Art Transforms Worlds within Worlds

Art Transforms Worlds within Worlds

by | Artful Living, Contemporary Art

Painting is not always about creating something of beauty. Sometimes it’s about an artist pouring something unknown onto the canvas. This unknown may be a feeling that is unable to be articulated any other way than through colour or the act of creating something with our hands. Sometimes it’s a calling from an inward and/or an outward source.

A pull. A calling. An irrepressable urge.

It could be in response to something the artist is experiencing. It could be an attempt to understand or convey something bigger.

Imagine for a moment, that in the act of creation – something is transformed in this unknown kaleidoscope. This is the power of art… it transforms from within and without… it brings something into the world that carries an energy that heals and affects us on a cellular level.

Imagine for a moment that it takes the whole of a life and repatterns it, makes sense of it and integrates a wholeness that might not otherwise be experienced. And, what if in that one transformation it sends feelers or waves of energy out into the world – to touch the hearts of others.

Art informs. Art heals. Art transforms…the one who is creating it and the ones who reflect upon it.

This recent piece ‘Intimate Knowing of the Soul’ is a painting that called from the depths of someplace within my soul. I would also say that it was called forth from some other place.

I had many a conversation with Rumi, with my childhood and what brought this person to experience the mystical force of Egypt. Retracing my steps through a pilgrimage in South Africa… to today as an artist with messages of hope, love and the reverence of the power of the unseen and the unknown.

Intimate Knowing of the Soul went through a great deal of transformation with many many layers. It looks intense, deep and chaotic. But, it is a weaving together of lives and energy. It is an integration of wholeness.

It is also the promise of exciting new things to come, because as we weave together the past and the future into the NOW, we expand, grow stronger, and we are able to hold so much more of life in our hands, our hearts, our minds and bodies.

As this painting came to completion this message or mantra has descended (or ascended) into my thoughts and awareness…

TO LOVE NOT HATE…whatever is appearing before us, drop into our heart and be love.

Are Female Abstract Expressionists Finally Getting Their Due?

Are Female Abstract Expressionists Finally Getting Their Due?

by | Artful Living, Contemporary Art

One of my Resurgent Spring paintings, Bold Faith had been sitting unnoticed on an easel in my studio for a few weeks, then we decided to hang it on a wall in our living room for a while. It was then that I began to really start to appreciate it.

Actually, I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off it and it quickly became one of my favourite pieces. It made me realize that I think I had been not looking favourably on it before, deeming it too bold, too crazy.

But here, I saw it in a different light. It’s depth… it’s power… and it’s impressiveness felt captivating and so alive with its message of living with Bold Faith and just going for it.

Artists are typically a more sensitive breed and prone to judging our muse in a harsh light at times… not always appreciating the voice or energy or expression that insists on being painted.

There are times when I have an idea or impression of what I want to paint, but my body, my soul, and the brush or palette knife have their way – always. They have become the force that moves me and the paint.

It’s an artists job to listen and create from that inner space AND without a worry of who or if anyone will understand or appreciate what comes from that inward journey. An artists job is to believe in oneself.

Recently, a friend (thanks BW!) sent me a link to this article, written by By Alexxa Gotthardt, he thought I would appreciate – it’s linked so you can click on the title to see the full article:

11 Female Abstract Expressionists You Should Know, from Joan Mitchell to Alma Thomas

I have to say that it made quite an impact on me, actually.

Gotthardt writes:

Abstract Expressionism is largely remembered as a movement defined by the paint-slinging, hard-drinking machismo of its poster boys Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning.

I hadn’t actually thought of this before but it’s true. The article goes on to talk about how the early female abstract expressionist artists were marginalized and to combat this disease some of them resorted to using a male pseudonym to get their art seen.

As I viewed these works I found myself contemplating my experience of believing and accepting in the voice working through me as an abstract expressionist artist.

As you can see these paintings are bold and strong and perhaps not necessarily what would seem to come from a woman, that is, in our conditioned belief of a woman’s energy being soft, beautiful, flowing and feminine.

These artists had the courage to break out of this mold and give voice to their passion and their fury of striking independent feelings.

I salute them. I praise them and I am grateful to them.

While I am (when most healthy and balanced) lived and expressed as a dominant inward, still and reflective person, the works emerging through this energy and essence is strong, potent, powerful, alive, wild and raw.

It’s tapping into something that speaks to life on a microcosmic and macrocosmic scale, and while I began my art career wanting to paint a feminine beauty in the world, this something else took over.

It’s a consuming, healing, and emotional inward journey… to the heart, the soul and the cosmos.

Gotthardt’s article brought to my attention how I sometimes worried whether my art was accepted or judged as too strong.

It is a reminder to not dim our light, be who we are, and #&!* the molds that enslave us to living in fear because we never know we are are liberating in the wake of our courage!

 

“I’ve always painted out of omnipotence.”

~ Joan Mitchell

Dreams Do Come True

Dreams Do Come True

by | Artful Living, Contemporary Art

Years of living with chronic fatigue, pain and stress forced me into finding a new way to live. It’s taken practice, lots of practice to unplug from the hectic, push push push lifestyle North American society has become noted for – it used to be seen in a positive light, but I think too many people have suffered and burned out from the exhaustive pace it requires.

Even as an artist I tended to put a tremendous amount of pressure on myself to succeed, but my body continued to complain. In 2015 I did a lot of unplugging and spent three weeks in France, with time to reflect and contemplate what I wanted and how I wanted to live.

Mostly I wanted to learn how to do what I loved in a pace where I could thrive and with lots of time to breathe.

As I began 2016 with a fresh perspective, I immersed myself in painting to get ready to secure gallery representation. There were lots of things to do but I armed myself with a plan, thought out achievable goals and a scheduler to keep me focused and in check.

Having this disciplined studio practice became a fascinating experience and what became apparent was how tuned in it had allowed me to become to the changes of the season. The style and colours of my painting shifted along with the seasons and I’ve loved it immensely. It’s made me tune more into the energy of each season and live it in my life too. My inner landscape shifts and changes along with the paintings.

As a result, I’ve fallen even more in love with painting than I was before. With my consistent and disciplined time at the easel, my tools of the trade are becoming extensions of my emotions, how my body is feeling, and how I’m tuned in to my environment – i.e. the cycles of our planet.

My Resurgent Spring series was fiery and alive and I was enthralled in their painting, now the season is shifting again and I feel the energy of Magical Summer weaving in. You might think that with longer days and a fiery sun, it might be even more passionate, but I’m finding the energy softer and with a playful loving grace influence.

In my first two pieces of this series, Tender Embrace and I Believe in You, I was inspired to do some childhood healing. I wanted to reflect upon my tender years and fill them, me, and my family with love. I found that it came naturally and I painted these feelings and this energy into the paintings as I glanced periodically at some photos of my childhood.

 

Top left is me on my dad’s lap. Top right I’m front and center. Bottom left is a photo that I have remembered all these decades. Bottom right is me and my mum on a family vacation in Prince Edward Island.

I feel like this process of feeling, remembering and choosing to love has changed me. I loved seeing which colours wanted to reflect what I was feeling in these two paintings and I loved how it just flowed with ease. I was reminded always of sweetness and innocence.

 

When I finished Tender Embrace I felt so much gratitude and peaceful. The following day I went out with my sweetie, dropped him off while he got a hair cut and went to a park to enjoy the summery weather. I saw a swing and smiled. I just had to.

I swung and didn’t have a care in the world. I thought once again of my childhood and simply enjoyed the experience of feeling like a kid again.

My darling friends, when I got home I read this email I had received from a top-rated gallery in Florida, and my heart was exploding with joy!! Here is a little bit about what they said:

“I would first like to tell you what a dynamic and talented artist you are. We are extremely impressed with your diversity and range.
Your paintings are incredible. Every single one of them!!!
Typically I like to point out a few paintings that truly stand out, but I can honestly tell you Kiernan that your entire Mystical Winter and Resurgent Spring Collections are brilliant, truly brilliant!!!
Each and every single one of them would look phenomenal in our gallery and be perfect for our art market.”

Ah… listen to the soft whisperings of your heart, stand tall and do the work. Dreams do come true.

With love,

Kiernan

Raw and messy has its own beauty

Raw and messy has its own beauty

by | Artful Living, Contemporary Art

In many of my abstract pieces I begin by connecting with the panel of wood through my heart. I get quiet and I feel it. I get a sense of what may be the dominant colours it ultimately wants to be and that gives me a starting point. It guides me as to the potential colours to use in the initial layers to get me where it wants to go.

So, in this manner as I begin adding paint, I’m actually thinking and feeling a few steps ahead, because I love the feeling and look of a painting that has depth, weight and thickness – it’s very symbolic of the inner workings of our personality, our emotions, and our soul.

Many of my pieces are also created from a place of surrendering – me and my thoughts stepping aside to allow for something to come through me and speak to the world. I simply love to create. It’s a necessity for me.

None of this was the case in painting Window Cracking Open.

That day, I just needed to paint. I needed to express. I needed to release. I needed the colours, paint and panel to experience how I was feeling. I needed not to do anything but simply approach it and swiftly release what was in my heart and body at that moment.

It was a hugely cathartic release and I felt hugely satisfied.

For me, this piece wasn’t about creating something extraordinary or beautiful, or being an instrument for something to work through me to benefit the world in some way.

It was simply a raw, emotional, and physical outlet.

Whatever its form, purpose or expression, art is transformative. Its effects far reaching into the hearts, minds, and souls of humankind. It opens us. Ah, but that is a topic for another post.

 

Artwork Statement

Sometimes windows need to crack. And, they need to open just that little bit for messy to come in and break the brittle crusted barriers around the heart. What would happen if we let it? Maybe the body would experience miracles. Maybe our lovers would look into our watery eyes, with watery eyes of their own while whispering the secrets of their own heart… letting you know you’re not alone… that you are loved… that you are important in their world. Maybe then the world will feel a little bit safer, and brighter, and hopeful. Maybe then our dreams will be nourished by the inner fortitude that’s growing in the allowing of our deepest self seeping in through the crack.

Window Cracking Open—represents a true merging of understanding, healing, and love for self and others. When we have the courage to feel, to be still and feel, a light shines revealing perfection in the imperfection of ourselves and our lives. Messy is not very pretty, but it’s often necessary to let us go down the road we seek—because the truth sets us free. If we’re lucky, one day maybe we’ll find where we’re coming from and where we’re going to.

The Shaman’s Journey

The Shaman’s Journey

by | Artful Living, Contemporary Art

Shaman’s are powerful medicine doctors trained in the ancient ways of healing and spiritual teachings. They are found in indigenous cultures throughout the world. As wise elders of their tribal communities, these highly respected men and women are intimately familiar with the hidden realms of nature in all her forms. They guide us into the wisdom of the ‘dream body’ where we can seek answers to life’s most important questions. Your inner shaman calls you back to your true essence, your home in nature—where your soul speaks directly to you, delivering messages through your body, your dreams, your secret desires, and whisperings of signs and synchronicities. Your muses are enlivened and beckon you to venture into the mysteries of creative visualization and dream journaling to access important information.

The Shaman’s Journey—reveals a pathway into your deep centre which encompasses both light and dark aspects of life—for both are equally important to learn from in the process of becoming healthy and whole. When fully exposed to the white and shimmering gold light, the deep black centers and veins are revealed and they are able to fall to the earth to transform into beautiful blossoms inviting harmony to your life.

“For years, copying other people, I tried to know myself.
From within, I couldn’t decide what to do.
Unable to see, I heard my name being called.
Then I walked outside.

The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
Don’t go back to sleep.
You must ask for what you really want.
Don’t go back to sleep.
People are going back and forth across the door sill
where the two worlds touch.
The door is round and open.
Don’t go back to sleep.”

~ Rumi

The Shaman’s Journey

Acrylic Abstraction on Gallery Wood Panel, 11″ x 14″

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Copyright 2016, Kiernan Antares, All Rights Reserved

When Destiny Calls

When Destiny Calls

by | Artful Living, Contemporary Art

In your deepest self lives a well filled with your truest essence where purity and innocence resides. It entices you into quiet surrender, beckoning you to ride the magical waves into the inner regions of the Essential Self where you can remember the creative gifts your birth agreed to carry into this world.

The process of discovering this well filled with love and imagination is nothing short of enlightening, for your greatest joy and fulfillment resides there. For many adults, this ‘luminous child’ within has been long forgotten, but it awaits patiently for its time of reunion. In this way, the heart of the child meets the wisdom inherent in all of life. Destiny calls you now—it is time to accept your birthright, drink from this well of luminosity, and hold dear the treasure of your original magnificent self.

When Destiny Calls—The well of luminosity expands, offering a band of light to guide your way in. Surrounded by colours of passion, love, creativity, healing, enlightenment and a universal love of everything sentient. Misted with an iridescent violet for a touch of higher vision—this piece encourages you to answer the inner call and let your true self to shine.

“We have fallen into the place

where everything is music.

The strumming and the flute notes

rise into the atmosphere,

and even if the whole world’s harp should burn up there will still be hidden instruments playing.

This singing art is a seam foam.

The graceful movements come from a pearl

somewhere on the ocean floor.

Poems reach up like spindrift

and the edge of driftwood along the beach, wanting.

They derive

From a slow and powerful root

that we cannot see.

Stop the words now.

Open the window in the center of your chest,

and let the spirits fly in and out.”

~ Rumi

When Destiny Calls

Acrylic Abstraction on Gallery Wood Panel, 11″ x 14″ SOLD