SOVER SCENE: The greatest of virtues: Gratitude is healthy — for artists and art lovers alike

Vincent Van Gogh, whose churning fields of color and contemplative self-portraits seem to surge with generosity of creative spirit, said, “I have walked this earth for 30 years and, out of gratitude, want to leave some souvenir.”

For most artists, a muse usually comes in the form of a person, place or specific experience rather than an altruistic impulse or sense of indebtedness and, indeed, by its very definition, art is often a tacit expression of the id, the ego or, in some cases, the unapologetic, over-inflated bravado of its creator.

Though any form of artistic output requires a modicum of inward reflection, there is a great deal of work being made in every medium that goes far deeper than navel-gazing inanity or self-aggrandizing indulgence.

Van Gogh didn’t have to paint those sunflowers, that starry night or his old, tatty shoes and yet his humble sense of appreciation — just for being here, on this earth — moved him to push paint around on a canvas and make pictures that have been inspiring generations of painters, writers, actors and musicians ever since.

Likewise, though German artist Käthe Kollwitz was forced by the Nazis from her post at Berlin’s Akademie der Künste and feared for her safety while still making poignant charcoal portraits of wartime suffering in a tiny studio, she was grateful amid her fear and turmoil.

“There are moments on most days when I feel a deep and sincere gratitude,” she said “when I sit at the open window and there is a blue sky or moving clouds.”

According to Robert A. Emmons, professor of psychology at the University of California at Davis, the benefits of gratitude go far beyond creative inspiration. As editor-in-chief of the “Journal of Positive Psychology,” instructor of courses with intriguing titles including the Psychology of Religion and Personality Theory, and author of numerous professional publications, studies and books on the topic, such as “Words of Gratitude For Mind, Body and Soul” (Templeton Foundation Press), Emmons has examined the mechanisms and benefits of gratitude from varying angles.

When I asked him recently if there is a measurable difference between simply feeling gratitude and actually expressing it, he answered in the extreme affirmative and had the stats to back it up.

“Yes, there are added benefits,” he said. “Psychological research has shown that translating thoughts into concrete language, whether oral or written, has advantages over just thinking the thoughts. A very fascinating study in 2005 examined what happened to people when they wrote a ‘gratitude letter’ to someone very important in their life whom they’d never properly thanked and then delivered the letter to the person and read it to them.

“At the immediate post-test, after one week of doing the assigned exercise, participants in the gratitude visit condition were happier and less depressed,” Emmons said. “This boost in happiness and decrease in depressive symptoms were maintained at follow-up assessments one week and one month, and three months later.”

Writer Gladys Bronwyn Stern summed it up decades ago when she said “Silent gratitude isn’t much use to anyone,” but it’s good to know that it’s been scientifically proven.

Emmons’ latest book, “Thanks!: How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier,” published this year by Houghton-Mifflin, examines ways that having an attitude of gratitude can help us to cultivate more meaningful interpersonal relationships. With comprehensive research, case studies and a motivating list of ways we can develop a stronger sense of gratitude, Emmons shows that the act of giving thanks is tantamount to a multivitamin for the psyche and should be a part of our daily routine.

So, in the spirit of Van Gogh, Kollwitz and Emmons, I’m compelled to cite just a few of the many reasons I’m replete with gratitude on this Thanksgiving Day.

Unbeknownst to many of us, there are several arts organizations in Southern Vermont that, in addition to offering hefty rosters of traditional classes to the public, are also facilitating unusually innovative arts programs for specific segments of the population who are largely disenfranchised because of medical or economic reasons.

In 2004, the Vermont Arts Exchange, based in Bennington, founded The Healing Arts Initiative: New Pathways to Health, which brings customized outreach classes to health facilities in collaboration with administrators, faculty and students throughout New England. By integrating the visual arts, movement, music, writing and technology courses into staff training and patient care, these programs empower patients to find their own lasting, inner muse, thereby infusing rehab, recovery and pain management with the singularly healing power of art.

Then there’s the Brattleboro Dance School, offering Art For All/Creative Dance for adults with cognitive and developmental disabilities, utilizing nonverbal communication and social skills, and creatively solving movement challenges while also incorporating instruments into the experience.

Kids benefit from community courses as well, when each year the Great River Arts Institute in Bellows Falls offers their low-cost Open Art after-school programs to more than 200 third-, fourth- and fifth-graders, promoting literacy via multimedia art projects. Many classes result in handmade books constructed of various elements including original photographs taken by the students in their own neighborhoods, beautiful journals from nature walks or illustrated fantasy stories.

That’s just a small sampling of the diligent, visionary work Southern Vermont arts organizations are doing to ensure that challenged or marginalized residents find creative paths toward well-being, education and inclusion in our communities.

Art is therapeutic in every way and I am very grateful for the generous people who make it more hands-on and accessible to all, along with the thousands of other folks who keep this area steeped in cultural pursuits by running galleries, museums, libraries, theaters, independent book stores, CD shops, art supplies and music stores.

Today, as you sit before a table laden with tryptophanic poultry and brimming bowls of comfort food, remember the words of Roman philosopher Cicero: “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.”

Then there are the post-repast sentiments of former British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who once said, “I feel a very unusual sensation; if it is not indigestion, I think it must be gratitude.”

Perhaps most fitting is the acceptance speech that movie director Steven Soderbergh made at the 2001 Academy Awards, in which he asserted, “I want to thank anyone who spends part of their day creating. I don’t care if it’s a book, a film, a painting, a dance, a piece of theater, a piece of music … anybody who spends part of their day sharing their experience with us. This world would be unlivable without art.”

Hear, hear and bon appétit!