The monastery and the greenhouse

It has been a while since I’ve written here. I have been so busy with my Erasmus at EKA and there are so many things to be shared that I didn’t even know where to start. Today on my way to school I was thinking in a little analogy to illustrate what has been my experience in these past one and a half years of Masters studies in Painting: The first year was spent at the faculty of fine arts of Lisbon, and the second here at the Estonian Academy of the Arts.

I remember now how I started the Masters degree and I think how challenging it was. It was a time of deep questioning, a lot of self-doubt and fear. I often felt guilty for selling my works, and had the feeling that sacrifice will never be enough in order to keep the work pure and authentic. I also felt a sense of hierarchy, and this feeling of holiness of the word “art” as something unnatailable, something that I would not be worth to practicing.

All this is interesting since the Faculty of Fine Arts of Lisbon is located in the ancient Monastery of São Francisco. Somehow the Franciscan principles of service, humility, peacemaking, contemplation, and collegiality seem to be quite present still nowadays in the faculty rooms. Franciscans lived in isolation, stripped from all material connections, often doing the vote of silence, and fully devoted to the religious practice. Sometimes I walk to the corridors and I see the students in their rooms, like echoes of the monks, working individually, in closure.

It was very interesting opon arriving to Estonia, when we had this art theory class where discussed the role of devotion in art practice wich was exemplified by the work of nons in monasteries. We discussed the issues with devotion, the role of the artist in the society, the role of the audience, the importance of collaboration and activism. We had many meaningful conversations..

I was asked what I thought. I had a space to be listened and to listen.

I started to collaborate with my classmates in planning exhibitions, discussing essays and readings, and to loose the fear in speaking about my work. The teachers were helpful with constructive ideas and showed interest in what we had to present. Actually, many times the roles were changing, and students are asked to teach while the teachers were observing. I went back to working from love, and I felt the support of a community of colleagues who are all in the same boat as me. Together, we are building a contemporary concept of art, which will have a role in society.

If I think about EKA, I think about a greenhouse. This warm and transparent space that provides us the atmosphere and all the ingredients for growing together. There is this sense of togetherness, things are not put in boxes, there is no “right” or “wrong”, you can grow in any direction and connect with whom you wish to connect. There is no holiness, hierarchy or judgement, and we can find this down-to- earth humbleness that, in my opinion, is fundamental for the process of learning. Finally, we are pushed to collaborate, to participate, to intervene in society activelly.

I had similar feelings of growing during my bachelor times, but somehow I started to loose them during the master degree. I believe we can choose the model of education which is better for us, and maybe I’m just a “greenhouse plant”, but In the end I do believe that education is much more than providing skills or knowledge, but above all leading us to create a healthy mentality and values for a positive impact in the world. I am happy I had the opportunity to distance myself with Erasmus, and remember, once again, these values.