A Surprise Slice of Heaven Part 1
Ever since I heard of “Artist in Residence” opportunities, I wanted to go somewhere for one. The idea of a month with nothing else to do but art sounded like paradise. I could come up with all sorts of reasons I didn’t ever do it – bottom line – excuses – and it didn’t happen.
In June of this year I decided on a road trip from Taos, New Mexico (home) to Sonoma, California (Headquarters and home to Musea – my Intentional Creativity® community) with a couple stops along the way. From the moment I made the decision, factors continued to change – in fact just about EVERY factor and aspect kept changing.. I’m usually pretty good with “spontaneity” and “go with the flow” so I stayed with the basic idea for a 2 week trip and opening to an adventure.
My dear friend/mentor Shiloh Sophia was having a Gallery Opening at Musea in Sonoma, along with her birthday celebration. We usually see each other at least yearly – and with CoVID, the connection felt long overdue.
I have friends and family in Southern Cal and my brother that lives there was recently diagnosed with Cancer. The words “Road Trip” kept arising. SO YEP – Road trip it was!
In addition to wanting to see Beloveds – I packed my art supplies, canvasses, and yummy snacks and opened to what life sent my way.
In Southern Cal, while staying with my friend, I set up my easel in her back yard and opened to the creative explorative journey of the trip.
Painting #1 – The Basic idea of Intentional Creativity® is being intentional with what is brought to the canvas. As I reflected on life and how I viewed it has changed, I took it to the canvas. My journaling and reflections were that I interpreted that I used to be more at ease, more in the flow, softer… then through a number of years of increased challenges (divorce, moves, deaths, frustrations…) I questioned whether I was “harder/harsher” with sharper edges and inquired “how does this fit into how I want to be and who I am?” So I took it to the canvas for exploration. I stated with soft gentle lines , then added the angular and harsher sharp edges. It was clear that both have their value and can effectively be blended. The final layer was dreaming/creating the life I want, and allowing the value of both sides to be present.
