The 21st of September is International Peace Day.
Last year shwe-shwe flags flew in this same tree.
This year I decided to fly wooden flags.
The pink Epiphytic Orchids are in bloom,
Purple Crested Loeries are calling and
the sun is trying to come out from behind the clouds.
To me it's a perfect day!
Happy Peace Day everyone!
Mary Jane Dodd has invited artists from all over the world to take part, here.
I think you will be inspired by all the different flags flying for peace.
A peace flag sent to me from the States by Lyle. (Click here) Lyle is creating a series of women walking in search of peace.
"Do you know what I need? To escape to the mountains, surrounded by tall trees, I will lay on the moss, and breath in the scent of mushrooms, flowers and wet soil." -- Lyrics by Les Discrets
.... and that is exactly what we did
We escaped to the mountains for four wondrous days
Wherever we went
through forests
or up mountain slopes
we could hear water
gurgling
baboons barking
sharp warnings
that we were approaching
The baboon population seems to have increased since we were there last.
Some spent time on the roof
Others foraged the grass for snacks
in the hotel gardens.
We watched babies doing somersaults
on the lawn outside our room
I'm convinced they were showing off
because we were watching them.
I was thrilled that I managed to photograph the Bee Eaters before they flew off, though this image is far better.
The Poet Dreams of the Mountain
Sometimes I grow weary of the days, with all their fits and starts.
I want to climb some old gray mountains, slowly, taking
The rest of my lifetime to do it, resting often, sleeping
Under the pines or, above them, on unclothed rocks.
I want to see how many stars are still in the sky
That we have smothered for years now, a century at least.
I want to look back at everything, forgiving it all,
And peaceful, knowing the last thing there is to know.
All the urgency! Not what the earth is about!
How silent the trees, their poetry being of themselves only.
I want to take slow steps, and think appropriate thoughts.
In ten thousand years, maybe, a piece of the mountain will fall.
-- Mary Oliver
"But I'll tell you what hermits realize. If you go off into a far, far forest and get very quiet, you'll come to understand that you're connected to everything'" -- Alan Watts
I take a photo of this dam every time we go. It is always so peaceful and a soothing introduction to our holiday.
JUST THINKING by William Stafford
Got up on a cool morning, Leaned out a window.
No cloud, no wind. Air that flowers held
for a while. Some dove somewhere.
Been on probation most of my life. And
the rest of my life been condemned. So these moments
count for a lot -- peace, you know.
Let the bucket of memory down into the well,
bring it up. Cool, cool minutes. No one
stirring, no plans. Just being there.
This is what the whole thing is about.
Inner Journey by Robyn Gordon
"In order to accomplish an experience, you have to have a chance to dance with it. You have to have a chance to play, to explore. Then each style of exploration that takes place is a different manifestation, we could say. Nevertheless, it is all part of one big game." -- Chogyam Trungpa
It's a good feeling to be surrounded by my totems again.
Just before the big clean-up,
I was sitting quietly
trying to trace back to a time when I didn't feel
that something was missing from my art practice
and it dawned on me
that I was no longer surrounded by my own art.
I've been setting my totems free too soon
and feeling empty without them.
Stillness by Robyn Gordon
There are now three completed pieces watching over me,
a work in progress nestles on the workbench
and the missing spark has returned.
"Stop thinking about art works as objects, and start thinking about them as triggers for experiences." -- Brian Eno
Party Girl by Robyn Gordon
When I met my muse by William Stafford
I glanced at her and took my glasses
off -- they were still singing. They buzzed
like a locust on the coffee table and then
ceased. Her voice belled forth, and the
sunlight bent. I felt the ceiling arch, and
knew that nails up there took a new grip
on whatever they touched. "I am your own
way of looking at things", she said. "When
you allow me to live with you, every
glance at the world around you will be
a sort of salvation." And I took her hand.
Inner Journey by Robyn Gordon
" .... and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own."
-- Mary Oliver (from The Journey, here)
"Do you keep your creative work close enough? Is it always available? Keep it so close that when you turn around you run right into it!" - Eric Maisel
Walter Rast (mixed media on canvas). See website here
Many of us are drawn to objects marked by the passage of time and this fascination is often transferred to our art. Looking at the images in this post one can see that some artists use old, sometimes decaying and often patinaed found materials while others achieve the time worn effects through art techniques.
Walter Rast. See more of Walter's work on his website here
Walter Rast uses materials such as concrete, sand and pigments applied in successive layers. He scrapes back and scratches into the surface and also uses gold leaf and symbols.
Old Posts Hold Stories by Fiona Dempster. See Fiona's website here. and blog here
"There is warmth and strength, gentleness, tenderness even, and respect for worn and used old things." -- Fiona Dempster
Metal Book by Fiona Dempster. See more metal books here
"I really love the look and feel of rust. I love it's discarded beauty; the way it proudly wears its history and I love the sense of rediscovery that happens when I begin to work with rusted materials.
It feels as if the old, the worn, the forgotten, the discarded and the weary have found; their beauty recognized and valued, and new life given to them." -- Fiona Dempster
Object by Tim Rowan. See more at the Lacoste Gallery, here.
Marleen Vansteenvoort. See website here
Lu Bin. See website here
The Book by Sally Lee. See more here
Jeanne Medina, weaver/designer. Website here
Collage by Robert Ohnigian. Website here
"Robert Nickle's collages evoke the passage of time and the present's ambiguity; they forshadow future disintegration. By locking paper detritus-soiled, crumpled, cracked, folded, marked, printed, stained and decaying tags, wrappers, cardboard, foils, etc. - in a poetic time capsule, Nickle shows us where we've been, are, and by progression what the future holds." - Devonna Pieszak
Collage by Robert Nickle. Website here
Gerry Keon. See website here
Randall Reid. See more at Nuart Gallery, here
