Monthly Archives: February 2012

In praise of contrary

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There is no bright without dark, there is no night without day, so why do we seem to strive for shades of grey?

It is not generally encouraged to be contrary, to show extreme and differing sides of ourselves. Indeed it is actively discouraged in mainstream education where blending in, predictability and being normal are the rule.

Yet, how dull! How sad not to know the quirks and oddities, the irrational and absurd, the utterly unique and confounding?

Most great artists were well acquainted with their contrary natures, Vincent Van Gogh and Frida Kahlo certainly were.  It doesn’t make for easy living companions necessarily, but it certainly gives life a richness and depth that conventionality does not. The joy and sorrow, the yearning for community and loneliness are as apparent in Vincent’s work as they are in his life. Frida is the Queen of contrary, making her struggle with health and illness, love and loss, convention and sheer naughtiness into an art form.

So before you smooth out your bumps, blend in you oddities and muddy your contrasting colours into shades of grey, think about celebrating your contrariness, it makes you unique.

This image of Frida is for sale in various  affordable formats, have a look here. http://www.redbubble.com/people/spiralfran/works/8507753-contrary

Why I love Mexico

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Humming birds live here.

Amazing ancient monuments.

Sweet courteous people.

Margaritas and Mojitos.

Beautiful bright handmade crafts.

Light and shadow, contrast and colour.

Easy living on a tight budget.

Avocados, mangos and gloriously fresh fruit.

 

Inspiring art and music.

Mexicans are kind to their children and respect their elders.

Collective knowledge and pride in culture and old songs.

Gorgeous painted houses.

Frida Kahlo lived here.

Death is understood as an important part of life.

Hammocks!

Chillies.

Sunshine.

Fiestas and knowing how to party.

The beautiful Zocalos

Purple Jacaranda trees.

Let your soul catch up

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I’m sitting on a bright orange plastic chair on a patch of fake grass, enjoying the breeze blowing in from Auckland harbour.

I feel lucky. Lucky to be here, lucky to need nothing but this present moment.

Yesterday was different, I felt disconnected, stumbling and numb. The city presented its delights, but I wasn’t available to enjoy them. Same me, same city, completely different experience.

There is wisdom in an aboriginal saying. It is not wise to travel so far or so fast that your soul gets left behind. Yesterday my poor soul was still floundering over the ocean, left somewhere on our thirteen hour flight. Today, it’s so nice to have her back!

Everything looks brighter feels possible and tastes better now this crucial part of me is reunited.

 

 

I’m struck by the truth of the necessity to get ourselves together before we can appreciate the wonders of the world. Any kind of soul stultifying can block our enjoyment of the uniqueness of the moment. If we can call our soul to catch up with us, we can be present and see that beauty is just waiting for us to notice.

 

Milagros

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In Mexico they have a lovely tradition of making Milagros, a small painted offering on metal to give thanks for a miracle.

These are often charming and naive paintings with the story of what happened hand written underneath. Calamities such as children narrowly surviving after being mauled by a dog or being rescued after a ship wreck.

I love the imagery and really appreciate these little works of art for their endearing glimpse into the personal lives of the Mexican people.

It struck me what a healthy way around this attitude is, instead of bemoaning the fact something difficult or threatening has happened, they give thanks for surviving and perhaps re-affirming the strong love they have for each other. It got me to wondering how much happier and healthier it would be to turn up the gratitude-o-meter.

Instead  of feeling victimised by unfortunate events, we look for the learning and for something to be grateful for. Instead of craving what we think we need in the future, we look at what we have now and call it a miracle… a milagro.

What sort of art do you do?

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That’s a question I find difficult to answer.

I usually end up muttering and burbling  until I can see a kind of glazed expression come over the enquirer.

The truth is, I do and have done LOTS of kinds of art. The style, medium, colour and expression changes as I change. I used to envy people who could say succinctly “I do watercolours of poodles, or “I am an abstract oil painter”. It sounds so tidy and definite, like the people who could say, “I want to be a lawyer/dentist/ballet dancer” when they were fifteen and then go ahead and become one. My path has always been much wobblier and I suspect rather more fun!

Now, perhaps a little late in the day as my fifties beckon, I am able to come out and proud and say my art is eclectic; it responds to who I am at the time and to what resources are available. If I had been a particular type of artist, I would not have been free to travel, if my creativity was dependent on particular materials and studio space I would still be where I was. As it transpired my art has adjusted to suitcase life and I have  developed techniques using sketchbooks, photography and digital enhancing.  I love it, but  I’m sure it will evolve into something else when this phase of my life changes.

 

One of the things I have learned is that letting the medium lead me has a wisdom  of it’s own, that I in my thinking, busy brain do not possess. When I look back over some of my stages I can see they clearly express things that were out of my conscious awareness. The clearest example of this was when I was at college and got passionately into etching. The trouble was that my images were dark and brooding and reflected an eerie shadow side of myself. I was really quite frightened by this, my life was happy, or so I urgently maintained, yet who was this dark yet rather fascinating side of myself that loomed up and would not be ignored.

It was only late when I studied psychology and learned about Jung and the wisdom of the shadow that my conscious mind caught up with what my unconscious mind had known for some time. It was right too, I was in an increasingly unhappy relationship and their were many family issues that required courage and change.From then I learned to trust the wisdom of creativity, and not to overly concern myself with what it meant. Maybe it has deep learnings and I will understand them in time, maybe it just makes the world a bit more interesting and beautiful, both are fine with me.

 

Here are some of the media  and styes I have worked with (so far!)

Watercolour, figurative, large abstract acrylic canvas, pen and ink line drawing, silk painting,collaborative works, paper layer, etching, mosaic,murals, lino cut, fairy tale illustration, self-portrait, polymer clay mosaic tiles, stained glass, sound sculpture, collage, altered books, shrine making, sculpture, assemblage, decoupage, furniture decorating, commissioned photo books, photography, mandalas, photo manipulation and layering, poster and post card design.