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Blog
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Mirroring ritual in art
While channeling the artwork for the colour therapy deck I stumbled upon new ways to communicate themes.
This sweet rosy pink card imbues the viewer with loving energy. This loving energy is a message, a reminder, to love yourself in all ways. Eat well, live well, think well, be your own beacon of vitality. My own journey with self love has been complex, and as I mature I see how fragile our hearts can be.
The ritual attached to this card is two fold, first you anoint yourself with oil (preferable the Aurora Alchemy oil the card was made for) and you draw the infinity symbol on your chest. This use of symbolic ritual and somatic practices are themes I wanted to reference in my artwork for the pink colour ray. So I did something I rarely do in my practice…I just went literal!
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Process over product
If you’ve taken art you will have heard this phrase. It’s important, and I urge you to consider what is most important: the final destination or the adventures you had while getting there. This is so true in art making, and for me the art of SEEING what is unfolding is a theraputive/informative/transformative/spiritual/empowering ritual.
This picture captures a moment in time, the final product didn’t turn out at all like this. Partly because I’m using such amazing pigments often the water reacts with them while they’re wet and creates galaxies of alchemical wonder for the viewer…all to settle and transform to something else when dry.
I am intensional about being present and treating these moments with reverence. I’ll often take photos to commemorate a moment. Recently I’ve taken to sending in process shots to my best friend DK, or sharing a painting session with the treasure that is Connie. Sharing this world is also a process…
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My Dragon
We all have this innate ability to connect to animal totems. Some of the wisdom for me has been taught by Native American vision quests, Japanese guided meditations, or the various oracle cards I’ve picked up along the way (which is an amalgam of many voices). Most importantly, I grew up using my boundless imagination and have kept my heart open.
Imagine my wonder when a new teacher came into my life. Her name is Yvette Sitten. She mixes two of my favourite things…beautiful smells and connecting to guides, spirits, ancestors, oh the modality is hard to condense if a few lines.
Anyway Yvette has many products that connect the user to dragon energy. In a guided meditation she asked us to tune into a place, a sacred place of our very own, and to show ourselves our very own dragon guide. My dragon came right away into my vision. The dragon has a mossy ancient peace to it. And it is sleeping. She asked us to draw our dragons and meet back up later to share. Here mine is.
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rectangle in a square world
My title is just a woe-is-me moment over the fact that the post preview image is in a square format! How I wish I were a digital wizard.
This bodies drawing was one of the first pieces of art I made when I decided to settle in New Zealand. I had spent the last 4 months traveling through Australia and had landed in Aotearoa with a feeling of pulsating sureness…I was home. But I had a lot of shedding of old selves to do. This was a premonition of all the transformation to come.
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luna moths and kingsolver
One of my favourite authors of all time is Barbara Kingsolver. And of her many amazing works is a book called Prodigal Summer. One of the main characters is an entomologist who has prophetic visions involving the Luna Moth. Kingsolver’s imagery and poetic fiction style weaves through my own love of nature and all its creatures. I truly love making my own pieces that contribute to the act of communion with the natural world.
I chose a luna moth not only because of the book but also because I’ve used her before, in a tattoo design for a dear sweet childhood friend of my sister’s. Well she’s my whole family’s friend. I love how animals can weave their way through people’s lives and enrich our stories.
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For Miranda
I have recently befriended an amazing woman named Miranda (aka Panda). She is probably at this moment HEAVILY pregnant with twins. Having only known her for a brief while but still finding such a DEEP love for her, I was inspired to share a bit of my style/ love language by making her some art. I knew I wanted it to be in the vein of the watercolour circles I’m such a fan of right now but I wanted to intuit what animal to use in the gift.
Cut to her baby shower. I found myself in the midst of a sea of people I didn’t know, watching her friends shower her with their love and joy. It was lovely, and I saw how calm and radiant Panda was…and then oh!! I met her partner Andre. He was this ray of sunshine too! What bliss…to know a few souls were coming into this world being held by two such sweet warm parents. His playful energy caught my imagination, and I realised Andre has sealed the deal. I was drawing foxes on the painting I’d started. So here’s the final piece, before I frame it and give it away. For my sweet friends.
May you have a healthy and beautiful birth and childhood, two little ones. However you two present, I know you will raised in a house full of laughter and play. Can’t wait to meet you.
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My spirit animal
One creature that has an extraordinary power to move me is the humpback whale. I’m drawn to them, and as a child would listen to tapes of their songs as pastime. They’re in my dreams, they’re powerful totems and symbols of love, song, family, and mystery. Painting and drawing them always fills me with a sense of success and peace.
When I started the water colour circle series I figured a humpback would feature. I usually gift my art but I think I’ll keep this one for myself, to remind me of who I am.
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Aqua Therapy
Colour therapy can be experienced just by gazing softly at a colour for a long time, or wearing a colour because it makes you feel empowered. Reach out if you’d like to know more. This card is from a colour ray therapy card deck being offered by Yvette Sitten in conjunction with her amazing healing oils.
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Wait another tiny village?
Yes, this is another tiny village. If you use the search function on my site and type tiny realism you can see all of them.