Day 32 of year 3
The boat and tree make another appearance! I haven't figured this one out yet which usually means it holds an important message. It also means this symbol will be showing up again and again until I unlock its meaning. I'm looking forward to that. Sometimes it takes years for me to be able to listen deeply enough to get it. I've been making fish for 20 years or more and I finally understood them just last year. So one foot in front of the other and back to work! xo
Day 222 of Year 2 (Actually Day 227)
Still playing with gluing cut paper down before printing. I used a thicker paper than last night to form the ladder. It's an interesting effect, but I'm not a huge fan of this one. That's ok though, there's a learning curve which I adore. When it comes down to it, I love learning something new with all the ups and downs so much. The place where there is discomfort or perceived failure is the place to chase. There's something there but you can't see it yet. So fun, so invigorating.
Mysteries, Yes
By Mary Oliver
Truly, we live with mysteries too marvelous
to be understood.
How grass can be nourishing in the
mouths of the lambs.
How rivers and stones are forever
in allegiance with gravity
while we ourselves dream of rising.
How two hands touch and the bonds
will never be broken.
How people come, from delight or the
scars of damage,
to the comfort of a poem.
Let me keep my distance, always, from those
who think they have the answers.
Let me keep company always with those who say
“Look!” and laugh in astonishment,
and bow their heads.
From Devotions : The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver
Day 212 of Year 2 (Actually Day 217)
Day 189 of Year 2 (Actually Day 194)
Allow
By Danna Faulds
There is no controlling life.
Try corralling a lightning bolt,
containing a tornado. Dam a
stream and it will create a new
channel. Resist, and the tide
will sweep you off your feet.
Allow, and grace will carry
you to higher ground. The only
safety lies in letting it all in –
the wild and the weak; fear,
fantasies, failures and success.
When loss rips off the doors of
the heart, or sadness veils your
vision with despair, practice
becomes simply bearing the truth.
In the choice to let go of your
known way of being, the whole
world is revealed to your new eyes.
From Prayers to the Infinite https://amzn.to/2RLldih
Day 143 of Year 2 (Actually Day 144)
I guess sleep is on my mind. It's been a very busy couple of days so I will listen to the directions in this print and it's off to bed for me. You will probably see this in the morning so I wish you a wonderful day. xo
Day 27 of Year 2
This one is subtle, look for the head at the bottom. It’s hard to get the detail in the photo. ...that passeth all understanding
By Denise Levertov
An awe so quiet
I don’t know when it began.
A gratitude
had begun
to sing in me.
Was there
some moment
dividing
song from no song?
When does dewfall begin?
When does night
fold its arms over our hearts
to cherish them?
When is daybreak?
Today I will. . .
By Stacy Stall Wills
today i will give my desire for
permanence the day off
and sit in a chapel
made of twigs and spit
today i will give my desire for
certainty the day off
and dwell in the place
of not-knowing
today i will give my desire for
security the day off,
open the windows and
let in the breath of fresh air.
Find more of Wills poem at http://www.amagicmomandhermandalas.blogspot.com/
Day 10 of Year 2
lift the veil
by Kabir, trans. Sushil Rao
lift the veil
that obscures
the heart
and there
you will find
what you are
looking for
Day 3 of Year 2
I definitely felt more in the flow today and working larger, on a full sheet of paper 22x30", is fun. I'm feeling landscapes are still in my future, but returning to self-portrait is always helpful in recentering. So much of art is staying through discomfort: the discomfort of pieces not "turning out", the fights and arguments with misbehaving materials, the emotions that come up in the silence of working. Staying through allows all of this to dissipate and something new to emerge. After a few days of struggle, I'm feeling excited again to see what comes.
Learn the backward step
that turns your light inward
to illuminate your self.
Body and mind of themselves
will drop away,
and your original face will be manifest.
by Dogen
xoxo
Holy cow! Where is this work coming from? I am amazed at this sudden departure into landscape. I can't judge this work at all. Part of this project is to post the good, the bad, and the ugly so my assessment doesn't really matter. Not everyday in the studio is a good day in terms of output. However, everyday in the studio is a good day when an artist shows up to work, a good result is icing on the cake. So I'm not judging, but I still feel way out of my comfort zone. Anxious, jittery but exhilarated. Interestingly, the personal meaning of these landscapes is so much clearer to me than the figurative work. I am chasing the feelings in these newer pieces. I take heart because this energy is pouring through me onto the page and it cannot help but effect me for the better. Each time I am able to grow, that positively effects the people around me. That's what it's all about, how can we soften to love the people around us more deeply.
Whatever this is
By Dorothy Walters
What is it,
this channeling god,
these words pouring through
like love strokes of light,
these syllables taking over
becoming flesh, my flowing veins,
I cannot remember
when it was not this way,
when my blood did not ache
for whatever this is.
The luxury and problem of my old ink is it never dried. I loved coming to work on a dirty plate with ghost images smeared into it. It was a beautiful source of inspiration. The new ink must be cleaned up everyday, something that goes completely against my nature! 🙂 Greeting an empty plate is more work and requires more contemplation. It's okay though, I stand before the plate and try to mirror its emptiness. This is good practice for other moments in life.
We are the mirror as well as the face in it
by Rumi, Trans Coleman Barks & John Moyne
We are the mirror as well as the face in it.
We are tasting the taste this minute
of eternity. We are pain
and what cures pain, both. We are
the sweet, cold water and the jar that pours.
I've talked before about my relationship as an artist to The Artist, the source of all creativity. I am the glove for The Artist's hand. That doesn't mean I have no impact, a glove changes the way a hand moves and experiences the world. There is a fundamental value to creating and living in partnership with the fecund stream of creativity that undergirds all of life. It is sustaining, healing, and allows growth and transformation. I felt my heart open from making this piece. How could I go on without this dear conversation?
No One Here but Him*
by Rumi, Trans. by Andrew Harvey
Watching my hand; He is moving it.
Hearing my voice; He is speaking…
Walking from room to room —
No one here but Him. *If I could alter today's poem, I would exchange the word "him" for "them". I don’t think gender comes into this
Not feeling great tonight. Overdid it, but I still made a print! I dragged myself out of bed. Also posting before midnight. Success! Wishing you a great day/night. xo
Super busy today and was feeling a bit scattered when I got into my studio. Thank God for my studio!!! What do people without art practices do to come back to center? What do you do?