One of the first words that comes to my mind when traveling to Europe or, quite frankly, any place is art. Art can be found in any and all places. However, it isn’t always found in the forms we assume.
Art can come in song. On a visit to Dublin I stopped by the St. Patrick’s Cathedral for a quick tour of this large church. As I began to walk toward the end of the church I heard the humming tone of a choir. The church had been quite the spectacle, but it was the music that made it complete that made it make sense together.
As the voices that sounded like an angelic chorus resonated to the flickering of the candles during the evening service, the music was a window that displayed the purpose of the service, the church and the religion in just a couple of minutes. Its strength was more powerful and important than the robust size of any cathedral.
Art can simply come with the views. While cities are fast paced and exciting at times a visit to the more isolated side of the world can do your brain good, and remind us of the loveliness that comes with a world unharmed and unbothered. Mother nature is the queen of art in its most raw form.
This became apparent when I stood on the patio of my Airbnb in Santorini, Greece. To my right was a sea of blindingly white little houses built into a mountainside, and on my left was the open Mediterranean Sea and islands untouched.
It had been so long since I last saw a place that was so free of human adjustments. To my surprise simply enjoying the beauty that humans had no part in can be the loveliest sight to witness.
Art can be history. I never tired of walking in and out of churches, for each Cathedral housed arts from years before my time. Santa Croce in Florence, Italy, honored those who served God with unbelievably intricate tombs for countless people in the past including a massive sculptures above the grave of Michelangelo and Galileo.
When it comes down to it art can be whatever you want it to be. I like to think that the postcards I painted in my watercolor painting class could be considered art or that the pictures I took in my photojournalism class holds a sense of artistic value as well. Something doesn’t have to be framed or in a museum to be considered art.
Yes, I found art in the Vatican and the Van Gogh Museum. However, I also found art in a Florence cappuccino, a fresh French pastry and a plate of pasta from Bologna, Italy.
I found art on the streets of Budapest. I found art in the hidden churches in Rome. I found it in the music of every which place from Dublin to Barcelona, Spain. I found art when something provoked an emotion within me, and if it does that to you, it doesn’t matter what anyone else says. It’s art.
