The Beauty of Nothingness

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS, book by Donna Watson

"Creativity has more to do with the elimination of the inessential than with inventing something

new."  ----  Helmut John

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson, page 9

I found some blank journals that were perfect for creating a book.  They are square in format which I like.  The paper seemed sturdy enough for collage and the best of all, the pages lie flat when opened.

And the journal is not too thick....just 45 pages which was perfect for what I wanted to do.

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson,  page 14

I had been reading books on Zen all summer and I wanted to use words and phrases that helped to explain a Zen tenet... the importance of NOTHINGNESS.  Emptiness or nothingness in Zen philosophy can be mistaken for sheer nothingness, but is in fact the reservoir of infinite possibilities.

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson,  page 20

In meditation, one can 'empty' their mind of all the daily clutter, the constant inner dialogue that can be distracting, negative or creating barriers.

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson,  page 21

The Still Point is at the heart of creativity.  In Zen, you access this still point through meditation.

To be quiet, to simply be in the moment, and in stillness.... is the basis of our existence.  It is not a void... but a means to empty yourself from the incessant flow of thoughts and create a state of

consciousness that is open and receptive.

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson,  page 27

As one counts the breath:  inhale, one;  exhale, two...  the mind empties of all the incessant inner dialogue of judging, complaining, analyzing, wishing and so on.  We can spend our time preoccupied

with the past, or with the future which has not happened yet.  As a result we miss the moment to moment awareness of our life.

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson,  page 29

After 2 trips to Kyoto, Japan and their flea markets, I had accumulated a large supply of old envelopes, old letters, post cards, receipts and books.  I used these envelopes and letters as well as my hand painted rice papers to create 43 collages (43 pages in the book).  I have posted some of the pages here as examples from the book.  You can view the whole book at this Blurb.com link here.

You can also purchase the book.  There are 3 options:  soft bound and 2 hardbound versions.

THE BEAUTY OF NOTHINGNESS,  Donna Watson,  page 37

"There are two journeys in every odyssey, one on worried water, the other crouched and motionless, without noise."  ---  Derek Walcott