Eileen Agar...

Eileen Agar (1899-1991)was a British painter and photographer associated with the surrealist movement. Surrealism was a cultural movement that began in the 1920's. It dealt with the subconscious and many of the artists involved with the movement like Agar, experimented with automatic techniques -automatism - using stream of consciousness tapping into the spontaneity of creativity while embracing new materials. Agar, as well being an accomplished painter, also used fabric with plaster and photographs with other mixed media to create collages. What I like about her work, having now just discovered her, are the natural themes she develops and how they relate to her as a woman.She has returned in 'earth' as a natural form of order. Her works are political as well as spiritual regarding her femininity and role as a woman. She too has reduced form to simple shapes and builds on the picture with layering it to create depth and dimension. She believed that women were the true surrealist and wrote:' the importance of the unconscious in all forms of Literature and Art establishes the dominance of the Feminine type of imagination over the classical and more masculine order.' In being introduced to Eileen Agar's works, I am beginning to understand the Anarchy symbol that I saw as part of the balance of feminine energy. It came again the following night and the 'A' was centred upright within a circle. The Bust of the Woman I included of her works is entitled 'Angel of Anarchy' , totally correlates to this as part of the feminine ethos. It was a piece she included in an exhibit in the 1930's entitled 'The Autobiography of an embryo'. I am amazed that many of her images and themes are also those which I too have embraced through the creative process.I am still not clear about the meaning behind the Anarchy symbol but I believe has to do with 'chaos' in the universe as part of the feminine order and creation. It is central to that universal balance and perhaps the most important of all. It is where all things were created from - (As in the big bang')...

Female Modern Artists...

Rainbow Fan...

It is New year's eve and I am staying put in my 'office' at Starbucks.It seems to be the safest place to be during this time of year particularly regarding my sobriety. I am looking forward to this new year with anticipation as there is much I wish to experiment with as an artist. I will begin testing out some of my ideas of 'earth magic' with a Modern slash. I hope they will sell down at the Wharf. I need to do this in order to grow and develop as a creative artist. I believe that I will back track on some of the ideas that I have covered over the last year within these blog entries. I have 'appropriated' and constructed many images from other artists with additional photographs. It's all good as these pictures and images from Internet resources all aptly depict and describe what I wished to convey - that too is art but I hope to re-do some of them now in my own style. These were images that did come to me, and as I am no psychic or soothsayer, I believe I can try to interpret them with meaning into my simple style. I do feel I need to develop them further as authentic pieces of art based on the philosophies that I have creatively expressed. So here's to the 'Rainbow fan' and may it include all of us from what ever walk and whatever perspective...peace to the world and a happy New year...

Rising with the Sun...

Rising with the Sun
breaking open
with the day
into the Accession
with devotion
and love...

Rising Spirit...

'In the orthodox and roman Churches, and in Buddhism, Hinduism, and Chinese folk Religions, Incense smoke represents prayers of the faithful rising to the divine. In Native American and Native Canadian communites the burning of sage or sweet grass is considered a purification'....peace

African Prayer for Blessing, sending forth healing...

This African prayer of blessing instructs the person officiating to sprinkle water, Flour or incense in the four directions of the Universe...

Facing East: "For our ancestors of the past"
Facing West: "For our recent living dead"
Facing North: "For our living"
Facing South: "For our yet unborn"

North American Prayer...

Oh Great Spirit
whose voice I hear in the wind
whose breath gives life to the world
Hear me!
I come to you as your many children
I am small and weak
I need your strength and wisdom
May I walk in beauty
Make my eyes behold the red and purple Sunset
Make my hands respect the things you have made
And my ears sharp to hear your voice

Make me wise so that I may know things
That you have taught your children-
The lessons that you have hidden in every leaf and rock
Make me strong, not to be superior to my brothers
But to be able to fight my greatest enemy:myself
Make me ever ready to come to you with straight eyes
so that when life fades as the faded Sunsets
My spirit will come to you with no shame

-John Yellow Lark-

Peacock's Feather...

Opinionated?

I have a lot of ideas and experiences that I have exposed onto these blog entries. I don't mean to be so opinionated but when I say love yourself at a point of one's cultural understanding, people should not feel threatened or feel that this journey is one that is necessarily meant for them. I was driven to make mine in that search of that sense of self- discovery and believe it was worth the effort however painful at times. Like I said, I have experienced deep prejudices from both races and each was just as hurtful as the next but I realized that my Identity was mine and not theirs. It was my entitlement beyond them. This can get very lonely at times. People are brought up to hate themselves because of who they are within a society and that is wrong: it is anti-God. I am suggesting there is a spiritual connection in understanding where one has come from in the 'womb' and a greater one from the Universe. In my poem 'Color me Blind', I say that there are no lines of divisions in God's 'blue' heaven. I believe that. We are brought up in a culture of shame that needs to be challenged continually because we do have to live on this earth and it too is a spiritual path toward self love...

Peace...and love

My personal symbols for peace...and love. They are powerful tools...

Learning to Love...

I love African and Native American culture as well as European. It is important, if one is born within any of these earth cultures in particular, to make the often painful journey into 'self' discovery - to read, to learn, to dance and sing within it. It means getting angry at times at the injustice continually posed against the individual in a world not designed to embrace it or you with equality. At times, it means having your love rejected in the name of hatred or fear. Not to make this journey is just escape. I am half black and white but did educate myself fully about me as a Black/ mulatto person. I have found that I cannot live with out the European as well, although I have experienced deep prejudices from both. One can be wounded in growth of 'self' and there are cultural and personal injuries from a fractured historical past that need healing and reconciliation. Ultimately, it is empowerment especially when there are others around you denigrating your right to embrace it. To overcome their denial most of all is strength. Nothing and nobody is perfect but simple things and knowledge of 'self' within a post slavery, post Colonial experience, is freedom. Learning to love oneself is a beautiful thing and it shouldn't mean hating another once discovering your spiritual place among the stars and on earth. It is the independent stride toward the autonomous 'self' - that right is yours and yours alone. This is true for anybody from whatever race, background or status you are from as learning to love yourself is a universal right. I have found in my long journey that there was no one individual nor great collective that has helped me discover this other than myself. I have learned much however from many....peace and love to you on that essential journey from whatever walk or background...God truly is love...

Patriarchal?...

Chadwick

O'keeffe

Kahlo

Gentilesci

I have not missed the fact that many if not all of the artists I have chosen to highlight as my great inspiration came from men. There is reason for this, it is the limitation of my education as much of the canon for the history of Modern art is primarily composed of white males. There are exceptions to this rule such as artists as Freda Kahlo, Barbara Kruger , Georgia O'Keeffe and Helen Chadwick just to mention a small few. Persons and women of color and other ethnicities are often missing from that canon.. However, women have made progressive steps through out the history of art going back to Baroque with Artimesia Gentilesci whose works rivalled that of the great Caravaggio. History is full of them although our Education about these artists is slow to change. Many married their famous counter parts thus taking a back seat to their husbands prominent careers. It was the role 'expected' as women. I have still much to learn on these fronts. I have stated that women have had their identity framed far too often by a male sensibility or are often ignored at a point of their significance. I shall be looking more into this in the near future as it has always been that women have had to re-educate themselves about themselves outside of the 'male gaze' and control of culture. I am no different and will share this journey with you. Although I sicerely believe that it is important not to negate what men have accomplished. Remember I see these images and they are both faminine and masculine energies that transcend into universal symbols - qualities we each have but the balance is missing and must be re-thought of with equality. I too am still learning.... (ps..again I apoligise for any spelling mistakes throughout, I can be quite clumsy when it comes down to that but I am making the effort to do better)...

Bone Culture...

Bone culture
raw to the core
stripping
meat
incisions
to the soul
so deep
opening warm
flesh
with a
resounding shrill...

Major influences...

I have mentioned some of the great influences that has formed me as a creative artists. There have been many other artists but primarily I have framed my spiritual and creative identity from these examinations by them. I have also had my own personal internal and external interests, much of which I have discussed has been covered by many of these Modern and pre-Modern painters. When I studied Art history, Marc Rothko and Paul Klee were lesser known to me and I showed little interests in their works but currently I am learning to appreciate much of their works as reductionist and minimalist painters. I was surprised after doing additonal research for my exhibit ' Religion, Myth and Fantasy', how much I have followed much of the 'roads' and 'path ways' of many of them-Marc Rothko in particular. I have only just started reading up on him in more introspection but his contributions should never be mistaken as less than great. He is a surpurb artist and I was surprised at the coincidence of the conclusions I had made along with him. I had believed this to be my personal journey up until quite recently but discovered that Rothko had made similar strides some eighty years earlier. I hope to learn more about his study on the affects of light and form in space with color with the abscence of archetypes and mythology. Perhaps this is the next step for me but I must work through these images I am seeing first of all. I must learn to crawl before I can walk then run...

Jackson Pollock...

No 5

Jackson Pollock (1912-1956)was an American 'action painter' and abstract expressionist. In his early career he was a figurative and realist painter depicing rural scenes but was introduced to the use of liquid paint in 1936 by the Mexican muralist David Alfaro Sequeiros. He began painting with his canvas laid out on his studio floor and later developed what he called his 'drip' technique. It is commonly referred to as an all over painting. With this he managed to free the line. He challenged the very notion of traditional Western techniques of easle and brush stroke. He examined Native American sand paintings and was influenced the Mexican muralists who helped develope his all over 'drip' painting style. Japanese calligraphy was important as well the contemporary beat poets and musicians, reflecting an urban landscape and sensibility of the 1950's. He often descriped his paintings as not a picture but an event and saw himself with music in a dance within his creations. He sought a greater liberty in abstract painting that defied the conventions of traditional styles by laying down his canvas on the floor to approach it from all angles. His 'dance was more like a 'performance'using his whole body in the process rather than just hand and wrist...

Marc Rothko...

Blue

Orange

Marc Rothko (1903-1970) was an Russian born American. He is described as an abstract expressionist but had rejected any title particularly that of being abstract. He began essentially as a figurative artist who focused on mythological themes. He used mythology to comment on current history. He sought out works by Freud and Jung, reading their works on dream analysis and archetypes of the collective consciousness. Rothko understood that mythological symbols refer to themselves, operating in a space of human consciousness that transcended specific human mythology and culture. His newer vision meant to address the modern man's spiritual and creative mythology which he saw as being 'empty' (nothingness). He later chose subjects that complimented his growing concerns with form, space and color. Rothko's work matured from representation of mytholgical subjects to trascendent, rectangular fields of color. In 1936, he began writing a book on the simularities in the art of children and modern painters...

Vincent Van Gogh...

Starry Night

Vincent Van Gogh was a 19th century Dutch post impressionist painter who transformed how line, perspective,color and light was perceived in the twentieth century. He is considered a great inspiration to the foundations of Modern art. Although his colors are often mistaken as an act of aesthetics, really they were intended to draw on the spiritual relevancy to the state of the human condition through color and form but often depicted its malady with equal vibrancy. He revealed much of his inner emotions within his paintings and considered an expressionist artist away from realism and figurative painting. His style transcended formal techniques of realism that used linear and line to create perspective and depth. In his art, he chose to exhibit colors, curves, spirals, small dashes with bold and broad distinct brush strokes to depict his shimmering subjects. Thus, he was following new scientific discoveries of the natural world. His colors shine as if with sunshine. He is precursor to the expressionists and abstract expressionists in the twentieth century...

William Turner...

Fishermen at sea at sea

Snow storm

William Turner was a 19th century English Romantic water colorist and landscape painter. He is renowned for his study on effects of light on a painting and exuded a romantic sentiment of individual expression within his works. His lines appear to dissolve into one another whereby creating a semi -abstract inner sensibility with an emotional reaction using color to depict depth and perspective. He is commonly known as the painter of light. Light falls onto his subjects and radiates outwards. He creates a ephemeral sensibility using light to create an atmospheric affect. With this, his work is considered preface to impressionism. He applied an atmospheric washes of paint and depicted his human figures as symbols of humanity. He often placed them vulnerable to a natural world in a sublime and savage environment unmastered by man as evidence of the power of God. This was a common theme to many of the Romantic artists and poets of the time...

Note: It is important to follow the progression of these blog entries from 2010 essentially to see the growth of my symbols and images from a spiritual, interlectual, political and artistic perspective. They are now being explained in greater detail. I also recommend further study on some of the artists among others within their periods. I am very partial to the growth and development of modern art from the 19th century from the great Romantics and the impressionists in France, the Dutch painter Van Gogh, straight through to the abstract expressionsts from the likes of Jackson Pollack and other works in the 50's and 60's. Turner, the great Romantic artist in the 19th century, was English but they all showed the evolution of painting in the advancement of more individual freedoms. I must emphasize that these are my personal philosophies being applied to these artists, works and spiritualities. Anyone else may discover other understandings examining these works and philosophies based on their individual tragectory and journey as a creative individual and from their personal growth. I am simply offering a point of view, I strongly believe there are many perpectives leading to the 'truth'...

Mind over matter ( Circle/triangle)- flesh and spirit with balance...

Light and Form - Rembrandt...

Peter denouciating Christ - Rembrandt

Rembrandt was a 15th century Dutch painter and etcher who is considered one of the greatest painters in European art history. His contribution came during the time of what is referred to as the 'Golden period' in Dutch art where there was a rise of the merchant classes and where everyday people instead of the european aristocracy took on a greater siginficance in figurative art. I am primarily concerned with his treatment of light and form with regards to its impact on Modern and contemporary art. He is one of the first painters to illustrate light eminating from his subjects as well as from an external source. This treatment of object and subject totally revolutionized how light was examined in painting and gave way to progressive understandings where it originated from - it came from outside sources as well as from within form. Prior to that the rennaisance painters saw light as coming from the outside only to illustrate a religious sensibility of God being and external force rather than from within.This technique was instrumental to the study of light and form with the progress of Modern artists whether aithiests or spiritual....

Day Dreams..

Day dreams
night dreamer
a quest into
the imagination
stories relived
shapes and forms
mind flowing
in the

circle of life

dream on
dream on...

Leonardo Da Vinci...

Leonardo Da Vinci was an Italian Rennaisnce painter, sculptor, mathematiscian, inventor and writer. He is considered to be one of the greatest artist of all time. He is well known for his paintings of the 'Mono Lisa' and 'The last Supper'. His vision for the world was more logical than mystical and his inventions paved the way for modern life and principles. I had a mental picture of this drawing of his last evening and realized what a great genious he really was. He saw things in geometric shapes and form which took on a spiritual and Religious connotation. It is how he painted and made drawings of his pictures. I too suggest this in terms of the geometric forms and symbols that I am experiencing. I currently see them in simple form and shape within a vast space. I hope to move more within this space to create a better understanding of time and depth of dimension. Infinity is a mathematical equation as well as a spiritual one that can move from every angle. Although I am no great mathematical genious, I suggest a more intuitive approach to creation i.e., working with the grain instead of against it. I am drawn to the form of the circle which is predominant within 'earth' cultures. It too is a sign for infinity with no beginning and no end. It does, however, deal with more of a feminine energy rather than Leonardo's male centred world but there should be balance of line and circle- yin and yang. Remember there are no rules one has to adhere to. I am no great master like Da Vinci but strive toward a more modern and contemporary appoach in art that implies greater personal and creative freedoms and believe the examination of line, shape, color and form in space in time can also lead to these complex geomeric understandings that point to infinity. He was precuser to this and his work and study is invaluable to future concepts adopted by Modern artists...

Symbol of God...

This Triangle symbol I took meaning a representation of God. Last evening, the symbol of the 'Eye' was central and centered in all the forms eminating from it. It is the soul and God as one...

Balance of Divine Feminine Symbols...

A

Last night I had some recurring images that I would like to share. There were symbols interchanging in a faint glow in the background. They were of a butterfly, an eye, the six and five pointed star, what appeared to be a capital A symbol turning upright from the side and the feminine symbol. They geometrically changed one after the other. I take this as being symbols that represent myself but were universal in nature. I was happy and at peace which made them flow more together. The symbol of the capital A turning upright, I shall take as the anarchy symbol -it may not be but I did see it. This is more political than spiritual but I did see it in some sort of spiritual exchange. It traditionally connotes the concept of a lack of representation of nation -States. It rejects the notion that any idea or Instituion can adequately represent a group of individuals. This symbol was inverted which made it oposite in meaning. It turned and a part from Rock bands and graffetti I never really indulged in any of its meanings consciously. It did not have a circle aorund it and may have a different meaning to what I have asserted. These images appeared to be of a divine feminine nature- it was about balance. My life has been a mess. Ths to me is about healing with femine energy. I have also seen in the past the symbol of a Triangle with an eye meaning the presence of God. This can be identified in many Religions and traditions including Christianity and the Pyramid symbol of the ancient Egyptians. It felt as if all was being placed in order into the light after an inversion creating the oposite affect....

Between Heaven and Earth...

Between Heaven and Earth

motion swoops

through space

jets over

and maneuvers

power with distance

aviating wings

to land...

Infinite possibilties..

Birth of creation

Celebrating the new...

I feel I have sufficiently paid homage to the things that have been the universal bond to many philosophical understandings that I have followed all my life- Christianity being the central glue to many of them. There have been many influences. I suspect I will always call on them for some sort of spiritual guidance when I feel lost and in need of some direction. They have been my moral anchor whenever I drifted off course and touch stones. This has also been political. I am gay and that is political when that right is denied by others. Some times one has to be that as well. All have served me well. Again, I thank my spiritual guides for their help in this process. Some of these symbols and metaphors are new to me but carry the weight of an ancient past. They were linked with many philosophies and when transcended were saying practically the same thing - some better than others. I used many stories and folk tales from different cultures where many were past down through oral traditions combined with my dreams ( that too is an ancient Bahamian Tradition and in my case an African and English one). It was, in a nut shell, what I planned for my exhibit but now I can take it to another layer. As you can see, I really do have a lot of things going on in my head.
I have feelings now to discover the new and to abandon the old fixed orders. It won't change because the people running these institutions refuse to. It is fear and ignorance! My next step is to embrace newer realities away from any Religion or inflexable traditions. I do respect them however and when ever the spirit calls, will embrace them equally as part of a universal identity. I wish to start fresh and begin to celebrate the new. This means seeing things with fresh eyes as with a child's vision of objects and feelings -that sense of discovery for the first time. It is renewal and a blank canvas where the possiblities are endless.It moves Modern into a contemporary understanding. It is being with and in the moment and not an affectation. Yes, a time for change is needed in my own life. This is the birth of creation eminating from a point of infinity and 'zero'...peace to you and love- happy holidays...

Leaves...

For Walt Whitman

Blood singing
through veins
of a leaf
an imperious desire
seats equality
stained with
body and thought
every man
and woman
completing
the rain
comanding each soul
oneness together
with the strike of iron
flex of mouth
a hammer
beating
in naked arm...

Poetry and the Art of loving...

I am a poet. I see everything in poetic metaphor in music and painting, in life itself . I compose them continually. I believe I am a good poet and I have stopped writing for anyone else but myself. I have had some of my poems published in magazines and journals but I have always felt I was trying to please everyone else. Walt Whitman has taught me a valuable lesson; poetry must come from where the heart is and that is 'truth'. This art took a turn when I began having conversations within them. Prior to that they were just affectations of other styles. Poetry is not a formal structure but a process of discovering what is truly felt. I am perfectly capable of writing poems that are constructed in every style and love poets from down through the ages and in every culture but my journey has been about finding an individual 'voice' that is unique to myself. It means appearing clumsy at times but I am happy with what I say and what I am discovering. I am very spiritual and prefer writing love poems above all. It is where my heart sings mostly. The ancient meaning for a poem is song. It is psalm and music. How one interprets that music is essential to the process even in its silence. It is dissonance and harmony or a combination of both.
I believe I am a strong writer and am more confident with it than any other art form. I have a freedom with words that comes natural to me. I can be the acrobat I wish with greater liberty. Sadly, poets are some of the poorest people in the world. We bleed for our art. Obediah Smith, a well known Bahamian poet, has coined the phrase that a poem is ' the universe summed up into a drop.' I can give an academic response to how poetry should be written but ultimately I believe there is no right or wrong way to approach it. Many have challenged that notion.It is important to read a lot as well as learn to look at the world with honesty. Everything is about finding out who you are in a poem. Being able to place it within a story whether about you or another circumstance is essential. It is the most visual of all the art forms technically or other wise. I like to sketch realities drawing on feelings - that is my style. I am inspired by the lyricism of the streets. There is motion and movement that has its own rhythm. I am confronted with life daily in a raw nakedness.I feel and see it with my heart. It is central to all I do. I can be very guilty of being far too sentimental which may come across as cliche but I am working on that. I prefer to be unfetted and have chosen to reveal some the metaphors I use which are predominately spiritual in nature but are seldom discussed any more- many have been forgotten. I also try to incorporate new metaphors. I am not an academic at all in my poems and resent others attempting to correct me when they have little understanding of what I am doing. That goes for everything I do. I am often at odds with the 'experts' and challenge their interpretations continually.I could go on and on about poetry like music but prefer just to be the bard. I will begin selling them again down at the wharf and continue to do it my way.It is important to remain true to oneself...peace...

Symbol for light and peace..

It is universal but I am thinking about it in a Christian context and the only thing that matters is God and love...

Recovery...

Christmas time and new years is a terrible for recovering addicts. Everyone is in 'party' mode and the temptations there are great. I had decided to stay planted in my new watering hole- Starbucks to have my fill of coffee and Internet services which my entries you are privy to. God works in mysterious ways and I take this as an encouragement to stay on course as I can become quite weak during this time. I walked in today and discovered that I had won a $25.00 gift certificate for Star bucks in a raffle. However one perceives it, I will have lots of money to spend in there for the next week which has become my safe haven. It will be my port in the storm.
On a more serious note, if one is battling alcoholism or any other form of addiction then be a good courage and know there is a life after. I feel healthier, more focused than I've been for years and younger. I am living in the light, not separated by a darkness that eventually can become a lonely journey into isolation. Recovery has been a way of moving into the metaphor and living it rather than seeing it merely as a symbol.The battle to climb out and get back into the land of the living has been difficult but well worth the struggle after years of abuse. I have added a quality to my life that has been missing for a long time. I am actually meeting people who have responsibilities and ambition. It can rub off on one. How I got into this mess in beyond my comprehension but I believe it had to do with giving up on life and feeling it with fear. I hung on with hope along the way but now I am experiencing some true form of happiness and fulfillment. I meet many recovering addicts in Starbucks. Each of us feel the need to renew friendships and have a place to go without the harsh cultural denigrate we have in the Bahamas where alcohol and other substances are so prevalent.
My entries at times are more cathartic as in tonight as I really do want a drink and writing about it helps avoid the cravings. Stay strong in your recovery if this is your story whomever one is and from ever walk. I am learning to relive life with care and don't worry about those who may be insensitive to your condition without empathy. They are not necessarily the one's you need to be around...

My helpless Heart..

My helpless heart
feels too deeply
undisciplined
unrestrained
it needs to speak
has to breathe
wrecklessly
seeing
feeling everything
for all made
beautiful
are particles
completing you...

Every else...

I think
of every else
but you
how passions
stirs
from your
nearness
a heart beating
with each turn
of the waves
and gusts
of wind
rushing
fast
like my pulse
when you
are there...

Eye and I..

For one who knows
I see you
with my soul
eye and I
loving with
sight
out of the bowl
and into
the strands
of your hair
it carries
with the wind
that blows
it wild
this contented heart
is voyeur
eye with I
just loving you...

The Dreamer...

For K.
You sat
beside me
last evening
resolute
you did not run
nor hide
or disappear
it was
my resolution
in a Dream
to see you
once again
somehow
our way
in my imagination
that eye
holding you near
love never ends
in mind
there with you...

The Yellow Moon...

Yellow moon
big as the sky
I stand fixed
slowly rising
with your sails...

All Roads...

I had a discussion with a Christian lady the other day and she said that 'all roads' do not lead to the same place. I agree but the sentiment that I aspire to is that 'all roads' that speak of love as its center, will. How can it not? It has been the nature of these blog entries and my basic philosophy. I am not an expert in any of it but am familiar enough with many. I also see these 'universal' symbols in my mind that may apply to much of the things I choose to speak about. Love is God as they all claim, the rest is just life that carries with it its experiences. Robert Frost the English writer, wrote the poem, 'A road less travelled'. It is about deciding to live one's life to the fullest and according to the path one feels one needs to take. It is a choice that is the individual's and should not come with any regrets. This is how I feel about it as well. Each has had its lessons - some painful and others satisfying but all benificial to learning and understanding love.
The problem comes with intolerance and a lack of respect for the other's perspective. No one I believe has the complete answer to life's mysteries but each is a path that holds some of the pieces to the puzzle. We together make up the whole if we claim love. The key is to exist within that reality free of fear. It is what I have chosen as a gay person that comes with a personal spiritual philosphy that I hold sacred as any other with equality. It is not at odds with any other exept when they deny my right to self-determine who I am as an individual. It is my right in a democracy and futher my reason for existance in the universe. It too is also purpose. I hope that I have pleaded a good case in my defense. It has been a struggle...peace, love and respect...

Rachmaninov, Rhapsody on the theme of Paganini; iii 18th variation...

Rachmaninov has the passions of rolling waves...peace

Anahata, heart chakra...Peace and love

'In ancient yogic traditions, the six pointed star is associated with the heart chakra, Anahata. The downward triangle merges with the upward triangle to the heart center. The descending triangle represents creative and female, Yang or shakti energy; the diffusion of divine into matter or its union. The ascending triangle represents male or yin, shiva energy. The ascension of spiritualized matter back into the divine. When the two unites they become one. Similarly it speaks of the macrocosm/ microcosm that takes place in spirit and earthly planes.'

Diversity is the spice...

I am working with two other artists now out on the wharf, Ray Cloutier's photographic prints - a Canadian citizen who has been here for over twenty years and Oreste, a Dominican Republic artist giving us paintings of a tropical, colorful flare on canvas. I will continue with my simple abstract, strange and deluded paintings which hopefully will venture into more abstraction with installation and collage work in the New year. I found it necessary to keep my activities alive by including these other works and variety is the spice of life as they say.We all come from different backgrounds and styles. Things are working out well with their contributions. I am not sure that many understand or like where I am coming from in my art and most people in the world really just wish for things they can understand to put in their homes or give as gifts. I need however, to continue on my path which is always subject to change. I might even return to a more figurative art after exhausting this avenue. We shall see but for now, everything is just great!

Kora..

Kora
West African
air guitar
harp and lute
Toumani Diabate
maostro music
stringing the wind
from
an African desert
cup's his hands
into an oasis...

Winter's Night...

Day shifts
in the cradle
of a deep winter's
night
mulling
under a
sky of stone
and marble moon
stars uncloud
the misty air
cutting through
a window pane...

Peace...and love

Inner light...

Color Field painting...

Klee Rothko Kandinsky

Color Field painting is a branch of Abstract Expressionism from the 1940s and 50's that emphasizes all over paint like in the works of Jackson Pollock. They use the canvas as a 'field' of color without a central focus and they emphasize the flatness of surface without a subject matter. Objects in the natural world are not referred to and reveal the artists state of mind in his/her expression. Color field is about the tension created by overlapping layers of flat color. The areas of color can be amorphous or geometric. Some of the best 'color field' and expressionist painters are Kindinsky, Marc Rothko, Paul Klee and Clyfford Still among many others.
I have a tendency to be influenced by many styles and learn from everyone in every era but I do experience creative freedoms with color and form from these continuing Modern/Abstract artists.
I am also working on developing my own style which has its roots in many other realities but I do follow some of the Modern principles as these artists...

Peace...

'Crosssed Arrows', Native American peace symbol...

Here comes the Sun...

I have intensionally included the image of the Sun in most of my souvenir wood items. It is my personal symbol of creation, light and hope. I think I have almost mastered the art of the perfect circle. I shall continue for the mean time but this may change according to expanding creative works. I am just beginning to see and feel it in my own life after a long time... peace, light and love...

Music...

Eternal sound
movement
and motion
within a ray
of spectrum
Rhythmic
heart beats
earth's drum
brood and shine
within a pulse
of a bowl
heavenly celestials
reflect
sky's light
dimensions
in geometric
forms
flowing with rivers
and oceans
expanding
with the Universe
into eternity...

Symbol of a Musical note...

At this point, I believe I have a very furtive imagination and saw the image of a musical note in color. It is the emblem for music. I think music can come from many sources on heaven and on earth. I see things in spirals and swrils but it can be linear at times.There are also personal experiences that determine how one hears sounds - some dark and light and all in between. It is color, sound, rhythm and motion with many geometric dimensions. It can be simple or complicated. Music is life force...

Teacher or Artist...

I have spent the past twenty years as some sort of facilitator and never really had the time to develope as the artist I wished to as it has always been about someone else. This is my time now so foregive the indulgences. I had a strange image the other night which some times I take seriously and some times not according to how I feel. I often wonder if my bi-polar is 'kicking' in. It's all good! It was the image of one of a huge building that resembled the inside of an Orthodox, Coptic church similar to the image I used minus the Christian references. It was like a temple. Three black men in robes appeared one after the other and a voice came to me saying that I was here to teach. I know I could have been a better teacher along the way but I too was learning and young. I have made many mistakes. I feel I have gathered sufficient information and experience to pass on some of what I have learnt. I know a lot about Modern art and its history. I am also well versed in the creative process. With these images and symbols, I am still learning but can apply some of what I know. Like I said, i have worked and studied hard and know a lot but there is much room for improvement. I can now take time for myself to develope more as an Artist - my dream and purpose. I invite you to join in this experience with me. I choose the medium of blog as I am tired of my own voice and really it is just my opinion so you can read it or not. Everyone has their own path as we are all equal under the Sun but we can learn from each other along the way. I continue to learn and discover always. What the 'message' may be suggesting is as I learn and dsicover as a creative artistic, I can pass on and share in the experience. I really should begin painting and creating some of these images and thoughts, perhaps I shall do some back tracking and will do them in my own style. Yes, I think I will in the New year...peace...

One rule- No rule...

The one rule in art is that there are no rules or more to the point, rules are made to be broken. This is the history of its development through out the ages. Centuries ago in European Art in particular, music, art and writing had to be submitted to being scrutinized by the dictates of the Church. There were 'Religious Laws' that decided how these disciplines were orchestrated and composed. There were reformations and counter reformations that pulled and stretched the meaning of what that meant. Up until the 19th century, only certain notes could be played in music relating to a spirituality of fixed laws and formulas. As individuality and the search for the political advancement in a more democratic system gave way to more personal liberties, this began to change. On the key of a scale only certain notes were allowed as they were considered closer to God. Similar principles were applied in poetry, writing, the visual arts as well as sculpture and architecture. Individual and political advocates of this time sought greater liberties. With that, there was the advancement toward change such as the French and American revolutions as well as the growth of the Dutch 'merchant' classes away from the aristocracy. Modernity in the advent of new scientific discoveries brought radical changes of how art was created for greater creative freedoms.
I have stayed close to formal and fundamental principles of how the universe is made but it is expanding and open to changes with new discoveries. We are all co- creators with a higher understanding that help to formulate this change - the micro of the greater macro universe, man and God as one. This is an ancient philosophy that I am in concordance with. It is important to stay open and alert to these ever changing realities with a respect for some of our past discoveries. The search for 'truth' in ancient times may be seen as metaphor and has some validity as there will come a time when our 'truth' in this generation may be looked on as obsolete by our successors but we are all a part of unlocking some of the mysteries held within it.
Creativity and expression as part of an individual and universal undestanding may emcompass the light and the dark; harmony and dissonance with all the shades within as this is what our history and humanity has been and is...

Symbolism and music...

' Many artists share the notion that all art should aspire to the condition of music, which is thought to be the most direct aesthetic medium...music should not be "confined to reproducing nature exactly but rather to producing the mysteriuos correspondences which link Nature with imagination" -(Llyod, p.266). The 19th century French composer, Claude Debussey believed that in music 'not only sound but silence has meaning in the element of music.'

Music is trascendent by nature and Universal. And, although orchestrated works are wonderful, all formal elements such as in metred works in writing and composition should move more within a natural flow to achieve liberation and freedom in space and time (i.e. infintity and within that spectrum of color, sound and motion)....

"Music hath charms to soothe the savage beasts, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak."
William Congreve - 'The Morning Bride', (1697) Act 1 sc.1

Music, melody and the creative process...

Painting by M. Baldwin

I began my artistic endeavours years ago as a musician. I played by 'ear' but was a fine guitarist and percussionist drummer. I loved the blues, jazz, folk and composing original songs. My musical tastes were far reaching however I enjoyed many styles from the most popular to the obscure. I am a great lover of Classical music as well but could never play it. I write all this down with regards to my creativity as I have had many influences in different disciplines as an artist and spent years developing them individually at a time. In Canada, I was known more as a musician and percussionist. I have settled now on the visual arts and writing but include many of the other disciplines within it, music being a primary resource. I do use this blog as I have mentioned before as some sort of record of how I work as an artist and the influences that have affected that development. I have thought hard about it and I wish my interpretation of how I create to be there before any other. My work appears simple and is but it is also very complex in its exercution and thought.
Music is my soul and comes rather easy to me, more than any other form of expression, but I was lazy and lacked the discipline required to develop the way I wished to. I have abandoned it completely now as an art form but my paintings and writing is full of it. It is my inspiration and I orchestrate sounds from my imagination. At times, I literally twirl and spin my art paintings passionately to the sounds of the celestials and the rhythms of the earth ( you have to see me paint to understand what I mean.) I dance with it as in a performance with music everywhere in my mind. My poetry, when not having a 'conversation' lately is constructed in the rhythm of 'spoken word'. I have organized more formal poems but music is always there. It is the color of the spectrum and sound. It is rhythm and motion. It is light and darkness and all the shades in between with dissonance and harmony. This is how I see and feel it...

J. S. Bach and Classical Peace..