PICKLE TUB

When we would arrive,

the pickles were in the bathtub,

and the hornets were already

flying up the chimney

That black bat

had attached itself securely

to the back of that couch .

How it got in there ,

we have no idea

But it most assuredly

Had been contentedly

feasting on pickles and hornets

for weeks…

This home

is not home,

or like any other

home…

But it IS home to us …

nevertheless…

It was built by

the giant hands of my father

and my father’s father

on my mother’s father’s land …

After working hard all week ,

you would come up here,

and work hard , too ,

and yet

I think it hardly bothered you,

it hardly felt like work at all,

to you …

You carried carefully

the stones from the fields,

to place them elsewhere

in the fields

to stack them together,

one stone on top of the other,

creating these swollen round walls

that were never meant to

to keep anything out

and would never want

to keep anything in ….

RED CRESCENTS IN A FIELD OF YELLOW DAFFODILS

The tractor broke down

in the unturned fields.

But you didn’t worry.

You just bent the steel,

and collected the cogs…

You re-imagined it.

You re -assembled it all .

And now we have instead

Steel red Crescent,

hanging low,

sculpted tractor cogs and all,

standing tall

in a still untilled field

full of your yellow daffodils.

SCULPTED SKY

These tiny toes of mine

are dangling over

your strong , broad shoulders.

The view from here is dizzying

I feel as if I’m falling…

Those giant , weathered hands of yours

Wrap so gently around

my tiny defiant, ankles …

and my world wobbles…

I duck down under the Dogwood

Then rise up to re-meet the horizon

with my eyes,

where I find the mountains

are sculpting the skies …

I sway WAY back

and then up

and I AM DIZZY

and certain I am falling , but …

YOUR steps are so SURE :

“Hold on Marl, darling “ you say :

“I have you …you’re safe with me …”

YELLOW FENCES AND THE NASTURTIUM

With our last breath,

your Nasturtium grows:

filling in spaces

climbing up fences ,

your fingers plotting it’s path…

You cared for it tenderly,

just as you did the weeds

and the gravel and the grasses,

and the places the doe would go ,

with her faun,

to feed on your flowers…

I often stand at the window

and dream of the apple tree,

rotten fruit between my toes

STONE ANGELS IN A GLASS HOUSE

In the back yard

Low rolling hills

Stones gathered

and stacked together

Stone Angels

Perched in a glass house :

This is where we float.

This is where we celebrate

in a circle

under roses

A WALK THROUGH UNTURNED FIELDS & SLIDING ACROSS THE SNOW

Sunshine

Sits poised

At your poisoned toes,

Clippers in hand ,

Cautiously cutting…

My brother

your only son ,

brings you shoes made of rubber,

soft and round and molding

themselves perfectly

to your feet …

Your feet .

Heavy feet .

Swollen feet .

Lotus feet :

From your soles

to my crown

your wisdom, your history,

your story is carried…

Your feet that have always

carried me everywhere:

In Autumn ,

We walked through

unturned fields:

In Winter

we slid across

the snow ;

When spring came ,

you sat down ;

And in summer …

You let go …

LEAN IN

Stretch forward.

Sing out .

Let go and

Lean in : Unfold and Be Yes

I will always wonder

What your

Marble

Milky

Eyes

We’re seeing

Giants In The Garden

his life

was inextricably connected

to the Earth ,

the Land ,

the dirt, and all things that grow …

From the vegetable garden-

from which I can remember

picking tomatoes as a child -

to the exquisite flower gardens

he crafted through out his career ,

my memories of him are small and particular:

The smell of Petrichor,

soil under his knotted nails

sweat on his brow

from a hard day’s work :

AGIANT IN THE GARDEN …

In many ways,

he was an anachronism:

a farmer.

A child of a distant era ,

when candy only cost a dime…

And yet he spoke easily

and passionately

of the most modern

abstract,

and complex of concepts:

Flow. Space. Rhythm.

An artist to his core…

I miss him,

but I know that

when we need to talk

all i must do

is speak to the trees,

and the GIANTS IN HIS GARDEN

JOURNEY INTO THE GREAT ROUND

AN EXHIBITION OF NEW ARTWORK AT TSKW

opening March 3rd

In 2014 I facilitated a yoga art and art retreat to Nicaragua titled “Sacred circles “ . This retreat was the beginning of my investigation into the relationship between sacred geometry, spirituality and personal growth.

since that seven day retreat I have discovered a school of thought calledTHE GREAT ROUND , A schema based on the patterns and rhythms in nature which are mirrored in the human condition and experiences.

beginning with the work of Swiss psychoanalysis C.G.Jung , Who pointed out that. “Circular designs are significant in the process of becoming an authentic individual.”

Jung surmised that circles or mandalas are a manifestation of the self regulating systems of the psyche which maintains our orderly functioning and when necessary restores stability. Through his own creative process and that of his patience Jung uncovered an innate desire to create circular patterns, which he believed, expressed a conscious or subconscious state of mind. He goes on to state that there is”no linear Evolution, rather all phenomenon is cyclical” from the cycles of the seasons, the moon, the activities of agriculture to one’s own breath cycle. All things rest, awaken, expand, decline and dissolve only to repeat the cycle again.Jung discovered a variety of symbols and mandalas associated with these phases

C.G.Jung’s research is the groundwork for Dr. Joanne Kellogg. Inspired by Jung’s discoveries Kellogg collected and codified mandala designs into a system she called the archetypal stages of the great round. Kellogg proposes that the individual passes through all 12 of these stages in the arc of our existence. She further suggest that we repeat and forward back and forward into the stages in micro cycles throughout our life.

These stages are :

1.Resting in the darkness

2.Floating into light

3.Turning Towards the journey

4.Embracing the new

5.Claiming Selfhood

6.Igniting the fire

7.Squaring the circle

8.Functioning in the world

9.Reaping the rewards

10.letting go

11.Falling apart

12.Opening to Grace

It is from this research, philosophy and tradition that my series of artwork is inspired .

The journey into the great round begins with resting in the darkness …This stage is aligned with the month of January. It is the time when living things are dormant and seeds are buried beneath the ground. It is a place of stillness and quiet on our journey.

stage one is a time of deep rest, an interval of quietly knitting together new structures as yet unseen, and a moment of joining with the primordial waters of creation.

on a personal level I experience this stage each time a project comes to completion. It is the pause in between creation. My energy is low and often times I cannot imagine producing another piece of art. There is a sense of being in the darkness.

The first painting of my exhibition JOURNEY INTO THE GREAT ROUND is the painting REST .

This piece was created by layering cold wax and oil paint over several months creating a translucent effect . I then scraped and scrubbed into the surface achieving a subtle texture. Through this process a sense of vibration is achieved in the painting. It is the vibration of OM (AUM) the first sound, all sound and last sound according to the VEDANTA philosophy of India And the Hindu tradition.

Stage two of THE GREAT ROUND is Floating into the light and is represented by my painting BLISS a 36”x36” acrylic abstract .

FLOATING INTO THE LIGHT is a place which corresponds to the month of February and the predawn sky. In relationship to personal growth in the space one experiences a sense of rising energy, of inspiration and possibilities.

Although where you are going maybe yet unclear one is woke and perhaps even blissfully unaware of the difficulties that lie ahead.

My piece BLISS Was an opportunity for me to experiment and grow as an artist. This painting was created by layering abstract shapes with fluid acrylics. This technique is completely new to me and as I learned a great deal of openness and experimentation was necessary to achieve the desired effect.

Not only does the fluid nature of the painting reflect the watery element of stage two, but even more so the headspace and process in which it was made. A complete acceptance of chance and literally going with the flow was necessary. I worked intuitively on this painting and allowed it to tell me what was next .

In the painting BLISS we see the emergence of the colors and shapes of the chakra system.