Art as applied cohesive coherence - Part I

First some background on what is being undertaken. The proverbial "we" are bringing together individuals who believe in "the transformative power of the arts to bring us together in common purpose as we struggle to understand and cope with our changing world." I should add, "as we both individually and collectively struggle to understand and cope with our changing world."

For example, we theorize that the immersion in the arts at the earliest stages of cognitive development produces vital connections for later creative thinking. The name for these connections is synapses, of course. (Ref: "Brain Development", Authors: Jandy Jeppson with Judith A. Myers-Walls and Dee Love; http://www.extension.purdue.edu/providerparent/child%20growth-development/braindev.htm )

At the preschool and kindergarten levels, and even for some children through the 1st and 2nd grades (8+/- years of age) the individual child's brain/body development is not ready to handle some subject matter—specifically reading and math—beyond a certain basic level, "stepped" to the child's individual development. We would suggest that to have a learning environment where the child is expected to achieve beyond the capability of the child's brain/body development is to induce a sense of failure in using the mind—the brain/body arena for thought—in the pursuit of the "skills" being pressed upon the child, a negative connection/phobia that can last a lifetime.

Using the cognitive powers of the mind for long-term benefit as we grow older allows us to override the reactive biology of our bodies and its too-often negative short-term results. And we would also theorize that immersion in the arts has this benefit for individuals of any age in any field of endeavor because the benefit relates to the individual developing a greater capacity for creative thought and then reaping the positive results from this enhanced capacity.

"In layman’s terms, through self-awareness and conscious intention, we can train our brain to transform our lives whether at home or at work. In the intensity of our current tumultuous times, getting a handle on our thoughts might be the very currency needed to consume the chaos and boost creativity." -http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2012/12/20/deepak-chopra-on-your-super-brain-work-stress-and-creativity/

The above referenced web article also states in quoting Dr. Deepak Chopra M.D.:

"Meditation makes the entire nervous system go into a field of coherence. Your entire brain in meditation goes into what is called “phase and frequency locking in.” All the neural networks adhere together synchronistically. And no other experience other than meditation does it quite that way. Being more aware creates responsibility. What does responsibility mean? It means the ability to respond. The more conscious you are in your ability to respond, the more creative you’ll be."

We would suggest that immersion in an art project or event that engages/focuses our mind also creates a synchronistic field of coherence. From our own experience, this immersion draws us into the creative rhythm of action applied to an "object set", mind response (thought), leading to action, leading to mind response ... a dance of cohesive coherence (the sticking together of integrated diverse elements) of objects, actions and thoughts ... bringing conscious awareness of and in the creative process ... along with satisfaction, joy, and a sense of one's own capability to create positive results in one's own world that are personally rewarding, and thereby its own motivation to continue.

With this theoretical framework "we" are exploring options to begin an art-based neighborhood transformation program in New Jersey.