Whales are Larger than Prehistoric Dinosaurs!

The 2nd annual Northern Right Whale festival just happened here in North Florida! The festivities, overlooking the Jacksonville ocean, served to remind us the whales need our protection as they visit for the winter, calving in the warmer waters of the Southeast. My piece "Ocean Mandala" is inspired by the incredible people working to protect these huge, magnificent creatures. Did you know some species of whales existing today are *larger* that the prehistoric dinosaur?!
Thanks for visiting and have a whale of a week. ; )

You never know what you will find...

You never know what you will find when you gaze into the night sky! (Or when you walk in forests, trek mountains, swim through streams, sleep on the bare earth...)
It's hard not to remember Chagall when there's flying musicians in a piece. So, from Chagall directly (1958): "Art, in general, is an act of faith. But sacred is the art created above interests such as glory, fame or any other material consideration."
Have a great week!
Ps. This is a 7 by 9 linocut, carved outdoors.

Giant

This piece is one of my largest current linocut blocks—it is about 12 by 12 inches and needs to be hand printed with a huge, 100-year-old press. (Even with my smallest carving tool, I couldn't have done this one any smaller because of the circumference.)
It's a meditation on celebrating our present journey; with enough intention, we *can* cultivate a garden in our inner worlds. : )



And here on the east coast of Florida the turtles are back! My 5 by 7 inch watercolor study is a humble attempt to honor these truly expansive, ancient souls. Here is a turtle's fresh nest and trail we spotted recently, just after the mother returned to the sea after nesting and just as the turtle patrol volunteers arrived. I love the infinity trail she left!


Thanks for stopping by! : )

Bird Egg, Camera Walk and Haiku

Many folk tales have "within-within" imagery. For example, Russian fairy tales often involve a journey where the hero or heroine needs to find a magical object enclosed within many layers of objects or even animals. Here is Koshchey speaking, from Alexsandr Afanas'ev's collection of Slavic tales, describing to the heroine where his "death" can be found: "My death is far away. In the sea there is an island, on that island stands an oak, under the oak a coffer is buried, in the coffer is a hare, in the hare is a duck, in the duck is an egg, and in the egg is my death." This is 8 by 10 linocut, just carved and printed.


Camera Walk pictures—a one-block, half-an-hour walk.

And first haiku of summer:

Cry of the catbird
calls me back to sadhana
in the heat of May.

Cocoon: to enclose protectively

Protective layers and the mysterious metaphysical energies just below the surface!
This is a small 4 by 6 inch linocut, carved in moments of wonder and humility. : )

Rescue

In the devotional tradition (bhakti yoga), singing hymns and mantras is helpful and joyful. Bhaktivinoda Thakur, a 19th century scholar and yogi, composed many beautiful verses infused with poignant feelings. His poems often touch on the theme of entanglement in the material world.
Here is one of my favorite verses from his 24-stanza poem “Gopinath”: “”O Gopinath, after sitting down in the core of my heart and subduing my mind, please take me to You. In this way, the horrible dangers of this material world will disappear.”
My 8 by 10 linocut, just carved and printed, is called “Riding the Boat of Compassion.”
Have a great week!

Focused

I think of the owl as a master of focus. This weekend I visited a couple of Great Horned owls, nesting in a public place, and they appeared mystically unmoved by all the din around them!
This is a 11 by 11 inch oil on hard board, featuring a Barn Owl.
Have a great week!

Renewal

Hello everyone! Happy 2010!
Renewal as an organic thing, like the ripening of fruit. There really is an amazing, big plan, where the very best of us shines through. I wish you all the very best...with inspiration from the ancient seers. They remind us we are indeed something far greater and more sublime than physical and subtle matter.
This is an 8 by 10 oil. More to come in the new year!