility, and meet other artists.
4) Studies also show that creating art stimulates the release of dopamine. This chemical is released when we do something pleasurable, and it basically makes us feel happier. Increased levels of this feel-good neurotransmitter can be very helpful if you are battling anxiety or depression. As art helps to disconnect into my own world and my reality, requiring my focus and attention, it really helps to calm down thoughts and emotions. I believe it is a good way for those who suffer anxiety or even depression to detach from your own thoughts and traps created in your head.
5) Art helps you heal because you can put all of your feelings on paper -it’s a release of feeling. It is interesting to notice that If I have a strong emotion, I can put it into art and it makes me feel better, more whole. My art always based on my personal emotion and experience. I have a difficult time in my life, so I had continuous doubts and contradicting emotions in my head, so I created this piece “Battle.” And I researched later about the concept of duality and yin yang, balance of chaos and order in life. Making this artwork helped me to establish that within that time and helped me to feel a release that This is what life is about.
She says “I take inspiration from emotions, human form, dance, and the yin yang concept to create balanced entangled shapes to see how the story develops, starting from love, passion, to trust, then duality and doubts, and finding peace in your own presence. Most of us have gone through emotions like these, so every person will see her/himself in that.”
More about Masha Studying at the Art Academy in Russia, Masha went through intense traditional training and developed a strong understanding of a human figure and its proportions. After she relocated to the US at 20 years old, she graduated from FIU with BFA and continued her MA degree in Modern and Contemporary Art at Christie’s in New York. To dive deeper into the business of contemporary art, she took courses at Sotheby’s Art Institute in New York. Her diverse educational and cultural background allowed Masha to develop her unique style, recognized by broad expressive brushwork, monochromatic palette, textures, and a sense of movement. She built a beauty eyelash business to pay for her education and also studied at Sotheby’s.
