Avoidance is a powerful coping mechanism, when used judiciously

Have you ever had an art attack?

Not a heart attack, but an art attack?

This is a real thing. Stendhal syndrome is what sometimes happens when people are exposed to art of great beauty. Audiences experience psychosomatic responses such as rapid heartbeat, fainting, confusion and even hallucinations.

Kind of like those iconic black and white photos from the sixties. Beatles fans would watch their heroes arrive at the airport, and experience physical attacks. People would work themselves into a state so frenzied, that police would have to carry hysterical fan outs of the concert and into medical care.

Most of us have experienced some version of this. Maybe not fainting, but we’ve all witnessed a performance, art exhibit or movie that made us feel physically overwhelmed.

And objectively, it’s wonderful thing. It’s a unique feature of the human experience that everyone should experience at least once in their lives.

Now, this condition has been widely debated in the psychology and art worlds. Stendhal syndrome hasn’t been officially added to the latest version of the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders yet, and it’s hard to tell if it ever will.

But audiences around the world agree, the buzzing afterglow of amazing art is undeniable.

My question is, to what degree can these art attacks become weaponized?

Because let’s face it, a fundamental purpose of consuming art is to make us forget about our miseries. A central reason why we attend concerts and watch superhero movies and play video games and read throbbing member erotica novels, is to distract us from our suffering. To forget about the fact that we’re going to die.

And again, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Avoidance is a powerful coping mechanism, when used judiciously.

But moderation isn’t exactly the strong suit of our species.

Look, I’m as guilty as anyone of using mass culture to soothe and seduce and mesmerize myself into forgetfulness. During college, the amount of television I watched was appalling. We’re talking about dozens of hours a week, for years. Just thinking about it fills me with shame.

Is that what my parents paid twenty thousand a year for?

God damn it, I should have been out there on campus learning things and making friends and having adventures and getting into trouble.

But unfortunately, at that period in my life, I was lonely, confused and unfulfilled. Despite not being a drinker or a drug user, I fell into the habit of using television, among other things, as a substitute for meaning. Soothed by the warm hypnotic cultural trance, I developed a series of avoidant behaviors, rather than confronting my own issues.

Do you have a version of that? Have you ever weaponized great art to chase some high, some soothing sensation, that sheltered you from your real feelings?

It’s not the healthiest place to be. Because the relief obtained from avoidance is only temporary. And when that avoidance becomes the major action in our lives, we can’t move to where we want to go. It may soothe us, but it answers nothing.

Mellin, in her brilliant book on wiring ourselves for joy, explains that if you are not securely attached to yourself, you’ll have nowhere to go when the going gets rough, so you’ll naturally soothe and comfort in some other way. Without this secure attachment to self, then you’re vulnerable to using external solutions as false attachments.

The good news is, this process can become art of great beauty in its own right.

Reconnecting to self. Developing a robust inner life. Building a strong internal locus of control. Having a practice of facing everything with no distractions or avoidance mechanisms.

Shit, that’s what should be in a museum.

And so, by all means, let us consume great art as often as possible. It’s a necessary fuel for our lives like food, water and oxygen.

At the same time, let us also learn to see advanced avoidance techniques for what they really are. Let’s remember that all mass culture exists to create a hypnotizing trance that soothes us away from critical thinking.

And let’s admit that human beings have a litany of beautifully crafted dodges that we use to avoid our real feelings.

To quote the fab four’s song about strawberry fields, living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Do you need to forget life right now, or do you need to look in the mirror?