ready and waiting, Monotype of the Day #781

Day 49 of year 3

This We Have Now
by Rumi, Trans.. Coleman Barks

This we have now
is not imagination.

This is not
grief or joy.

Not a judging state,
or an elation,
or sadness.

Those come
and go.

This is the presence
that doesn't.

It's dawn, Husam,
here in the splendor of coral,
inside the Friend, the simple truth
of what Hallaj said.

What else could human beings want?

When grapes turn to wine
they're wanting
this.

When the nightsky pours by,
it's really a crowd of beggars,
and they all want some of this!

This
that we are now
created the body, cell by cell,
like bees building a honeycomb.

The human body and the universe
grew from this, not this
from the universe and the human body.

From The Essential Rumi https://amzn.to/2QIepla 

tears, Monotype of the Day #780

Day 48 of year 3

I am still struggling to like these recent works but perhaps they are too close to me and I will like them when I look back. Not that it matters really, one foot in front of the other moves me forward on this mysterious journey. I am currently editing photos for my book and doing a Lightroom intensive (photo editing program). I'm finding some difficulty switching my brain back to art after working. Life demands compromises, but creative flow needs constant tending and protection. This large hand in tonight's print has come up a few times recently. I think it is the fiery hand of The Artist (as I have often described it in my private writings) revealed to the artist. So much of my work is a depiction of this Artist/artist relationship, my search to find intimacy, a desire for understanding and, at the same time, a surrender to unknowing.

feeling small I & II, Monotypes of the Day #778

Day 46 of year 3

Struggled a lot tonight with these prints. But sometimes it's like that. I'm posting them anyway. Make work not judgements! xo

Chair II, Monotype of the Day #776

Day 44 of year 3

I can't seem to edit the photo to get the proper colors. Then again, even if I had the exact color, monitor calibration varies from computer to computer. Digital showings require quite a bit of flexibility. It's good training. An artist's job is to make work and then let it go. The world will do with it as it will just as it does with everything else. The value of the work to an artist is not determined solely by its reception, it's determined by how the process of making the work effects and changes the artist.

rise, Monotype of the Day #774

774-rise.jpg

Day 42 of year 3

Last night I was unsatisfied by the process of making my print. Usually that happens when I'm in my head, when my mind and body are so disconnected that I can't access inner messages. I receive inner guidance as a flash, a combination of a brief image and a physical feeling that is like a drop of ink water, it expands as I physically move and work. Allowing it to naturally and fully unfold requires complete awareness of the body to sense the gentle nudges of guidance. So today I meditated for the first time in ages to get reconnected and almost immediately new images started dropping in. What a relief! Meditation is so essential to my art practice, it's amazing how often I forget that though! This print reminds me of the power available in the present moment.. Today's poem (below the title) is a haiku by the wonderful writer Cheryl Welch from her excellent new book Feather. You can order it here: https://www.welchdesignpublishing.com/

anything at all
can happen at anytime,
live without regret

By Cheryl Welch

From Feather https://www.welchdesignpublishing.com/

opening, Monotype of the Day, Day 773

opening.jpg

Day 41 of year 3

I've been going through all the photos of my older prints for days organizing for my book and the imagery is rubbing off. I feel like I'm covering old ground and it's not so interesting. This is what is coming out however and I will honor it and not resist and I do like this print. But I need to make it more exciting and experimenting with different techniques is just the thing. It brings back a sense of adventure, a critical component of my practice. If I knew what was going to happen each day in my studio, I wouldn't be able to continue. The immediacy of this medium allows the inner world to spill out like wine, it enables the mystery to bleed though. I cherish the surprise, the challenge, the intimacy of these messages to me the artist from The Artist, creative source. Everyday there are new things to learn and new ways to grow. I am grateful.

glow, Monotype of the Day #771

Day 39 of year 3

In going through the images for my book, I noticed I double counted a couple days. This means I've actually done more days than I thought. The numbering for project days in now correct and I know this doesn't matter to anyone but me! :) Strange what we hold onto as important. There are so many distractions everyday, many of our own making, to keep an artist from their studio and their most important and sacred work. Resistance is part of the process though. It's important to accept it and let it go. There's no use being mad at yourself for wasted time. The studio is filled with intimate sacred moments and there is only so much of that our limited selves can handle without a break. So if you've been resisting, take a breath, let your self judgement go and when you can, however long that maybe, head back in.