Controversial Nobel Prize-winning French author Andre Gide said, “Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better.” Nowhere is such a creative partnership more evident than in the work of self-proclaimed “Abstract Spiritualist” Toni Hazel.
“It’s about bringing what’s inside you that’s God and manifesting it into the world,” said Hazel of both his personal and artistic philosophy. “I started to realize that it’s not some religion, it’s not even a philosophy, it’s just a way of being with art.”
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
The young painter’s journey to personal creative enlightenment was not, however, an easy one. Hazel grew up in what he described as a strict Judeo-Christian household, where a very specific spiritual and social lifestyle was enforced. Not only was there a certain way to pray and commune with his family’s higher power, but many pop culture norms, like "Harry Potter" and Saturday morning cartoons, were off limits.
Additionally, as a the son of a light-skinned European woman and a southern black man, as well as the fact that he’s gay, Hazel found little in his upbringing that he could really connect with.
“I had to present myself as a strong black man, and I wasn’t,” he related. “I was effeminate. I was interested in things that were girly. I was interested in things that some would say are not Afrocentric.”
“When I came out I felt like that I was nothing,” he continued. “Because all my life I’m taught there’s something wrong with me, there’s something wrong with me, I gotta fix it, there’s something wrong with me. If I don’t fix it then I’m a loser or I’m a failure. So having that very restrictive Judeo-Christian background of sin and that since you’re a sinner you’re basically dirt and you have to find a way to cleanse yourself.”
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Instead of tormenting himself by trying to conform to an ideology that considered him to be an outcast, however, Hazel turned to art.
“I wanted to be a cartoonist,” he explained. “It was a form of escapism, because I could make my characters, I could make worlds, I could make anything with cartooning.”
Throughout middle and high school Hazel worked to tell personal stories through his creations, but soon discovered that he needed more in order to make peace with himself. Having rejected the religion of his youth, he embarked upon a journey of spiritual discovery, a journey that would ultimately lead him to where he is today.
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
“I definitely hit a breaking point in 2015, when I would call it the darkest period of my art,” he recalled. “I went through a lot emotionally, and mentally, and even spiritually, to the point where I lost that spark in my art.”
“And that was the point where I was like, ‘Okay, nothing’s been working before, and I don’t understand myself. How on earth can I start doing this?’” Hazel remembered asking himself. “And from there I believe I started transitioning, even to now, going from someone who wanted to be a cartoonist all their life, to becoming a painter. Becoming someone that expressed their inner world not by a commercial means but as a spiritual catharsis.”
He explored a wide range of spiritual practices to find that connection, from Esotericism, Wicca, and Yoga, to Hare Krishna, Buddhism, and Catholicism. Ultimately he discovered that while each religion has their differences, at their core there was a mantra that each contained, a principle that the artist could relate to: “God is the god of truth,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter what scripture it is, it doesn’t matter what’s written and what’s not written, [God is] the only one that knows the truth,” Hazel explained. “And anything else that is beyond truth itself, that’s not [God].”
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
The artist’s most recent work shows a continued exploration of the connection between God or spirituality and art, with Hazel often incorporating images from numerous religious traditions to engage in discussions about big-picture topics. Blessedly, however, one need not have spent a lifetime studying holy books to grasp the themes presented.
“Universality and unity and diversity [are] my biggest goals when it comes to my art,” he said. “In fact, it’s why I study so much. It’s not only for my benefit, it’s for other people’s benefit too. Because I want to create art that anyone, no matter who their background is…can look at my work and see themselves in it.
“I believe wholeheartedly there is a common ground for everything and I think it’s time for people to start experimenting with that and challenging themselves to understand that.”
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Credit: Courtesy of the artist
Find Toni Hazel on Instagram @studiohazeleyes or on Facebook by searching Toni Hazel.
Art off the Air is a companion piece to the radio program “Art on the Air” hosted by Rob Hessler and Gretchen Hilmers. The column can also be found at savannahnow.com/entertainment.
The show airs Wednesdays from 3-4pm on WRUU 107.5 FM Savannah and at WRUU.org.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Toni Hazel is manifesting God through his art and it allowed him to find truth
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