How Art Communicates What Words Cannot Express

Introduction: Art Beyond Words

Art is able to communicate thoughts, feelings, and ideas — as well as portray moments in history — in unique and completely distinct ways that language is unable to replicate. Art touches the full range of human sensations with an immediacy that words cannot match. As Richard Hickman observes, "While artists can act as a mirror to reflect cultural values — like all of us they carry cultural baggage that affects their personal value systems — they can also have a vital role within cultures in that they contribute to cultural, social and political change by challenging established cultural values and ideas" (Hickman, 114).

A modern dance choreographed by the gifted dancer and choreographer Pat Catterson, entitled "Tiananmen (Peaceful Gate)," is a prime example of how art can communicate raw human emotions and experiences that arise in the face of extreme events and tragedies. When the unspeakable occurs, art is there to express the inexpressible. A dance review captured the work's power vividly:

"An excerpt from Pat Catterson's 'Tiananmen (Peaceful Gate)' showed how constant movement forward and backward could acquire dramatic and even moral significance. Although no specific story was told, the choreography was clearly inspired by the Chinese uprising of 1989. At the same time, it could be viewed as a symbolic tribute to any resistance to oppression in any period of history. Dancers surged across the stage in one group after another. Then, after they appeared to be rebuffed by hostile invisible powers, they retreated. Yet another forward-moving group always entered to resume the struggle. The constant repetitions in the recorded music by Philip Glass that accompanied 'Tiananmen' helped emphasize the tenacity of the protesters Ms. Catterson depicted. And the dancers moved with mounting fervor, bringing the work to an eloquent conclusion" (Anderson).

As an observer of this elegant and precisely choreographed work, one can clearly see how the dancers — individually and collectively — were able to convey a sense of courage and devastation: the raw human emotions connected with this entirely unnecessary tragedy. In this manner, art conveyed the depth and severe trauma of the event by powerfully touching each human observer who sees the piece and bears witness to it firsthand.

Pat Catterson's Tiananmen and Bearing Witness

This point illuminates yet another aspect of art that standard verbal communication is simply unable to touch. A work of art gives each spectator the opportunity to bear witness to the piece. In the case of Catterson's "Tiananmen," the viewer is able to bear witness to the dance — a representation of the actual Tiananmen Square massacre — at a time when so many viewers were simply unable to witness the actual events as they occurred. In this sense, art opens the door to making something a shared experience.

By sharing the experience, the spectator is able to deepen his or her understanding of the event and even share the weight and burden of what occurred — essentially sharing the grief. This is all the result of art's ability to transcend the ordinary power of words and to truly touch an individual's senses of feeling and understanding.

Another example that comes to mind is one of the deepest tragedies to have occurred on U.S. soil in recent decades: the events of September 11, 2001. New York was hit tremendously hard, and aside from the sheer destruction, the economic crisis that ensued, and the devastating loss of lives, the city had to cope with the fact that its beloved skyline was forever changed. One must consider the words President Bush delivered on the evening of the attacks:

Conclusion: Art's Power to Transcend Verbal Communication

Hickman, R. (2004). Art education 11–18: Meaning, purpose and direction. New York: Continuum Press.