Artfelt - Intuitive Art

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...