"Golden Glow on the River Flow"
3"x3.5"
The art in the first post of this blog was created about four years ago. This "Golden Glow" is what I am creating these days. In between then and now some very tough life events occurred and a lot of letting go (dying) had to happen.
After June's reunion of childhood friends I received the gift of photographs of the people present at the get-together. The photographer, Jim, whom I had never met before, did an excellent job of capturing the spirit of the event, while not glossing over the soul. We are all human beings and living for 50 years makes a few dents in our bodies. Two years ago I wouldn't have gone to that reunion, couldn't have gone, physically or emotionally. But this year I did and the photos of me showed that while I wasn't the brilliant (ha!) person I was 4 years ago, I wasn't decrepit either and indeed was a laughing and responsive person once again. Thank God For That!
I have attempted to keep subjective pathos out of my blog, and out of my art, but an honest artist can't help sneaking a bit of this type of painful emotion in every now and then. Since I've always explored themes around the darker sides of human sensations (I'm forever trying to shine light on this area) I don't think my personal experience was too apparent to the outside. It did show up in my not blogging much during a few months in 2011when I stopped creating colored work for a while. Some artists get more productive when horrendous emotions take over. I stop creativity because I don't feel objective enough.
When I'm not creating I spend my hours, days, months, (hell, sometimes years,) reading books of all sorts that will teach me something I can bring back into my art when I resume creating again. These last two years or so I've enjoyed a lot of laughing and chuckling with a few talented humor writers. I've also stared out my window during the year when I was practically bed-ridden and found figures of nude women in the winter sycamore branches overhead to keep me company. I've fallen in love with all of the old souls who walk by my window day after day, bent-over in semi-grimaces of determination, still trucking on.
We may be on separate boats but we are all on the same river. We all see the same rock formations. We all have the choice: monster or muse? As a thinker and a creator of images I choose to shine the light on those monsters and add color... and because monsters are usually just unknown or unloved shapes in the dark, the light transforms them into interesting surprises. (Look again at "Golden Glow" above. What does the guy see in that Bryce-like rock formation. It sure made me laugh when I found it!)
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