Coming Out of the Closet of Fear

Coming Out, Mixed Media, 10.875" x 13.75"

I ran across a video on YouTube the other day of Ash Beckham speaking at a TED talk in Boulder, CO, that inspired the artwork for this week's blog.

Ash said this:

I'm going to talk to you tonight about coming out of the closet. And not in the traditional sense, not the gay closet. I think we all have closets. Your closet may be telling someone you love her for the first time. Or telling someone that your pregnant. Or telling someone you have cancer. Or any other of the hard conversations we have throughout our lives. All a closet is is a hard conversation. Although our topics may vary tremendously, the experience of being in and coming out of the closet is universal. It is scary and we hate it and it needs to be done. 

 

 My interpretation of that talk is that all closets of the mind are closets of fear. In my mind's eye I saw a closet with a partially open door and someone peeking out of the darkness, building up the courage to step out--a profound and difficult place to be in any hard situation.

I believe we all need to give ourselves a well-deserved pat on the back for every time we open the closet door in our mind, stepping out in an act of vulnerability and brave courageousness. We are brave. We are courageous. And we need to recognize that about ourselves.

What is A Face, Really?

What is A Face, Really?
8-7/8" x 11-1/2" Mixed Media Collage

This collage is based on a quote by Barbz Lewinsky:

 

What is a face, really?

Its own photo?

Its own make-up?

Or is it a face as painted by such or such a painter?

That which is front?

Inside? Behind?

And the rest?

Doesn't everyone look at himself in his own particular way?

Deformations simply do not exist.

 

You can find the original quote with an interesting photo at https://www.facebook.com/InspirationalPortraits which site I became acquainted with through Patricia Allingham Carlson's site. Both sites are well worth your visit.

I had recently joined Jennibellie's Monthly Challenge, the first of which had to do with a monochromatic black and white theme to which you could add one or two accent colors. This was my interpretation of that challenge. The quote just seemed to fit the black and white theme.

Lessons in Nature

What wonderful lessons are available to us in nature if we would only look and see.

The lesson I see here:

In adversity greater numbers are better, providing companionship, warmth, and courage to make it through. Kind of describes life in general, doesn't it?

24 swallows huddling together to survive the harsh winter weather.
Photographer Keith Williams, spotted the scene while out walking his dog on a trail beside the Yukon River in Canada.

A Different Time or Place

 

Part of the reason for doing this blog was to have a place to showcase my art work as well as be able to philosophize. Actually, I love to do both, and combining them makes me very happy. Hence, the artwork with a message. Hopefully, it will touch your heart as well. If I can get even one person to stop and think just for a moment, I will have accomplished something. That works for me.

For the philosophy part:

I can honestly say that I spent a rather large portion of my life wishing things were different or that I was different, not realizing that I was foolishing spending way too much time living inside my head or inside books.Same thing. It was all escapism. Nowadays people seem to prefer tv, computer or video games. The ills that plague the human race run bone deep. I'm not being pessimistic here, just realistic. In order to successfully deal with a problem one must recognize and acknowledge it first, don't you think? I had to recognize my thoughts and behavior before I could change any of it. Of course, this is a life long process. A journey. I love adventures! Don't you?

A bit about the technique for the art piece:

The background for this picture was an experiment on regular tissue paper. I first somewhat haphazardly spread some gesso on the tissue paper and let it dry. I sprayed several colors of alcohol inks using some stencils/masks to add some interest and added some more gesso on top of that. The circles were done on coffee filters using sharpie pens and alcohol and then both spraying and dripping alcohol inks on. I dried the filters in between layers.

I then took pictures of them, manipulating them in Gimp on the computer, and finally putting them together in Publisher. The quote was one I found on Facebook.

I plan to use the actual tissue paper in collages on canvas so I'm getting more than double duty out of all of the pieces I'm painting. Much of my inspiration of late has come from videos from YouTube. I subscribe to a number of channels. I've learned a lot there. It's fun to try out new techniques. I will share some of my favorites from time to time. Today I want to share Jennibellie's channel. Jenny has videos on lots of different techniques that anyone can do. She also as a +blog you can find here. She interviews different artists about once a month which are very interesting.

Thoughts on Quantum Theory, Philosophy and Art

"The story I am writing exists, written in absolutely perfect fashion, some place, in the air. All I must do is find it, and copy it."

— Jules Renard, "Diary," February 1895

Did Renard know about quantum physics theory back then? I don’t think so but the quote applies nonetheless. Napoleon Hill wrote that every word that has been spoken is in the atmosphere around us as energy and that we somehow tap into that energy for our own use. In fact, he says we direct it with our choice of words. Words have power long after the moment they are spoken or written.

This is not a new theme by any means, but it is certainly an often overlooked thing in our mundane, everyday lives. We're too busy living, i.e., putting out fires, to have time for such esoteric, philosophical issues. Bullshit my other half calls it. The philosophical knowledge and understanding that I so thrive on is a burden to him, unimportant and useless information. To me it is the air I breathe, the sparkle and joy in life. How is it that some people want to know these things and others could really care less? Perplexing.

Even though I'm approaching being a sexagenarian, I still struggle with the fact that I am a dreamer in an often mundane world. It seems I've been that way my whole life, although I could not have put it into words like this before now. Maybe I will find a release in the telling.



The image that I use on my social web sites is a self-portrait I did years ago and I can honestly say that at the time of doing that drawing, I did not realize it was a self-portrait nor that it imbodied the 'dreamer' quality that is so me. Most of my art is that way. I do the art in the moment and then find hidden meaning in the artwork after its completion. It's as if my subconscious decides to play a joke on me, the punchline of which, like all good jokes, comes at the end. Surprise!