Maslow, Art, and Psychology

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

This is commonly taught in psychology 101 courses in high school and college. Abraham Maslow ranked human's needs in order of importance or order of need. He organized human needs into a triangle with the most basic of needs at the bottom (such as food, shelter, and clothing) and the ultimate goal or motivation for humans being self-actualization. Self-actualization means that the person is realizing or working towards realizing all their potentialities as humans. Maslow's theory  helps to define our motivations on a basic level, but in the simplicity, is a deeper understanding of human motivation. We are all searching, seeking for the same thing: to expand our horizons and to grow as humans to reach our full potential. Some people are still working on the basics such as clothing or food, while others are working on acceptance or confidence. The most advanced of persons are working on the final step, realizing their full potential as a human.

One might ask at this juncture, why I'm discussing a social psychology theory of human motivation on a blog about art? Or you may wonder how does art help with human growth? While it does not help with meeting basic needs such as shelter or more advanced needs such as confidence or self-esteem, it does play a part in self-actualization.

Art as a Trans-formative Influence

Art, fine art, is enlightening and inspiring to our souls. Creating and appreciating art is one of the things that separates humans from other primates and mammals. Fine art demonstrates what humans are capable of doing, creating and thus inspires the viewer on towards greater things themselves. It can be a motivating factor to our further growth as humans and individuals.

From Maslow's theory, we already have that motivation inherent in our beings, but with our hectic schedules, sometimes we learn to shut that drive off. We have kids to feed, bills to pay, friends to connect with, still need to sleep sometime, then wake up to do it all over again. This need for self-actualization sometimes gets put off to the back burner, then forgotten. Appreciating any type of fine art, whether at a concert, a play, or a museum, can re-ignite the passion for personal growth. Certainly having an original piece of art in your home, that you can see and be inspired from daily is a distinct advantage. I've found it is best to experience the art in person. The music seems alive and much sweeter when heard in person than from a recording. Being present in an auditorium, watching a live play is so much more fulfilling than watching a movie, distanced by time and space.

Original Art Work Versus Prints

For some works of art, such as the Mona Lisa, or Rembrandt's The Night Watchmen, having a print is the only way to hang the painting in your home. I have a print of my favorite painting, Las Meninas by Diego Velazquez. Seeing these paintings in person eclipses the print. So much detail in the artist's expression is lost in the photograph. I love viewing a Sargent's painting, both from afar and up close. His brush work is so beautiful up close, but so loose and descriptive farther away. You miss most of the awe in this quality when looking at a print. While few people could own even a Sargent painting, many people can afford paintings by current artists who are creating art now. If possible, having the original piece of art is always preferable, but when it is not possible, such as Madame X by John Singer Sargent, then a print is the only option. 

Art and Self Actualization

Original creations of fine art pieces well executed and available to be viewed in person every day in your own home is a treasure indeed. Gazing upon an original art piece can be transformative. It is inspiring as well as stimulating. Fine art has the capability to stimulate what is the best and truest inside each of us. It raises our consciousness, improves our ability to see and appreciate the world around us, and ignites the noblest and best parts of ourselves. This inspiration helps to propel us towards our own self actualization. 

Find a piece of art you love that you can afford and make arrangements to own it. You will not regret this investment in beautification of your home as well as stimulating your inner drive towards self-actualization.

If you enjoyed this article, consider signing up for my monthly newsletter. You will receive one or two emails per month with links to articles like this one. You will also receive updates on upcoming events, behind-the-scenes look into my paintings, and first look at my newest paintings. I almost forgot...You also receive a 15% discount on my newest paintings.

Why I Avoid Zinc in my Paintings

Art as an Investment or Heirloom

Whether you are investing in art for you, for future generations, as a family heirloom, or as a legacy gift to a museum/alma mater, the longevity of that art work should be important to you. If you were going to invest in a stock, you would research to find out the history of the painting, who was leading the company, expected growths, etc. You would do your due diligence before purchasing a share of the stock. Art is no different.

While you want to make sure that the art is of high quality, you also want to make sure that the art was created on solid supports and of sound materials. What people seem to have forgotten about art, is that it is definitely a marathon and not a sprint. It's about if the painting will stand the test of time. Will conservators be able to maintain it over time?

Zinc as a Siren

When zinc was introduced on the market, it was shortly after titanium white, an opaque white pigment. It was billed as safer than lead, the traditional but toxic white pigment, and more translucent than the recently developed opaque titanium white. It could make soft, delicate tints of translucent color for lighter passages. Artists began to use it and soon it became used throughout the art world. Manufacturers began to add a bit of zinc to titanium and then to other pigments to make specialty colors such as kings blue. They also sold it as pure zinc white. It was ubiquitous in the art market. Even now, it can be challenging to find an oil primed ground without zinc or titanium white without small amounts of added zinc. 

Problems Began

Around the turn of the twenty-first century, art conservators began to notice some issues with oil paintings completed in the early twentieth century. More cracking and some delamination problems were noted. The conservators didn't have an explanation for this, only that some oil paintings of less than one hundred years old (young in terms of an oil painting), were aging faster or developing problems normally seen in paintings three to five hundred years old. 

The sentinel article by Mecklenburg and Tumosa demonstrate the potential risk to the longevity of the paint film when zinc is added to the paint mixture. They did not find a safe amount zinc in a paint film. Every paint film with any amount of zinc in it was found to become quite brittle in as little as 3 years. This makes it easier for the paint film to crack. It also showed that paint films with zinc in the mixture separated or delaminated. Delamination is a far more serious problem than cracking. We know that paint films crack over time, but it is uncommon to see paintings peel, separate or delaminate. This is a potentially destructive process. 

While I don't want this article to be a technical discussion about ions, pigments, and chemistry, I do want to be transparent about the research and where I'm getting the knowledge. If you want to learn more about the harmful effects zinc has on paintings, please read more here. Please see also the references list at the bottom of this article. 

The Choice

I research the panels that I use and use the best materials that I can find. Early on before learning about the harmful effects of zinc, I did use zinc and use oil primed linen panels (which used small to unknown amounts of zinc along with titanium white). Currently, I primarily use Natural Pigments Artefex lead white-oil primed smooth ACM panels. These cost almost twice as much as the next best competitor (zinc free oil primed panels) and five times as much as an oil primed linen panel (which uses both titanium and zinc pigments in the oil ground). 

You have chosen to invest in something you hope to have as a family heirloom or to leave as a legacy gift. You cannot do this if the painting will crack, crumble, or fall apart in a hundred years or so. I make this investment in materials for you and whatever you choose to do with your art acquisition.

If you enjoyed this article, consider signing up for my monthly newsletter. You will receive one or two emails per month with links to articles like this one. You will also receive updates on upcoming events, behind-the-scenes look into my paintings, and first look at my newest paintings. I almost forgot...You also receive a 15% discount on my newest paintings.

References:

https://www.naturalpigments.com/artist-materials/zinc-white-oil-paint-color/

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/mrs-online-proceedings-library-archive/article/deterioration-in-abstract-expressionist-paintings-analysis-of-zinc-oxide-paint-layers-in-works-from-the-collection-of-the-hirshhorn-museum-and-sculpture-garden-smithsonian-

institution/86E7882FF045EF63B3E5C71A8077F818

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1179/bac.2013.34.1.002

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-10100-2_11

Traditional Oil Painting: Advanced Techniques and Concepts from the Renaissance to the Present, 2019. Virgil Elliott.