Art & Yoga

Art is a pure and free expression of humanity when it is created with the positive intentions of sharing emotions or the creative reflection of the society in which an artist encounters themselves.

In the 8 limbs of Patanjali it is clear that material possessions are not to be given priority over the human self. Yet art by its nature and creation exists not for material benefit but emotional and intellectual sharing of interpretations of who we are in this present moment.

Art for me has always been a meditative tool which took for hours through galleries and museums where I immersed myself in images, forms, screens & lights. Each piece of art I tried to understand the message and feelings that were recorded in time to be seen and felt by others. Everyone has their family experiences and positive or negative moments. I truly focus on the beautiful gift my parents have given me of how to enjoy art and learn from it as one might by reading a book.

Therefore having chosen my life path to share yoga as an instructor I now have the opportunity to also share the meditative and positive effect of enjoying works of art. Art can be expressed in many ways such as theatre, film, ceramics, live performances or paintings for example. I believe yogis make art via sharing self awareness and calm with their students.

My father Allyn Ogden Harris was a very prolific artist but this in itself is now a small issue....how to share 1000's of paintings, prints and drawings with the world? Upon reflection and meditation I believe a viable idea is to donate 2 or 3 pieces of art to every Yoga Studio across the United States. Additionally I will establish a non-profit organization for the sole purpose of opening an Ashram where people can share yoga freely and have the added element of art within the surroundings of the Yoga Hall

Artist Biography: Allyn Ogden Harris, Baltimore, MD

Allyn's artist profile

A lifelong resident of Baltimore, Allyn Harris has, over the years, devoted himself to creating a vast body of artwork and to engaging in an extensive and personally gratifying college-level teaching career, providing instruction in a multitude of subjects ranging from painting and printmaking to fashion design and visual merchandising.

Allyn was fortunate to have acquired his own education at the Maryland Institute College Of art, Johns Hopkins University, and Syracuse University. Some Notable highlights of his diverse career include studies with world-renowned artist Josef Albers at Syracuse University, numerous one-man exhibitions including a major show at The Baltimore Museum Of Art, and a great variety of award-winning works displayed in group shows in galleries and museums in Baltimore, Washington, Philadelphia and Seattle.

Finally, there was extensive travel while on a yearlong sabbatical. The Itinerary covered some fifty cities in ten countries, ranging from Oaxaca, Mexico, to Athens, Greece, and Istanbul, Turkey. Apart from the exposure to diverse cultures and art forms, there was great incentive to create drawings and paintings along the way.

Life & Art sharing quote by Allyn Ogden Harris

"In confrontations with one's own work, all considerations of professional background must count as nothing. Only the larger life patterns survive or, at best, are transformed in the body and spirit of the various pieces. Faced with a decision in a painting, the impetus towards a solution springs less from a philosophical or technical theorem learned in school than from these patterns.

To attempt creation is to submit to lifelong collaboration with one's subjects, with society, with the work itself, with the great chain of archetypes; ultimately, above all, with oneself."