A crowd counting down seconds when the artists of Art Battle are standing in front of their easels to produce pictures in 20 min in front of a large audience. Lights are on the stage, music is pumping with the heartbeat, adrenalin rush is in the air and pallets with yummy colourful acrylics are next to the canvases ready to be transferred by artists’ imagination. 

Here I am, a professional with an established career, competing with young artists at the beginning of their journeys. My family, friends and co-workers came to support me. They have never heard about Art Battle before, neither had I. They have never imagined that I would jump into something like this, neither had I.

But wait, is it really so off my character? Have I battled before? Have I challenged myself in unusual circumstances?  Images like taking diving lessons, getting an endless number of exams for different reasons, immigration struggles, losses of loved ones, etc. are flashing through my mind. I definitely have challenged myself many times before.

With my family closely watching me for any signs of anxiety, I ask myself “Do they worry about my stress?” Sure, participating in Art Battle is stressful as it has a deadline of 20 min to paint with judging of the audience at the end – two factors that are usually stressful. Is it good to create additional stress for yourself?

According to some statistics the main causes of stress are related to:

1. Money  
2. Health
3. Relationships

But ask yourself - who has not had issues with the above? Sure, events that are prolonged and traumatic (e.g., loss of income for a long time, serious illness, breaking a relationship) can lead to mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety. So, can we prepare our bodies and minds for big stresses?

I do believe that the answer is YES by practicing going through manageable stresses. Think about it. Would you go to a sport competition without the sweats of endless workouts in the gym? Can you even pass a level of a videogame without spending hours practicing it? Living life that does not burn us by stresses requires practice too. Challenging your body and mind in not threatening environments, like Art Battle, was one of my approaches to train my body for what may still come in life.

Besides training myself for stress by holding my emotions without breaking down in a fun and supportive environment, there was another reason to participate in this event - a great opportunity to communicate visually with a large audience. A lifelong nature lover, I am very concerned about changes in our environment. Recent fires in Amazon rain forests, devastations done by hurricanes, melted ice in the Arctic – all these events worry me and should worry everybody. That is when an idea of bringing attention through painting to the fact that while Canada may be far from Brazil and Caribbean islands, we are all connected on our planet became obvious to me. Worrying about things without taking actions is often the biggest poison to our minds and bodies. So acting by painting a picture that brings awareness to climate changes to my fellow Torontonians was a way to cope with nonproductive worry by productive action.

What is your way to deal with stresses?

Dr. Irina Valentin, Ph.D., established neuropsychologist and a beginner artist