Bound by Nature

Autumn has come to my zen gardens.

The moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself.
--- Henry Miller

Each of us literally chooses,
by his way of attending to things,
what sort of universe
he shall appear to himself to inhabit.
William James

I found this egret standing in the quiet, still water on the beach below my studio.

People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child-- our own two eyes. All is a miracle. --- Thich Nhat Hahn

James Blackwell, from Australia, uses mixed media (natural materials) to create nature-based pods and vessels like the one above. Bushwalking in the Blue Mountains has become part of this artist's lifestyle. "I like to think of the valley floor as my art supply store!" You find more of his pods, vessels and baskets at his website here. He also has a wonderful blog here.

A broken bird's egg inspired these fragile paper bowls. Ann Symes lives by "woodland" which inspires her art works. "It wraps itself around me inviting close observation of textures, patterns, shapes, shadows... the opening and closing sequences of the seasons, decay and renewal."

Ann uses rusted papers to create collages for her Autumn series. You can find more of her wonderful art works at her website here.

full moon at dusk (view from my window)

When you start on a long journey, trees are trees, water is water, and mountains are mountains. After you have gone some distance, trees are no longer trees, water is no longer water, mountains are no longer mountains. But after you have traveled a great distance, trees are once again trees, water is once again water, mountains are once again mountains. ---
Zen Teaching

Gathering Histories

Lynne Perrella has been very generous and sent me this wonderful packet of old papers, forms, documents and music sheets, seen below. It is obvious these papers are filled with past personal histories and journeys.

Lynne Perrella is an author of books, including ART MAKING: Collections and Obsessions. Her collages and assemblages, like the one below, illustrates her ability to gather old histories and re-create them in a new and exciting way. Find more of her collages and assemblages at her website here.

Barry Smith, from Australia, is a sculptural artist and metal worker. He sent me this wonderful bowl below, which he created from 'beaten' metal. Thank you so much.

Barry recycles materials like rusty metal and weathered wood. Below is a teapot he made with a brass cylinder, echidna quills and a copper pipe. You can find more of his metal works at his blog RustnStuff here.

Maureen Brouillette lives in Texas and is a friend of mine. She uses travel photos, post cards, old maps in her collage paintings. You can often see nostalgic imagery of old buildings that depict old histories that we still see around us today.

You can find much more of Maureen's mixed media/collage paintings at her wonderful website here.

Glenn Skien, from Australia, is a printmaker, book binder, collage and assemblage artist. He collects and reuses old objects, old papers and books with the idea that he is discovering old histories. He then creates new meanings with "an awareness of a connection to the transient nature of all things." -- Glenn Skien

You can find more of Glenn's intriguing and intelligent works at his website and blog, Silent Parrot Press, here and here. He layers his imagery with old papers and objects, evoking real life and personal histories past and present.

Pour yourself like a fountain.
Flow into the knowledge
that what you are seeking
finishes often at the start,
and with ending, begins.
-- Rainer Maria Rilke

In the Moment

To wake up to.....
To wake up to

Who we are
What we are here for.

To make life
More poetical, more sane

more livin, lovin.
To experience the true of all things

In the moment....

In the moment.....

In the moment.....
by William Segal, painter and spiritual teacher

While drinking a cup of tea, will we be thinking of other things, barely aware of the cup in our hands? If so, we will be tucked away into the future--or the past-- and not living one minute of life.

Altered Imagery

I recently completed an online workshop on altered digital imagery. The workshop class I took was from Susan Tuttle. I learned how to use the tools, layers and filters in Photo Shop Elements.
The above image is one of my early (beginning) images. I know I have a long way to go now, and it will take much more experimenting, playing and trying all these new tools over and over again.
I highly recommend Susan's online workshops because I am a complete computer novice and I learned a great deal in her 4 week course.

Susan Tuttle offers a number of online workshops dealing with altered digital imagery. Her workshops include tutorial videos, print outs with step by step instructions, images to download for projects, and feedback to questions if needed. You can find more information about her upcoming workshops this fall here and she will be adding a brand new class to her list of workshops she offers.

You can find more of Susan's digital imagery at her website here and at her blog here.


Dorothy Simpson Krause is a painter, collage artist, book and print maker. She incorporates digital mixed media into her art. She is the author of many books, including the above book BOOK+ART: Handcrafting Artists' Books. She is also the co-author of DIGITAL ART STUDIO: Techniques for Combining Inkjet Printing with Traditional Art Materials. You can find more of her digital imagery (like the 2 below images) as well as links and information on how to purchase her books at her website here.


Smith Eliot had an unorthodox upbringing, raised by hippie parents in an old school bus, living a gypsy life as a young child. She received her MFA and currently teaches art at her local college. I first saw her digital imagery at a large art fair several years ago. Her imagery is haunting, mystical, and very memorable. You can find more of her beautiful imagery at her website here. Be sure to read some of her artist statements. Below is a sampling.



Those who will not slip beneath
the still surface on the well of grief
Turning down through its black water
to the place we cannot breath
Will never know the source from
which we drink--
The secret water cold and clear.
----- David Whyte

Visual Writing

collage, pressed flowers, book spine, book pages, old map, 10"x10"

I have been reading the book, WILD COMFORT: The Solace of Nature, by Kathleen Dean Moore. The book is filled with descriptive passages that are lyrical, poetic and beautiful- breathtaking. The words conjure up visual and sensual imagery in my mind. There is also a profound meditation on the healing power of nature, and how nature impacts writings such as poetry as well as visual artists, no matter what their medium is. Here is a sample:
"At first, the morning is flat as a sketch--sleeping bag laid out on a stone slab, narrow creek flowing from right to left, hillside filling most of the page. What texture there is seems to be drawn in lead pencil. Sound is flat and monochrome, too, the creek seeping steadily, rock to rock. People call it white noise, but today it is pale gray."

Lisa Sarsfield is a collage artist who often has bird nests as her theme.
You can find more of her work at her blog here.

Neva Gagliano is a poet and artist who has a wonderful blog here. Here is one of her poems:
If there's to be anything incessant,
let it be birds' calling
breezes on bare arms
chirping in the ears
and rain sparking
it all to life.

Novie Trump. Nest. You can find more of her ceramic sculptures here.

I was looking for images and writings on and by William Segal, painter and spiritual teacher.
This search led me to the blog of Luke Storms. You can find his thought provoking writings here. This is what I found:
Come to the edge.
We can't, we're afraid.
Come to the edge.
We can't, we'll fall.
Come to the edge.
And they came.
And he pushed them.
And they flew. --Guillaume Apollinaire

I live on a cliff overlooking the Puget Sound in the Pacific NW. This is a view of the beach below me.

Ben Judson, San Antonio Texas, is a freelance writer, web designer and artist. You can find more of his writings and poetry here. Here is one of his wonderful poems:
BACK TO ITS EXPOSED ROOTS
The arc of the visible river is long
but it bends toward moments
in which a song reaches out
with its silent hands
to grasp the darkness to lead it
back to its exposed root
its first whisper
its fading darkness.

Eva Francova. You can find more of her work here.
"We need stones around us to echo the substance of our own lives---hard, heavy, timeless, and subtly hued." Thomas Moore

acrylic, collage 8"x10"

Annie, from the United Kingdom, posts her beautiful prose and poetry at her blog Inkhaven which you can find here. Here is one of her poems:

BLACKBIRD
All these springs
we didn't know
what the tree-lined street
was missing.
Silver thread,
liquid song,
calligraphy on the run
outside the window.

The Poetics of Subtle

There are artists who love color. By color I mean bright, strong, vibrant, luscious color.
They will put a color next to a color to create dynamic, active, energizing art works. I am not in that category. I am not into bright, vibrant, juicy colors. All I have to do is take a look in my closet, my home and my zen gardens to see that I like things around me that are more subdued and subtle and minimal in color. I prefer textures and nature-based objects. I love weathered, rusty, worn, wabi- sabi stuff. I have found other artists who are also into subdued, subtle colors.
Under all these quiet, subdued, subtle surfaces there is a pulsing beat of old blood, old memories, with waves of human feeling that are universal and call to me every time.

Thomas Meyers uses a combination of collage and drawing. He is exploring visual communication, from ancient writings to modern times. You can find more of his subtle, layered collages at his website here.

subtle: adj. a distinction so delicate or precise as to be difficult to analyze or describe. Subtle can create mystery.

Eric Adama works with mixed media on paper. He has a blog called CERULEAN which you can find here, where you will find more of his beautifully textured, subdued color paintings.

subdued: adj. (color) that is soft and restrained.
Subdued, subtle colors can be intimate.

Novie Trump works with ceramic sculpture and draws her inspiration from relics and ancient stories. Her work has a certain understated elegance as she uses subdued colors and subtle textures. You can find more of her beautiful work at her website here and her blog here.

Brent Harvey uses a variety of mixed media for his paintings. His limited palette gives his work a heightened perception of whatever he is trying to convey. You can find more of his fabulous paintings at his blog here and his website here.

Eva Francova works in a variety of mediums, from altered digital imagery to printmaking to ink drawings. But the overall connection in all her work is her subdued color, and limited palette.
Above is one of her digital images.

Above is one of Eva's ink drawings. You can find more of her delicate, poetic works at her blog I LOVE BLACK AND WHITE here, and also at her website here.


Roberta Marks works with collage, painting and assemblage. She explores the traces and vestiges of her journey from the past to the present. Her work appears simple with limited palettes, but they are actually delicately complex revealing subtle explorations of her/our world. Her website has more work here.

Come to my quietness
I shall cover you with it, like
a white sheet that has blown all day in
the sun, like a mountain lake
filled with spring, it shall slip over you.
--- Diane de Prima