To find Delight, pay attention
At the end of February, which was the beginning of a personally very difficult time for me, I began reading and completing the practices in the book, The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. It is a life-changing book. I highly recommend it to everyone, whether you believe you are creative or not. This book… puts one in touch with oneself. It has reminded me who I am. With the book’s help, I confront my fears, my dreams, my strengths, my failures, my habits, my desires, and more. With the book’s help, I can more readily face myself, but also hold compassion for my struggles and to remember my self-worth. That I am a creative being full of love and creativity and gifts to offer the world.
I am excited to present my newest collection, Delight. The title is based on the following excerpt from The Artist’s Way:
Success or failure, the truth of a life really has little to do with its quality. The quality of life is in proportion, always, to the capacity for delight. The capacity for delight is the gift of paying attention.
Julia Cameron talks about how in the act of paying attention, (e.g., to a flower, a bird call, a gorgeous sunrise sky over the ocean’s horizon), healing begins.
The reward for attention is always healing. It may begin as the healing of a particular pain - the lost lover, the sickly child, the shattered dream. But what is healed, finally, is the pain that underlies all pain: the pain that we are all, as Rilke phrases it, “unutterably alone.”
Attention is an act of connection.
The paintings of this collection were all painted from looking directly at live plants (i.e., part of landscaping in my neighborhood, flowers I purchased at the market, the fern that livens up my bathroom, the bouquet lovingly gifted by friends). This Spring, I have been connecting to the beauty of flowers, and they have given me peace and joy. I touch their petals lightly, smell their scent, and look closely at the unique characteristics of their intricate parts. I pay attention and remember that I am not alone. Even if at the moment I feel sorrow or anguish, these flowers gently remind me that much beauty and abundance exist in this world. They give me hope for a better tomorrow.
Every event has a purpose - believing in this gives life meaning. Life has so many lessons, although they are not always offered gently. I think of the ups and downs throughout my life.. cycles of ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓… it’s a natural course, like the stock market. How do we focus on the positives even during a down year like the one we have had during the pandemic and extended period of isolation? How do we find light when we are going through a challenging or painful time in life? My answer is paint and surf, and write.
I enjoyed experimenting with the Delight Collection. Watercolor shapes first, and then ink drawing on top. For some reason it’s really satisfying to draw outside of the painted lines. I am reminded of this quote by painter Milton Avery (which I came across in an issue of The Surfer’s Journal):
In order to paint, one has to go by the way one does not know. Art is like turning a corner. One does not know what is around the corner until one has made that turn.
Painting takes a lot of courage, as does life. There is much uncertainty. “Rest in uncertainty,” said a mentor. We may not know where we are going, we don’t know what is around the bend, so all we can do is trust in the process until we make that turn. Trust and believe in ourselves. Trust and have faith that the Universe wants to help us out and will take us where we need to go.
I hope you find delight in these paintings. Please share your thoughts with me if you feel comfortable doing so - I’d love to hear them.
