Unexpected Upshot...

Last night I was posting on an artist forum and was responding to someone who had seen my videos and it occurred to me that my Five Element Tarot series has some unexpected upshots for me. Kinda like the Pink Trojan Bunny! (If you haven't seen "Spamalot" or Monty Python you might not know what I'm talking about.) Anyway...

What I discovered is that each of these pieces I'm doing have a life lesson within them... just for me! It is like looking into my own soul. I have noticed that with each piece I am gaining deep inner knowledge about myself. Painting has always been a personal thing, I reap benefits on a number of levels, the main one being keeping my sanity.

In the past I was inspired by people around me... my Feminine Desert series dealt with young women and the issue of co-dependency. It was an issue I had dealt with myself and wanted to reach other young women.

With this new project I intended to explore the subject with less personal involvement and a more academic perspective on the symbolism and the images being something that everyone can understand... rather than a mystery as I believed it to be when I first discovered the Tarot.

Well, I was wrong... Apparently this is a journey that I am to undertake and discover not only hidden ideas in the Tarot but also my inner being.

With Folly, I started this endeavor - much like the young fool and jumped in with both feet. It was exhilarating. I worked through some personal intimidations and discovered I had nothing to fear.... (but fear itself of course. LOL) I am still trying to get comfortable in front of the camera... that has never been something I have been comfortable with... it's odd hearing yourself... You spend time editing a video of yourself... you start to notice things you have never noticed before... I had no idea that I had such an accent... and I hear influences of other people in my voice and speech patterns. Oh well, I guess it's just me a conglomeration of all that is around me.

The last one Skill - I have always taken for granted my skills and talents... I discovered that I need to honor them and be grateful for them... that if I put as much effort into my own projects as I do my other commitments, like my job... they will pay off and I can enjoy the process.

Over the years, many people have told me how hard it is to get your art exposed never mind try to make a living with it. And my art work always has taken a back seat do to that mentality, everything else was "more important." My new attitude is: well, yeah, it is hard, so what, the boss expects hard work too.... why not spend my hard earned time and learned talents to produce something that I enjoy doing and other people will enjoy too. Isn't that what the arts are all about? Communicating with our fellow man. Whew, got the courage now! *grin* So in a nutshell, with Skill I've learned that it's a crazy situation unless you take control of your own destiny and use your talents to not only uplift others but also yourself.

As a result this project has become somewhat of an obsession of mine.... Ahhh, what a great journey! Looking forward to the rest of the ride! Hope you'll see it through with me.

FYI (the picture posted here is from a picture board, you know the ones that you put your face in a hole and take a picture to become part of the piece. We are supposed to be looking at a Giant Pink Trojan Bunny! LOL It is was sitting in front of the "Monty Python's Spamalot" on Broadway in NYC. In September of 2006 my family and I went to NYC for my art opening there... we also took a vacation and spent a few days there, our one huge indulgence was to see a live theater show... "Spamalot" won the unanimous vote... I would recommend it to anyone with a sense of humor. Ahh, fun times.