Welcome...

Come meander with me on the pathless path of the Heart
in these anecdotal,
sometimes inspiring, sometimes personal meanderings of the Heart's opening in the every-day-ness of life...

Monday, October 29, 2012

Shamanic Dream...


This painting was my “break through” piece during the recent art course that I took, and was a complete surprise.  I am not an “artist” by profession.  And this is my first ever attempt at painting.  It is not what I would consider my “style.”  It was an experiment as part of the course.  I just painted the images that emerged.  I wish I had taken pictures along the way, as it evolved from just markings on canvas to this.  The day that it became my break-through I laughed and cried at the same time, in a moment of letting go, as I danced around the canvas to music, painting hash marks, squiggles, zig-zags and circles…  Really, that’s how it started.  Sounds crazy I know, but it was very freeing.  I laughed and cried because something was *finally* happening – freely.  It was just a wild and crazy dance of paintbrush on canvas. J  As it turned out, those original markings created these images, except the big heart on the right.   And those images merged into this painting.  Sorry the photo is not the best. It’s a little distorted, and blurred at the bottom for some reason.

The original markings on the canvas were a repository for the paints I had been using on a previous canvas – not colors I would normally choose as the main colors – but there they were, forming hidden images. 

The center figure was the first image that emerged almost immediately.  I painted around it then sat with it for several days, wondering what to do with it – waiting for it to show me.  It didn’t want anything – at least for now. J


 As I looked deeper at the canvas each day, other images emerged around it: The Shaman’s profile on the top right; the all-seeing eye at the top; the bottom figures; and the cauldron and chalice up the left side.




I call it Shamanic Dream because it has the feel of a Shamanic journey/dream.  And one has to wonder, who is dreaming who?!  J

The other 4 canvases that I started during the course are at various stages of completion and all are very different.  Stay tuned! J

The art course I took was an online e-course called Bloom True
with artist Flora Bowley


14 comments:

  1. woohoooooo! i feel your joy.

    i love the whole idea of allowing images to emerge from the canvas/paper itself. i've tried that a few times but then images pop into my head, or more exactly, colour and form.
    but doing it this way is very intuitive and ego-freeing i think.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. :), woohooo! Mostly that it's finished! lol

      Yes, me too, about the images emerging. I was gobsmacked. :) I just kept looking deeper and deeper and images just popped out at me. The only image that wasn't there originally was the big heart, but the feathers were hash marks. :) And I added the bubbles up along the left side. I surely would not have been able to paint this from my head! :) It's magical!

      Delete
  2. Yes, yes, yes, fantastic.......

    You have been rewarded for trusting and going through the pain barrier ~ an intuitive masterpiece! x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Sue... definitely an exercise in trust. Like I mentioned, it's not really my "style" and probably won't paint anything like it again, but it took me to a place of curiosity to see what would emerge next. :)

      Delete
  3. this is just amazing. i am so excited to read you felt freed by doing this work. loosening up and flowing, so wonderful. and the painting, there is so much there to contemplate. bravo for exploring new realms of talent and being.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, isn't it amazing! I keep looking at it thinking - that came out of me somewhere. Probably my sub-conscious. I mean, who knows why we see the images that we see in something. Jung would have a field day with all those dream images :)

      Delete
  4. Love this, Christine. . . I have a feeling I'll be exploring that class one day, myself. Thanks for the inspiration.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Chris... :) The e-course is amazing. Presented very well.

      Delete
  5. your piece has a deeply haunting feeling as do many pieces that emerge in the way you describe. Good for you for sticking with it and allowing something to emerge!

    I went to an artists talk last night (Jason Pollen) very inspiring and in it said the difference between art and craft is that with craft you know where you are going (your making this specific quilt) but with art you never know where you will end up.

    Looking forward to seeing more or your work!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Carole! I appreciate your lovely comment, and support...

      I like what the artist said - and am finding that so true - "you never know where you will end up." !! In this case it especially seemed that way. I had no preconceived ideas of what it was to become. And even as "I" painted, it was as if it unfolded in its own way... Goosebumps :) And of course that's what a lot of my anxiety is about, which this work is allowing me to see more clearly - letting go of wanting to know where it's going - crossing that threshold and being comfortable with not knowing. I have to do that with each canvas. Seems like there are such wonderful metaphors for life in art. I'm surely experiencing a lot of them! :)

      Bows to you /\

      Delete
  6. This is so so amazing Christine. I had goosebumps as I read through your uncovering of the painting. Lovely colors too. I am so intrigued by this class too...maybe sometime in the future :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Aarathi! :) Yes, it is an amazing process, a new way of seeing, and a new approach to creativity, if I remember to approach the canvas with curiosity, which this course helps one to do. I know it is a little pricey, but you get so much for it - 6 daily email videos a week for 5 weeks, two of which are paint instruction videos and so much more. It's worth saving up for :) It's also very intense. So best to do when not on a full schedule already. :)

      Delete
  7. WOW... a wonderful breakthrough, Christine! Can just feel the joy of discovery here! Wonderful colors and symbolism. It definitely has the sensation of being in the midst of a Shamanic journey! This has a wild, playful feeling. It takes time for the paintings to emerge. To connect it to one's own personal symbolism and "story." When I was doing the course, some of the best fun was dancing around in front of my canvas, music playing... it was a great time. I'm glad you decided to stick with your canvases to see how they would unfold. And it is an honor to see how your process has been. Thank you for sharing. :o) ((HUGS))

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you Tracy! I appreciate your comment, having taken the course yourself :) Well the colors are a little "loud" but for some reason it works! :) And I didn't realize this "story" was even within me, as I would never have picked these symbols on my own - they were just seen, emerging a little at a time. May your heart fly like the Shaman! :)

    ReplyDelete

All comments are subject to moderation