THERAPY/THERAPEUTIC?

Into The Symphony Oil on linen 120 x 160 2008

Art therapy, facilitated by a trained art therapist, has a role in counselling and psychotherapy with potential to help reveal psychological wounds, as well help heal them. This link will provide you with more information. Art therapy, as a professional practice is worthwhile.

An additional link [added here June 2020] for a good overview of Art Therapy is at Most Craft/ Art Therapy Exercises

I am not an art therapist and this post is not about art therapy, as a professional practice.

However, in many quarters, the arts are perceived, and are often described as, being 'therapeutic'.

BUT, as an artist I am cautious of this word 'therapeutic'. Why? Because it is a loose word...a word that, for me at least, hinges on an illusion of worth. It's a word that, if partnered with the arts, I believe, can transfer, stir and even augment collective pathologies. It is a word that sounds important, but is it? Maybe it is, in fact, dangerous?

I have thought about this issue over many years. But, last night I attended a fascinating presentation at the Qld Jung Society by Dr. Jennifer Leigh Selig. The title of her presentation was The Content of their Complexes:  The Archetype of the Wounded Leader as Explored Through Martin Luther King, Jr. and Barack Obama.  She spoke about the relationship between a leader and his/her society/culture and the projections from both onto the other ie: a leader's core complex [in the Jungian sense] will essentially be the one permeating society at the time and vice versa. In the transference state, in the centre of the relationship, are two possibilities. One is a kind of transcendence, over time, beyond the prevailing issue for both the leader and the society, where the symphony of life can be heard clearly. The other possibility is sinking into the complex's pathology leading to cynicism, depression, violence...a place where the symphony's music is muffled. The latter is perhaps where many societies find themselves today? Alas.

Collective Memory Oil on linen 80 x 120 cm 2008

Dr. Selig's presentation got me thinking about how the arts can be either reflective or affective...or both... of prevailing societal complexes. But, I asked myself, is simply being reflective even affective...and affective of what? We all know what happened to the reflection-loving Narcissus! I also asked myself, if the arts has a catalytic agency that is not tethered to any prevailing complexities, is this where the light of transcendence lies? If so, the term 'therapeutic' is inappropriate, limiting and pedestrian. I have previously written that I prefer the idea of  'catalytic agency' rather than 'role' because the latter alludes to preconceptions of all kinds and hierarchies, whereas 'catalytic agency' heralds the unknown, invites the unforeseen, bypasses restriction going forth with a compassionate impulse. 'Catalytic agency' stirs and ignites imagination, and I would argue, goes beyond the therapeutic where roles, agendas and hierarchies [eg: therapist/patient] are implied.

I write this thinking about current global economic turmoils and their ricocheting outcomes locally with the loss of jobs, political cynicism, consumer malaise, spiritual emptiness. It is also against a background of conflict in the Middle East and outsider interventions, judgements etc. It is against a background of media idolatry and the relinquishment of thinking to the panacea of technology. It is against a background of general fear...a fear of economic and financial loss, to technological  failure, to literal physical death.

With all this in mind I ask...is the fate of art that reflects simply pathological mimicry... constantly reminding us of humankind's weaknesses, ultimately stirring the pot of despondency and maintaining a status quo? Maybe? Or does it help us feel better by somehow soothing emotions, such as guilt, as we appropriate imagery that is essentially derived from suffering and fear...thus we 'suffer' too? Maybe? Do we feel better about our spiritual emptiness with a purchase of an artwork created by an Indigenous artist, because in the act of purchasing we feel [subconsciously] we've gained some spirit, that allusive 'sense' perceived to be the arena of the Indigene? Spirit as commodity surely aids and abets emptiness!

Is the suggestion that the arts are therapeutic a symptom of a societal complex rather than a promise?

I do believe that amongst the debris of disintegration we will find the light to guide us to the first possibility posed by Dr. Selig; that place of transcendence beyond the prevailing issue for both the leader and the society where the symphony of life can be heard clearly. The 'light' and the 'music' will need to be sought and uncovered. Reflection, for me, does no digging.

Compassion Oil on linen 100 x 100 cm 2011

Cheers,Kathryn
www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

FAITH

 Shared Destinies Oil on linen 120 x 160 cm 2007

I have previously written, on this BLOG, that I have faith in complexity; the kind of complexity which reveals itself as a deep and infinite pool where the ripples of time and life perpetually reveal secrets in the ebb and flow of questioning, wonder, imagination and discovery. However, the kind of complexity some humans create, pours oil over the waters of time and life, obscuring revelation, and neutering wonder and imagination.  It does not nurture life's universal forces or open us to fulsome understanding and appreciation. It pales into dangerous simplicity when compared with the universal complexity of all life forces. Humankind's 'complexity' is illusory as it distracts and detracts.

The recent riots currently experienced around the world, plus the intent of the creators of the anti Islam film which lit the flames of violence, are examples of some of humankind's drive to obscure the wonders and joys of life. I believe, for the majority of people, no matter what their beliefs are, there is no desire to light, and keep fuelling the flames of violence, disrespect, hate and negativity. Yet, we find the world transfixed, angry, incredulous, fearful and anxious in the face of recent happenings which draw us toward the flames, gathering us into the divisionist intent. Compassion erodes and this erosion may well be the ultimate aim?

Compassion Oil on linen 100 x 100 cm 2010

Shared History Oil n linen 80 x 120 cm 2006

 

The three paintings Shared Destinies [top], Shared History [above] and Histories [below] all 'speak' about the shared human existence: we all share the planet and call it 'home', signs of life ie: heart beat and breath are common, we share age-old stories and symbols, and we all share an urge for identity. Societal identity is manifested in culture and religion, where focusing on outward differences conceals the underlying common urge. Unfortunately, this focus and ultimate concealment fans the flames of humakind's illusory and dengerous 'complexity'.

 

The three paintings all use the age-old transcultural/religious tree-of-life symbol as a visual guide to explore ideas of shared history. In all the paintings the tree-of-life connects beyond the human experience, touching the sky and igniting the heavens, connecting us to all of life and its beautiful complexity. I use the word 'beautiful' deliberately because, as regular readers will know, I don't believe beauty has an antonymn. Therefore, the divisionism of the kind created by humankind's illusion is not a problem. Please check out my previous posts BEAUTY GIVES HOPE A CHANCE

and BEAUTY-HAS NO ANTONYM

 

Histories  Oil on linen 80 x 200 cm 2005 

 Mountains and Metaphors Oil on linen 2005

 

 

Mountains and Metaphors is a painting which 'speaks' about overcoming adversity. The mountain is a metaphor for adversity, which upon ascent reveals new horizons and perspectives, giving fuel for optimism and hope.

 

The world currently has an enormous 'mountain' to ascend. At the foothills, in the shadow of the mountain, greed, hate, anger, fear, prejudice, judgement and a plethora of other human frailties grip our ankles, maintaining a myopia and giving rise to violent tackle.

 

Yet if we can twist our ankles, forcing myopia's grip to release, we can ascend the mountain. At the summit all horizons, literal and metaphoric, are revealed; those behind, in front, below and above. Optimism and hope are given a chance, a breath of fresh air. At the summit of the metaphoric mountain humankind's place within the universe can be seen, as myopic sight is untangled to reveal Galactic Horizons and Beyond. The opportunity to see all perspectives, even simultaneously, is exciting. I am optimistic...yet optimism is a choice. Please check out my previous post on optimism MYOPTIMISM

 

The summit of the mountain gives us an opportunity to 'see' and 'feel' a universal pulse, the rhythm that dances in unison with our hearts. This pulse is eternal, even if humankind is not.

 

The summit of the mountain gives a chance to breath freely, to 'see' and 'feel' the breath of eternity, its rhythmic inhale and exhale in unison with our own breathing. Eternity's Breath is lent to us for humankind's duration.

 

The summit of the mountain reveals what true complexity is. It is beautiful. It holds the secrets to life, awaiting perpetual revelation. It is not simple, simplistic or didactic about what is right or wrong. It stimulates questions, wonder and imagination. It is where light shines and where compassion uncovers humankind's illusions of difference to reveal common and shared traits within the human race and the universal rhythm of life. 

 

Have faith in complexity!

 

 

 Earth's Pulse oil on linen 80 x 200 2006

Please check out HERE and HERE

 Infinity Oil on linen 100 x 70cm 2011

 

 Galactic Horizons and Beyond Oil on linen 90 x 150 cm 2012

Eternity's Breath oil on linen 90 x 150 cm 2012

 

Cheers Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

ALL OF US

All Of Us Gouache on paper 15 x 21 cm

I have three stretched canvases ready to paint. I've prepared the initial layers of paint and ideas are tripping through my brain. I am going to start on one after I have written this post. And, it will be linked to this new work on paper, above, titled All Of Us.

Regular readers will immediately recognise my much loved age old transcultural/religious tree-of-life. Yes, it's the 'shadow' [seemingly] behind the two figures, one male and one female. This 'shadow' represents variously, all history, geneology, human race evolution.

Yet, the figures are ambigiously orientated. Are they looking into past history with their backs to the future? Are they looking forward to unwritten future history with their backs to the past? Are they able to see all past and future histories with abilities to view from multiple perspectives simultaneously? The latter is a sophisticated way of viewing the world and the universe. I believe, in the 21st century, that we are being invited [perhaps implored] to 'see' this way. I suggest being able to see multiple perspectives simultaneously will enable humankind to [re]ignite imagination, wonder and compassion, to reveal better questions, which ultimately will lead to better answers. These answers, may lead to more questions, but the result could go beyond sustainability of the planet [and humankind] to something more. 

NEWS

                                                   Cosmic Frisson Oil on linen 90 x 180 cm

I have just sold Cosmic Frisson [above] to a new hospital! Very excited.

PLUS

• My entry for the $25,000 Mandorla Art Prize in Perth is a finalist. The award is announced 10 August. I will upload an image once the exhibition is live.My painting is called Birth of Knowledge.

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

ELEMENTAL DANCE

Elemental Dance Oil on linen 55 x 80 cm

 

I hope those of you who read my last post 'Love-Valentine's Kind' enjoyed a bit of fun. Dancing is also fun! It is also transformative in a number of diverse ways. It is great exercise, so can help with weight reduction. It can be a very social passtime where frissons of romance blossom. It can take an individual to places within as they lose themselves in the energy of movement and music. I've seen my daughter dancing in ways which indicate she has lost herself in the moment. I remember the same feelings when I was younger and used to prance around my parents' living room. I have seen how dancing, with the need to remember sequences and work as a team when in a group, assist in alleviating attention deficit issues and sequential thinking blockages. I know dance can express more than words can say...it's like a painting!

The Whirling Dervishes are, of course, one of the most famous examples of the transformative power of dancing and movement. Check out this website for more information. The repeated whirling movement mirroring the revolving or circular motions of the universe within us and beyond to the multiverse.

In the painting above 'Elemental Dance' I have tried to capture Mother Nature's embodiment of life, the quiver, the quake and the jazz! Everything is in a constant state of movement, whether quickened or slowed. Life is a symphony! It is an ongoing one propelled by nature's pulse. The painting below 'Into The Symphony' is an older painting, but 'speaks' of the nuances of life's rhythm.

In 'Elemental Dance' the female figure representing Mother Nature is the link between everything. The two trees-of-life erupting from her head and feet connect her to all seemingly opposite elements. The  red umbilical-like cord which connects her heart with the larger tree-of-life is the universal/ multiversal pulse.

We are dance partners with Mother Nature! Sometimes we take steps that do not synchronise, such as plundering resources in ways that are detrimental to the environment. But, the dance will go on   sometimes with tempo and other times with restorative slow waltzes.

I consider my work at one level to be quite political in a provocative sense rather than an overt one.

Regular readers will know I have written about this before, particularly in reference to beauty. By

harnessing beauty, love and compassion we have the capacity to neuter violent and agressive argument. The very act of harnessing then can be seen as the supreme political act.

BEAUTY POSTS

Lifeblood

Beauty and The Vortex

Beauty as a Portal

Beauty Gives Hope a Chance

Into The Symphony Oil on linen 120 x 160 cm

http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2008/09/into-symphony.html

http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2008/09/into-symphony-again.html

COUNT DOWN

For Everyone: Words and Paintings

Book Launch!

Details HERE

APRIL QUIVER

17-29 April

Solo exhibition

Graydon Gallery, Merthyr Rd, New Farm Brisbane

QUIVER is an exhibition of new paintings inspired by concepts of Mother Nature. Using the age-old transcultural/religious tree-of-life symbol, Kathryn Brimblecombe-Fox explores distance from the nano to the multiversal. In this distance where perspective, both literal and metaphoric, takes on multi layered dimensions, the quiver …tremble….vibration…of all life reminds us of the shared rhythmic pulse across time and space. 

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

P.S. If you are looking for THE perfect Valentine's gift, then make sure you check out 'Love...Valentine's Kind'

LAST DAY OF PARADISE

Video of PARADISE

Today ie: 8 October is the last day of PARADISE....my solo exhibition at Purgatory Artspace, 170 Abbotsford St, North Melbourne.PH: 61 3 9329 1860  purgatoryartspace@gmail.com 11 am - 5 pm TODAY!!!!

Here are a few of the paintings.

Meeting Place Of The Mind oil on linen 100 x 70 cm 2011

$3900 AUD*

http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2011/06/meeting-place-of-mind.html

Infinity Oil on linen 100 x 70 cm 2011

$3900 AUD*

http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2011/06/infinity.html

Knowing Stillness Oil on linen 85 x 150 cm 2011

$5300 AUD*

http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2011/06/knowing-stillness.html

* The prices are current as of Octoner 2011 and do not include freight.

TO SEE ALL OF THE PARADISE PAINTINGS
The entire exhibition can be viewed at http://www.visualartist.info/visualartist/artist/subpage.asp?ex=gallery&I=1690&sub=5777&artistId=1292&PageId=1690

The individual paintings are at the bottom of this page. You can click each image to see a separate page with all the details, including prices for particular images.

PARADISE READING!

Please also read: http://www.artabase.net/exhibition/3275-paradise and

http://www.thecultureconcept.com/circle/paradise-in-purgatory-kathryn-brimblecombe-fox-finding-light

GOOD NEWS!

My entry for the BLAKE PRIZE http://www.blakeprize.com.au/ whilst not getting into the finalists was apparently in the group considered for the finals. AND, from that group the directors select works for what's called the DIRECTORS' CUT EXHIBITION. And, my entry COMPASSION is in it! http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2010/07/compassion.html

This link will take you to where you can see the list of selected artists. http://www.blakeprize.com.au/news/2011-directors-cut-artists-announced

The DIRECTORS' CUT is an online exhibition and the images are live from 26 October - 23 January. I'll keep you informed!

SOME FUN

And you can vote for my portfolio which I have entered into a competition called ART TAKES MIAMI. There's an independent judging process.... as well as a 'people's choice'. You can vote for me @

http://kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.see.me/atm2011

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

http://www.youtube.com/user/kabrimblecombe?feature=mhee

COMPASSION

                                           Compassion Oil on linen 100 x 100 cm

I have been pondering the painting above...yes, while I was painting it [of course!] but also when I have been driving my car, before I go to sleep at night, as I have been eating a meal, and last night even my dreams were preoccupied with it. As I ponder, the painting seems to grow beyond its boundaries. I wanted to create an image which 'spoke' of compassion, in a similar way that my ealier painting Love 'spoke' of love. http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2010/01/love.html

I really enjoyed painting both Love and Compassion and could feel an emotional essence transferring to, and then from, each painting. Regular readers would know that I have written about compassion previously. Indeed, I have a post in 2008 called 'Compassion' http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2008/08/compassion.html

Compassion, to me, is more sustainable than sympathy, which relies on a relationship of giver and receiver, thus a heirarchy. Sympathy certainly has its place, particularly after a disaster. But, ongoing sympathy, given and received, allows for an emotional colonisation process that can lead to power plays. Compassion is a more equal dynamic, where differences as well as similarities are acknowledged, and where, with imagination, each party can place themselves in another's shoes. Compassion is about negotiating distances of perception and perspective, to a point where, with the help of imagination, a person can move back and forth between how they see themselves, how others may see them and how others see themselves and so on.
With Compassion I wanted to suggest a meeting of difference, which obviously has underlying basic similarities. So, I used my transcultural/religious tree-of-life/knowledge, one a dark purple and the other a dark green. As the two trees' branches move closer the colour softens, until they meet in a light pink, which seems to pulse. Small dots, yellow on the left and sky blue on the right, fill the spaces between the trees' branches. Again, the colours soften as they move closer together, until the meet in a frisson of white [light].

Difference is signified in the different colours of the two trees and small dots. However, basic similarities are 'held' within the symbolism of the tree-of-life. For me these are those things which signal life ie: heart beat, breath, as well as the urge for identity and shared stories across religions and cultures over time. The trees' branches suggest a vascular, system-like quality which is augmented by the dots, giving the circular shape a sense of movement, even a pulse.

The circle indicates continuity of life, eternity, time, humankind memory. Yet, the image may be a cross- section of something even more dynamic such as a spiral. If this is the case the past and future are contained within the image...our souls' immortality perhaps? I also wanted to create an impression of a halo hovering in the endless space of the universe. After all, halos hover above those that are perceived to be holy, and thus presumably compassionate. Halos also have connotations of light, as in the light of God. When the two trees meet in a pulse of white light compassion evolves into an expression which is much larger than the moment or place. This is the power of spirit.

The wreath-like appearance of the circle of trees evokes the compassion felt during memorial services, particularly for fallen soldiers. Indeed, compassion contains gratefulness whether it be for soldiers who gave their lives for us, or for important religious characters, such as Christ, who gave his life for humanity.
Compassion, rather than sympathy, has the capacity to affect the world in positive ways. It is sustainable because it it not hard work. It really only requires an urge and imagination.

ADDED APRIL 2011
This painting was in my exhibition VORTEX: Seeking Stillness At Its Core in February 2011. A visitor to the show brought in a pair of 3D glasses. Once I put on the glasses, many of my paintings immediately separated into multiple layers which I felt could be touched and traversed. 'Compassion' took on a spiral like impression, as if part of the circle receeded and continued back into the painting. I was thrilled! When I wrote the earlier post above I said, 'The circle indicates continuity of life, eternity, time, humankind memory. Yet, the image may be a cross- section of something even more dynamic such as a spiral. If this is the case the past and future are contained within the image...our souls' immortality perhaps?'
I wrote about the 3D glasses in a post after the exhibition. Here's the link http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2011/03/3d.html

Kathryn  http://www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com/

ARTIFICE OF FANTASY

From The Stillness Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm

I am back in the studio properly now, after my break following FRISSON. The house smells of turps. I smell of turps. I call it my 'eau de turps' perfume. I spent this morning preparing the first layer of colour on 5 canvases. Lots of paint, turps and linseed oil! I also sat and stared at a 90 x 200 cm canvas which already has the background completed. I have so many ideas, I have to sift through each imagined image to 'test' to 'see' if it suits the long horizontal format, plus if I feel myself getting really excited about it. I've sketched and made notes to myself over the last 6 or so weeks and today I have been reading through my various art diaries to get a 'feel' for how I am going to proceed.

In the middle of all this activity I finished a work on paper [above] which I had started last week when I tentatively ventured into my room where I create my works on paper. I have to wait for the newly prepared canvases to dry, or partially dry, before I can splash some more paint around. Thus, finishing this work on paper helped me process some of my thoughts. I certainly don't want to lose my thoughts!!!

The painting above is called 'From The Stillness'. It depicts my imagined self inside a vortex. No, I am not unrelentingly caught up in a dizzying twirling and swirling, but rather, I am in the core of the vortex where I imagine stillness, yet unfathomable positive energy and unconditional love to exist. It is in the stillness that I imagine the presence of the divine, which I have symbolised with a white light that cascades over my body. This 'light' erupts from the vortex core into life, which is represented by my much loved transcultural-religious tree-of-life.

I have more images of vortex cores and erupting white light inside my head. Plus, I have images inside my head of elliptical galaxies, figures transforming into trees and much, much more. As each image appears in my imagination I know that they come from processes buried deep in my psyche and in time, which find their catalysts in wonder.

Now to some thoughts which are linked to all that I have already written above, but are broader in their perspective. Imagination is the superconductor of knowledge. Without imagination and wonder where would we be? Science, mathematics, philosophy...discovery of any kind is aided and driven by imagination and wonder. Yet, I sometimes think that people confuse imagination with fantasy. For me, the latter is more about wishful thinking and is prone to unhealthy distortion, pretense and superficiality. Oh, it can be fun, but it can also be dangerous as the imploded 'fantasy' of subprime loans and other crumbling edifices of the GFC have revealed. And, what about the 'fantasy' worlds created by leaders such as Mugabe, Hitler and others of their ilk?

I am reminded of J.K. Rowling's Commencement Address, “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination,” at the Annual Meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association
http://harvardmagazine.com/commencement/the-fringe-benefits-failure-the-importance-imagination
She says of imagination, Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared. She goes on to say,  I think the wilfully unimaginative see more monsters. They are often more afraid.

Maybe the 'wilfully unimaginative' are those prone to the artiface of fantasy? This makes one think about the role post-modernism has played [literally played!] in the artifice which the GFC has revealed and continues to reveal. I wrote a post in November 2008 about postmodenism and the implosion of financial markets and economies http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2008/11/after-implosion.html

All this makes one ponder upon art. It seems to me that fantasy may have crept into the visual lexicon, but at what cost? Fantasy can be arresting [momentarily], spectacular [as in being a spectacle], clever but not necessarily intelligent, seductive but not sensual, slapstick but not humourous, didactic [ie: not meaningful], interesting but not memorable...and so on. How can we tell when art is playing with fantasy or revelling in the superconducting depths of imagination and wonder?

J.K Rowling's statement about imagination being the vehicle by which we can empathise with others is pivotally important. It is the capacity to put oneself in another's shoes, bypassing gratuitous sympathy to plummet into the intimacy of shared compassion. It is the capacity to change perspective or even  to 'see' multiple perspectives simultaneously. Regular readers of this BLOG know of my intense interest in art's potential catalytic agency to stimulate new dance steps across the multiple perspectives which are revealed as we live locally in an increasingly globalised world. Compassion is paramount.

I highly recommend J.K. Rowlings speech which you can either read or watch @
http://harvardmagazine.com/commencement/the-fringe-benefits-failure-the-importance-imagination

Below is a picture of my 'studio' [garage] where I paint my large oil on linen paintings. You can see the first layer of colour on the 5 of the canvases I prepared this morning.

Cheers,
Kathryn

HORIZONS

Frisson Oil on linen 84 x 147cm 2010

The Hidden Seen In My Mind's Eye Oil on linen 80 x 120 cm 2004


I am working on a painting of a woman with trees growing out of her feet, hands, head and heart...and I am taking a moment as I walk away from the painting...I need to let it breath and for me to let go some frustration. Yes, this is just part of the process, the ebb and flow, the toooo and fro...and so on. It gives me time to 'see' the painting with new eyes when I go back into my studio [well garage!]. It gives the opportunity of a distance which reveals.

So, while I take my breathing moment I thought I'd write about the painting I uploaded in my last post. The painting is called 'Frisson' and whilst I wrote a post with it as the only and lead image, I did not write anything about it. Instead I wafted on about recipes for a frisson........

As you can see I have reloaded 'Frisson' and have uploaded an older work called 'The Hidden Seen In My Mind's Eye'. As I was reviewing my image files I noted, or felt, that the same sense was evident in both paintings. With 'Frisson' I wanted to create a soft, shimmering painting, and I wanted to experiment with using purple and yellow, and all the tones in between. I wanted the frisson feeeling to be one of tingles, a missed heart beat and luscious anticipation. I have to say though, the painting took a lot longer than a nano-second of tingles or a missed heart beat! But, I am happy with the meeting of soft colours, as if distance has melted upon the horizon, heralding the darkness of night and the inevitable rising of a new day. I also think the meeting of colours is like the momentary light brush of someone's hand or lips...yes someone you really like!!! It also whispers the flutter of angels' wings!

I have used my much loved tree-of-life to create the sense of a life force, as if tingles are travelling through a vascular system.

' The Hidden Seen In My Mind's Eye' is obviously an older painting, but I think it also heralds the new day as we witness the softness upon the horizon. I am very fond of this painting and I am surprised it has not sold as it receives a lot of attention when people see it. Obviously THE right person and THE right situation have not happened....yet!

I have mentioned horizons a few times in this post. As regular readers of my BLOG know, I often use landscape elements as metaphors. To me an horizon can also represent our own horizons, limitations, fears, goals, etc. Once an horizon is reached it disappears as other horizons present themselves... and they need not always be in front of us. Reaching an horizon can engender an 'Ah Ha'... or looking back from where we came can also shock us with an 'Ah Ah '... a revelatory kind. Horizons that we see with our eye, of eye ball and pupil, need to be mediated with those horizons we cannot see, because all horizons disappear once reached. We need to be able to imagine what is beyond the horizon. This imagining is imperative in a global world in which we live locally to ensure we are compassionate towards ourselves and others.

Cheers,
Kathryn

ONE

A few posts ago I said I was starting a large work which I wanted to appear like a wave of colour or a map of colour where boundaries fused. Well...the painting is nearly finished. The image above is me working on some of the last bits! My arm gets very tired!

My idea was to use my tree-of-life motif pouring it over the canvas with a multitude of colours creating from a distance a vision of a wave...yet up close the viewer sees where colours begin and end. I played with the idea of how a map when viewed up close will clearly show where boundaries exist yet when seen from a distance the boundaries are indiscernible. Thus, reminding us that the Earth is one planet with manmade markings meaning nothing when viewed with a distant perspective. As readers of this BLOG know I am very interested in both literal and metaphoric perspective with the latter holding clues to how we might negotiate a globalised world in which we live locally.

I was thinking about the colour which is released from white light hitting a prism. Ultimately all colours emanate from the one source. Humanity and life are like the colours released by a prism...ultimately we are one. We all share the common signs of life ie: breath and pulse. Plus we share the urge for identity which ultimately manifests in the creation of culture and religion, which unfortunately often lead to conflict. Yet, the primal urge for identity is the same.

I believe deep thought about perspective will reveal new pathways for peace on Earth and compassionate negotiation [of oursleves and others] of the distance between the global and local.

I am calling the painting 'One'.

One Oil on linen 90 x 200 cm 2009

FOREVER CONNECTED

The above painting is called 'Forever Connected'. My universal trans-cultural/religious tree-of-life becomes the burning bush in the story of Moses. This story is shared by the three Abrahamaic religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Across time people are connected by shared stories, just as the non-consuming fire represents an eternal connection of life to God, the Divine, Creation. Through shared stories we are also eternally connected.

After exhibiting in the Middle East and sharing conversations with people from all over the region I am interested in those things which remind us of similarity rather than difference. I am sure that the distance between people can be negotiated more compassionately through finding similarites rather than just focusing on differences.

The human urge for identity propels us to create different cultures and religions, yet the urge is fundamental and shared. Embracing the fundamental similarities between people means the differences can be rejoiced rather than cloaked with the word ‘tolerance’. To me this word is not a compassionate word. It suggests one has to try very hard to 'tolerate' and it evokes a sense of heirachy ie: the tolerator and the tolerated. I have written about compassion previously on my BLOG http://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2008/08/compassion.html


Forever Connected Oil on linen 120 x 80 cm 2008

AFTER THE IMPLOSION

                                                                      Sharing The Spaces

                                                                    After The Implosion

I started writing this [below] for a letter to a newspaper, but it got too long...so here it is for you instead!

THE IMPLOSION
Media commentary on the global financial implosion is peppered with key descriptive words which have seemingly gone unscrutinised under the deluge of blame, fear and doom reporting and rhetoric. Words such as ‘bubble’, ‘magical’, ‘fantasy’, ‘unreal’, ‘dreamland’ and ‘nothing’ describe the antithesis of reality, yet they hold clues to identifying the underlying motivational [albeit not necessarily conscious] reason for the financial and economic turmoil which has swept swiftly throughout the globe. This reason goes beyond Gordon Gekko’s simple and obvious greed.

Over the last twenty to thirty years postmodernism's distortion into slippery yet seductive narcissistic tendencies and a love of simulacra has insidiously infiltrated many of society’s institutions via memetic means. Narcissism is characterised by a self worship, which proclaims a right to flout rules and regulations, at the same time as making them up for others, who abide only to find the rules change in a nano second, or they are so complex multiple interpretations confuse. Narcissism’s passive-aggressive qualities dupe people into thinking someone cares making sympathy a tool to emotionally colonise the poor, underprivileged and powerless. Conversely the latter [along with everyone else] succumb to the narcissistic seduction by believing they can have a house, a car or whatever without concrete obligation.

The slippery and swift manoeuvring of ‘dud’ deals into packaged ‘investment’ entities to offload onto someone else is narcissism’s game, aided and abetted by simulation. The simulated experience is also seductive because an escape to a fantasy world where everything is available and abundant seems possible. The sub prime debacle is an example of simulacra vanishing in the face of ‘authentic’ experiences of ‘real life’, one example being interest rate rises. The debacle whipped the rug from under narcissism’s feet causing the economic ‘house of cards’ largely built from more simulacra to collapse.

Society’s core values have been hijacked by the underbelly of post modernism’s narcissistic inability to share. Lack of emotion, except for selfish and sensationalist emotional displays designed to manipulate, is a characteristic of narcissism. In varying degrees this behaviour is part of normal teenage development, so perhaps the crisis is a wake-up call to grow up! The world currently has deeply bended knees. The hope is that when the world jumps it actually moves and does not land on the same spot becoming the arrested teenager. The latter is unlikely because the crisis is very serious and the need for new paradigms supported by core values which embrace the experiences of a world where globalisation has collapsed the distance of difference is obvious.

The implosion could be seen as an inevitable aspect of post modernism’s demise and simultaneously a sign of burgeoning new paradigms which collectively have yet to be named [and possibly even identified]. Within the artworld artists, academics and theorists have been contemplating the question of ‘what’s next?’ for some time. In this way the artworld can be seen as a barometer for detecting, reflecting [and sometimes affecting] change well before the broader community is aware that failing structures are actually heralding something new. Hopefully whatever is ‘new’ will retain the best of postmodernism including its creative insistence to stretch boundaries to test whether what seems impossible has real possibility.

Art’s agency is its potent ability to be reflective, yet at its weakest this can merely scaffold existing paradigms. Art’s less obvious agency is its ability to be affective albeit not deliberately so, otherwise it falls prey to restrictive and prescriptive didacticism and purpose. Flexible skills in perspective are needed to negotiate or dance across the contemporary ‘stage’ which exists between the global and local ‘wings’. Art's agency is its potential to provide experiences with multiple, distorted, unexpected perspectives both literally and metaphorically.

Perspective of others and self is enabled by contemporary life which is about living locally in the increasingly globalised world. Thus, perspective gained by experiencing multiple viewpoints creates a [potential] space/place where compassion for self and others can flourish and be shared in dignified, equal and mature relationships, negotiations and transactions in all areas of life.

Healthy self-interest becomes a compassionate urge at a micro level knowing that it wants and needs to positively affect the community or macro level. World leaders and the general population must re-build foundations based on underlying compassionate principles taking into account the individual and the collective. For this to be effective it needs to be done without wasting time on blame and retribution because basically we all passively [through ignorance and disinterest] or actively played in post modernism’s illusory playground where ‘bubbles’, ‘magic’, ‘fantasy’, ‘unreality’, 'dreamland' were the games [albeit at times very enjoyable games].

All good things must come to an end and whatever happens next will ultimately implode/deconstruct/die to make room for the necessary out-picturing of evolutionary urges.


Image above-After The Implosion Gouache on paper 25 x 18 cm 2008
This work on paper was inspired by the possibility of something new happening in the aftermath of implosion. The 'new 'errupts in a way which whilst not necessarily identifiable is possibly detectible by the very existence of implosion. I have used the spiral to reference my interest in Don Beck's Spiral Dynamic Integral theory. http://www.spiraldynamics.net/

Sharing The Spaces Gouache on paper 21 x 30 cm 2008

Spaces are created when we have perspective literal and metaphoric. The distance in these spaces can be close or far, spatial or temporal, conscious or unconscious, material or spiritual and so on. These spaces are not empty.