"Peace" - A poem by Sara Teasdale

Peace (Stacy Wills, 2014)

watercolors on paper + alcohol inks + sacred altering

Peace

Peace flows into me

As the tide to the pool by the shore;

It is mine forevermore,

It ebbs not back like the sea.

I am the pool of blue

That worships the vivid sky;

My hopes were heaven-high,

They are fulfilled in you.

I am the pool of gold

When sunset burns and dies,

You are my deepening skies,

Give me your stars to hold.

-Sara Teasdale (1884-1933)

Art Exhibit in Progress

It has been awhile since I've done an exhibit of my artwork, so I was pleased at how this display came together.  There's a little bit of everything...mandalas, alcohol inks, Citra Solv art, mixed media and tiles.   I also have two of my scrapbooks on hand that people can look through.  One chronicles the progression of my artwork, including the first mandala I ever made back in December 2005.  The other has examples of mandalas from nature and everyday objects,  as well as,  the "sacred circles"  from various cultures and spiritual traditions.   If you're in the Canton, MS area between now and October 8th, I do hope you'll stop by and take a peek.    The exhibit is taking place at the Canton Welcome Center, which is located in the old Trolio Hotel, 141 N. Union Street.  The  Welcome Center is open from 10 - 5 Monday through Friday and from 10 - 2 on Saturdays.

Just for the Record

Recently, I began painting mandalas on old LP's again.  A few years ago I did several, sold some, donated some, and put the last one I had left in an exhibit at the  Tunica Riverpark & Museum.   (The exhibit runs through August.)

It was a discussion about the benefits of recycling that had me dusting off the old record albums and breaking out the acrylics, crystals and dimensional paint...I even threw in a lid from an empty jar to use as the center.

I had forgotten just how much fun it is to do these.  This is  the first mandala in a series I'm calling:  Just for the Record.  

Circles: A Poem by Hafiz

(best viewed in full screen)

Circles

The moon is most happy when it is full,

the sun always looks like a perfectly minted gold coin

polished and placed in flight by God's playful kiss.

And so many varieties of fruit hang plump and round.

I see the beautiful curve of a pregnant belly

shaped by a soul within,

and the earth itself.

I have gotten the hint:

There is something about circles the Beloved likes.

Within the circle of a Perfect One

there is an infinite community of light.

-Hafiz (1325-1389)

This is the fourth installment in my Mandala Meditation series, and was inspired by the words from one of my favorite poets, Hafiz.  I enjoy creating and sharing these videos in the hope that they might provide an oasis of beauty and rest in the midst of your busy days. 

The mandalas for this video were created using some of my existing artwork (alcohol inks) as source images. 

crossing the threshold

 i am currently involved in an online class via abbey of the arts called  women on the threshold.  as with any course i've ever been a part of at the abbey, the journey through the material takes me places i never dreamed i could go.

this past week, we were invited to do "gush art" (the focus is on process, not product) while listening to a piece of music of our choosing.   this first image (layers) is what came through.  i was very aware of that big red gash...which for me symbolized a very deep wound - the  deepest kind of wound that affects body, mind and spirit.

(layers)

in my artwork in general these days, i find i do not want to be limited to one medium...one mode of creating, so i took layers into some image editing software and did some "digital gush art" using it as the source image.  thus this...

   

(phoenix rising)

became this...phoenix rising.  when taken into another realm, the deep wound transforms into something else entirely...a healing, of sorts, occurs.

in art, as in life, when the invitation to step across a threshold comes, transformation happens...limitations fall away as you taste freedom, and suddenly you realize you can never go back, indeed, never want to go back to the way things were before.

the song i listened to (i will be free by cindy morgan) while creating these pieces is one i've known and loved for many years.  it has always held special meaning for me...even more so now.  it was not until today, however, that i saw the video for it.  talk about crossing a threshold!  

moving water - a poem from rumi

meandering by stacy wills

(9" x 12" mixed media on watercolor paper)

moving water

when you do things from your soul,
you feel a river moving in you, a joy.

when actions come from another section, 
the feeling disappears.

don't let others lead you.  they may be blind or,
worse, vultures.

reach for the rope of god.  and what is that?
putting aside self-will.

because of willfulness people sit in jail, 
the trapped bird's wings are tied,
fish sizzle in the skillet.

...you've seen a magistrate inflict visible punishment.
now see the invisible.

if you could leave your selfishness, you would see
how you've been torturing your soul.

we are born and live inside black water
in a well.

how could we know what an open field of sunlight is?
Don't insist on going where you think you want to go.

ask the way to the spring.
your living pieces will form a harmony.

there is a moving palace that floats in the air
with balconies and clear water flowing through,

infinity everywhere, yet contained
under a single tent.

- rumi (1207 - 1273)
translated by coleman barks

art is contemplation

art is contemplation.  it is the pleasure of the mind

which searches into nature and which there

divines the spirit of which nature herself is animated.

-auguste rodin (1840-1917)

awaiting the birth-hour

everything is gestation and then bringing forth.  to let each impression and each germ of a feeling come to completion quite in itself, in the dark, in the inexpressible, the unconscious, beyond the reach of one's own understanding, and await with deep humility and patience the birth-hour of a new clarity:  that alone is living the artist's life - in understanding as in work.

-rainer maria rilke (1875-1926)

words are in short supply

i give up (9" x 12" mixed media)

i'm still working my way through life book 2012, and also recently began an online lenten pilgrimage via abbey of the arts. the coupling of those two things, along with some other projects i'm involved in, has resulted in some interesting (to me, anyway!) artwork. i wish i had words to express the riptide of emotion these classes are stirring up in me, but words are in short supply these days. in the meantime, i'll just let the art do the talking.

the ecstasy (12" x 16" mixed media)

mystery

Mystery is at the heart of creativity. That, and surprise.

-Julia Cameron (b. 1948)

the art of play

the weather has been glorious this week in our neck of the woods with clear skies and temps in the 70's. yesterday's weather was perfect for getting outside and making some new citra solv pages. don't they look lovely drying in the sun? it's always great fun to see how they turn out...all the various colors and patterns that emerge.

i took several photos of my new bumper crop, downloaded them into my computer and began playing around with them in photoshop elements. i can explain my process to that point, and then...i just play with various effects and settings. for me, making art is often a series of happy accidents...it's a game of "what if...?" it's always a surprise to see what happens next...to watch how this (see above) becomes....this (see below).

spring thaw

to learn more about how to work with citra solv, visit their website and click on the "artist page" link for more information, how-to's and tutorials.

breathing room

what art offers

is space -

a certain

breathing room

for the spirit

-john updike (1932-2009)