Artfelt - Intuitive Art

Over these couple of years since the last post, I have been blessed to do many intuitive drawings for many beautiful souls. Each has come with their own processes and stories like the paintings have had. Here are a few of the pieces…I will let them do the talking this time. This has been an amazing journey and one I hope I will continue to travel for years to come. Thank you to all who have requested a piece. 

Tonight, lying in bed after an exceptionally and strangely difficult evening of parenting with my three boys and my husband, I lay beside the boys after our prayers and as they went to sleep, I started seeing a vision in my mind. I saw many sketches of wolves with yellow eyes, snarling and aimed in one direction (east). Then I saw over characterised european faces, one after the other - quite grotesque looking. Then I saw side profiles of brown bears facing west, standing and stacked like packed dominos with their top arms reaching forward, then they started to fall backwards together, all as one, and their spirits started rising into the heavens. The spirit which was translucent black in colour, made a beautiful almost geometric but lose mandala formation in the sky, then the ribbons of spirit came down and touched the earth. Then a large beautifully intricate white spider web was formed all over the sky and in the centre I saw a black spider and the web and spider began shaking a lit...

An intuitive piece of writing I did to go with this drawing called 'Solace'. 'Why was I stolen? Why was I taken away from my homeland? I was removed from my home to be a slave to the white man. We were treated like game; captured, tortured, caged and whipped. It would have been more blissful to be shot in the head like the hunted Zebra. Instead we were made to suffer all our lives on. The zebra lies on the land it came from, it’s bones resting there on the earth that gave it life. How I miss that life, how I miss my people, my land. Now it is a far, far distant memory. Centuries have passed. Now my children’s children do not know me, they do not know the land they came from. But I won’t forget them. They are always part of me, they are always part of Africa. I am waiting for when they come home and for when the solace their hearts have always missed, finally embraces them.'

This painting speaks to a topic that is often avoided, it speaks to the many people that have traveled this heart wrenching journey and are often very alone in this pain, a pain that is deep and tears at the very fabric of life, the pain of abortion. It is a pain that is least expected, a pain that no one wants to experience, but circumstances led to this fatal moment, the most difficult decision imaginable, to stop someones life before birth.  Although one of the saddest of situations, this unborn baby has come from the union of two souls, who in this physical life are experiencing a very difficult path, their lives being tested with hurt and pain, the bruises, the scars, the fear, the anger, the violence, the drug addiction, the mental torment amongst the better times during this strange and desperate relationship.  As the woman continued to try and break away from this co-dependant life that was slowly destroying her, a baby came… So the journey takes a turn, t...

I saw a clear image of a horse and in recognising its colour and features I did some research and found the Palomino horse which is known for its golden chestnut coat and sometimes white patches. The image showed the horse as though you were standing in front of it, communicating and connecting.  The horse is a beautiful spirit animal representing freedom, bliss, optimism, drive, passion, direction, goals and result. It asks you to ride it in spirit knowing it will take you quickly to your destination.  This piece also includes the Mayan calendar, speaking of ancient wisdoms and oneness with creation. The calendar represents both the past and the present, and our place, our role within the marking of time. What is our mark? What will we leave behind once we have moved on? We are part of the ever continuous spiral of life. Part of a greater unfolding destiny, a greater plan. 

The only image that came to me before doing this painting was a shell. It was silver and glittering like a mirror. I felt after painting the shell in the bottom left hand corner where I had seen it in the mental image, that there was more to paint around it. So I started drawing intuitively on the canvas and the image of a women came. The maori word ‘oneone’ came to me as I was painting her face. I also felt quite emotional and cried tears of a deep love. I looked up the word ‘oneone’ and found out that it meant ‘soil’ in te reo maori. I then researched maori creation stories as I felt this had relevance and found the story of Hineahuone, the first women who was made from the soil.  What an honour to be painting about this subject, the beginning of creation. There is so much written about this subject, teachings that are cultural, religious, spiritual and scientific, but all ultimately the same truth. I believe the epitome of this subject is that we were all created out of lov...

White Wolf Dreaming I had let this painting slip through without blogging about it…I finished this a year ago and gifted it to a dear person in my life. It was a painting I did without a commission but I felt inspired to do it. Then it came to light that it was for someone close to me. I think the painting speaks for itself. It is about the White Wolf Spirit and the spiritual guidance and direction we receive from the First Nations peoples of the Americas with the many spiritual gifts they channel from the Great Spirit.  I know my own spiritual path has been inspired several times through their guidance, and I will be eternally grateful. These are a people, like many other indigenous brothers and sisters in the world, who have suffered greatly, but continue to hold on to the spiritual teachings their forefathers gave them. I know in my heart that they will help heal this world, and many will continue to go to them for help and guidance.  “Hear me, four quarters...

It was wonderful to do this commission. It has been a while since I did the last one as I had chosen to focus on a solo exhibition over the past year, honouring two hundred years from the Birth of the Bab, one of the central figures of the Baha’i Faith.  This painting was for someones daughter who I hadn’t met in person. After receiving her name, I allowed a reflective moment on what her piece would be, then I saw beautiful white and soft pink flowers spread out as though they were floating or falling, but they looked like a pattern. I recognised them as the flower of the ‘burning bush’, the holy bramble, as I had used this flower in a painting when I was part of a collaborative exhibition honouring the bicentenary of the birth of Baha’u’llah two years ago.  I looked into this moment of reflection again and I could see a white peacock had appeared from behind the flowers so straight away I recognised that this painting would have spiritual significance. After finishing ...

This painting is about awakening to our higher conciousness, our spiritual reality. This piece began by reading a name someone had written in my enquiry book. I had a stall at a local expo called ‘Nourish Your Soul’ and while I had temporarily left my stall, I had a book for people to use if I wasn’t there. When I picked up the book and saw the name, I suddenly heard the name Shiva and saw a vague vision of a male figure facing me with a circle of circles surrounding him. I was very curious, so even though this person had not asked for a painting, not knowing that much about Shiva, I decided to go ahead with the painting. I had a large canvas at home that I had picked up from the local hospice shop, and it had been painted in acrylic with the word NAMASTE and a lotus flower. This would be perfect to use. So I prepared the painting by going over it with a few coats of white, then I did a couple of coats of gold paint in a brushed effect that reminded me of wood grain.   I rou...

When I was asked to do an intuitive painting for someones daughter, I had a vision of grass with dasies and dandelions. Straight away I was surprised at the simplicity of the image, or rather the commonality. This is a part of nature we often see, as it is literally right beneath our feet. Maybe on a deeper level  it symbolises   her daughters papa kāinga - original home, her whenua - land and her tūrangawaewae - place where one has the right to stand. Papatuanuku - our earth mother, gives us all we need to survive, nutures and sustains us. As children we play on her, we pick the daisies and make daisey chains, climb trees, run over fields, gather kai to eat; she is our nourishment, spiritually and physically.  Although a simple image, to paint grass was quite a challenge. It was almost meditative with the time it took painting many green shoots, the repetitive shapes, forming a blanket of green. I felt an acknowledgement to this gift we have, grass covers much of ou...

When I saw this piece in my mind, I saw a large male stag standing there majestically looking at me. I love the beauty of these animals and was excited to see and paint one. I was curious why this would have come through for this person. I went ahead and tried to paint on canvas the image I had seen. I was aware through out the process of a male father like presence. It was as though the stag represented the commissioners father in some way. I felt a protective male energy that showed a love and loyalty to his family. I was also aware that the stag felt like it was in a New Zealand setting. In the background I painted a deer and its fawn to further enhance the message of protection.   In many cultures the deer symbolises spiritual authority. In traditional Christian symbolism, the deer symbolised piety, devotion and God taking care of his children (humanity), which is similar to the feeling I got from this piece except it was the father taking care of his family. For ...

When I was asked in May 2018 to do an intuitive painting for a friends grandson who was twelve years old, I never expected to recieve a vision of a fish! This was a particular shaped fish, and although I didn't know the kind of fish at the time, it didn't take long to match the right name to the image I saw. I soon found out this fish was the Kuparu also known as the John Dory.  But what relevance does the Kuparu have with this young man? In the research I did next, I came to learn that the John Dory is a coastal fish and is found especially in the East Coast of New Zealand. It so happens that one of the hapu this boy belongs to is Te Aitanga-a-Hauiti, the descendants of Hauiti, from the East coast Region. On the arrival of the British explorer Captain James Cook in 1769 and Tupaia the Tahitian who accompanied Cook on his voyage around the Pacific, this local hapu gifted some Kuparu to the explorers. Several casks of them were pickled.  When his grandmother saw his p...

Sometimes with intuitive painting an image comes to my minds eye but the details are elusive. This time I could see a white bird in flight. I could see the back of the bird with its wings almost reaching upward. But which bird? It looked small and a typical shape, and the words ‘Snow bill’ popped into my head. I looked this up but the closest I found to that name was the Spoon Bill. It didn’t look like this though. I kept looking and found a ‘White Tern’. This is a bird that flies the Pacific Ocean and is beautiful, but it had a black beck - so maybe a bird with a white beck since the words ‘snow bill’ came to me. Then to make it even more confusing, these two birds felt fine to choose…The presence with me was so supportive and happy whatever I choose. It was really nice to experience this kind of joy and gratefulness but I smiled because I still needed to find a bird. I felt a stronger pull towards an American bird, so I tried a white Humming Bird, and yes that felt right, and it had...

To begin with I didn’t realise who this painting was for. I had been asked to do a painting for a long time friend who was soon to move to another town, but I had actually forgotten. When I remembered, I was almost half way through this one, which I thought I was doing just for my own practice, then I realised it was for her all along. I am glad I had started it already so I was able to give it to her before she left. This painting took longer than usual as it was filled with detail. I drew it out initially with nothing in mind, and it grew almost like a diagram with four main sections. I realised that each part represented a different element. The Phoenix was fire, the mermaid/siren - water, Pan, the earth, and a fairie/nymph - air. The eight pointed star I felt was an amalgamation of these elements; the four elements over laping to form this shape representing oneness or unity. I later intuitively received the word 'Elemental' - which at the time I didn't even know w...

I won't say much about this piece. I am happy to explain how I painted it, but the rest, it is not my place to know or say.  This piece is for a friend of mine who, some time ago, went on a beautiful journey in receiving her moko kauae. I wasn't at all surprised then, that the intuitive image I received for her, featured her ta moko. I was surprised though by the simplicity of this piece. At first, the image I got was plain black with a white rectangle, in the base of which sat her moko kauae. That was it. Very minimalist but striking I thought.  So I went to paint this, but instead of painting the black, I started with several layers of red, leaving the white rectangle untouched. Then several layers of black on top of the red. I then just went free style and started to layer the black and wet it, then started to scratch back down to the red in lines representing the feathers of a korowai - a traditional cloak. Then I painted some faint white and blue lines, forming a shap...

“The Nurturer” were the only two words that came to me while painting this for a dear friend and then in reflection thoughts came to me to go with these words. Straight away I recognised the title as one of the many names of our Creator. The meaning of nurture is to care and protect someone while they are growing. When many have been left devoid of care and protection in this life time, they can always put their trust in God, commune with Him and feel warmth and security. Like an old friend I know, who’s upbringing fell short of her basic needs resulting in emotional and physical illness...By turning to God in her later life, she said she felt a love and comfort she's never felt before.  The need to be nutured is fundamental for a healthy life. In this physical life time, nurturing plays a vital role in our development. Women nurture their babies and children, fathers provide, care and protect their family and the earth provides all the sustenance we need. These are plain trut...