With Every Breath A New Dream Is Born (Discovery Remix 2012)
We have all the means of vast exploration and creativity inside of us….
The inward view and the outward dream
“You must not for one instant give up the effort to build new lives for yourselves. Creativity means to push open the heavy, groaning doorway to life. This is not an easy struggle. Indeed, it may be the most difficult task in the world, for opening”. – Daisaku Ikeda
Looking Forward to 2012 – An Artist Shares His Thoughts
Looking forward to a year of art, writing, and contemplative journeys in 2012….
Riding the path to a creative tomorrow
Somewhere in the waking, I will paint with more than one color, write with more than one word, express more than one idea….
This will be my last post of 2011. It is Friday morning, December 30th. I am sitting in front of my computer while listening to Fluid Radio on ITunes. As I begin typing, Fluid Radio is playing a track entitled Shooting Blankets from the band called Two People in a Room. It is a quiet morning. The ambience is meditative. The cats are hanging about; grooming themselves, eating and listening to the sounds. I am preparing lunch; whole grain pasta, and tomato basil sauce with scallops and meatballs. I wanted to go to the gym this morning and do some spinning or weight training, however when the urge to write beckons, expression and creativity governs the day.
I have been thinking for some time now what I wanted to work on and accomplish for the New Year. This past year I feel I have been quite successful. I spoke more in depth about my past achievements in my recent post It Has Been a Year of Blogging – Some Thoughts I Wish to Share. Now it is time to look forward.
The very first thing on my agenda is the opening of my online store n e w d i g i t a l s c a p e s for selling my art. I have completed the design of the site (Imagekind is my site provider) and I am now in the process of uploading, editing and organizing my art galleries. I am very excited. An online store, I believe, is well suited for my digital art, and should provide a high quality venue for the purchasing of my art. Prints in various sizes, high-end photographic paper, canvas, and assortment of frames are all available. Links to the site will be available on my website and on my blog in January.
I am also looking forward to returning to my love of video art. I just got a HD video camera, and will be upgrading to a semi-professional editing system. I hope to investigate a distinct realm of processing which I call “video as chance”. It is a form of video expression that allows for time, space and subject matter to dictate what come into the lens of the camera. In the meantime, I will continue to create 2-dimensional photographic work. As I hope to continue to find new ways to structure my work in a beautiful yet provocative form.
I will continue to blog as often as I can. In the past year, I have come to appreciate blogging as a great tool for finding a consistency that sustains the creative process. The heavy schedule of creating new art, and marketing my online store may mean less posting. But I always let the mood of the moment carry the day, so we will see.
Another important part of my exploratory nature is my connection with the mind and body through challenging physical adventures. Top of the list is finding new mountains to climb on my mountain bike; long road trips on my road bike; rocking climbing and hopefully sky diving. That last one will take a little courage.
I hope to finish out the year with the publishing of an art book that centers on my blogging experience. Art for Posts is the title.
All in all I am looking forward to expressing ideas and concepts, and continuing the communication I have come to appreciate with so many talented writers, photographers, musicians, and artists.
2012 is a year for us. Let’s do it together.
Art rules.
Ideas conquer….
Weekly Photo Challenge: Between 02
Between two trees of a different kind….
Where nature and industry collide
Nature and Science….
When thinking about this photo challenge I was drawn to a question, what is the in-between space that can sustain our planet? Where does it exist, and can it be found? And what is the cost of our ignorance; of not knowing how to balance that in-between space with the complexity of our lives on planet Earth? Is the knowledge we seek, in our meditation practice, in the great institutions we build, or in our hopes and dreams? Can it be discovered in our mind’s eye, in the things we believe, or in the progress of science?
In this piece I thought about nature and technology, and how these two sources of energy interact within our lives and with the planet. How these two vital forces; the organic intelligence of nature and the welded composite structure of modern progress collide. Trees are torn down and in their place the monuments of steel rise to the heavens. Our ozone dies, we reach the stars; our rivers run black, the cities grow tall.
Nature dies.
The question is where is the balance that sustains?
I wish I knew the answers to these vital questions. Perhaps you and I, your country and mine, can one day without personal or national agenda sit down at the table and discover the answers.
For the sake our planet, it is the only in-between thing we must do….
Urban Contemplation: 14 – The Industrial Revolution and its Deconstruction
The city series….
The forming of an industrial moment in time
The cities where the industrial revolution was founded….
I remember the period in our American history, when the industrial revolution was coming to an end. I was in my mid-twenties and working as a Process Engineer at the DuPont Company. If you were a young person in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s trying to believe in the American dream, a job with the DuPont Company was a great place to start.
Or so I thought. Little to my knowledge, things were about to get very difficult. Life was going to become very hard. The way in which our society ran and governed its social, civil, economic and political spheres were about to change.
The social agenda of the New Deal that sustained the dreams of many families and individuals would slowly be deconstructed until it (with the hopes of some) would be gone forever.
In the mid-seventies, early 1980’s and in 1991 we had economic recessions of various lengths. They were short, but a tell-tale sign of things to come. In 2001 we had another recession. These four recessions were not as severe as the present recession; however, the factors that led to these five occurrences over time are similar; deregulation, the creation of a “false paper economy” and an insidious construct to shift the wealth from the middle class to the wealthy.
And unfortunately it is working.
I was laid off from my job at DuPont after having worked there for four years. Still emerging from the perception that all you had to do was start at an entry level position with a good company; move up the ladder and retire 30 years later. Remember how your parents or grandparents followed this rule and uplifted themselves into the middle-class? It appears that in 2011, that route to the middle-class is long since gone and not returning any time soon. It is a global world now. It is now a have and have not world that is shattering the dreams of many. It is 146 million Americans in the United States living in poverty or near the poverty line. It is a health care system that is dysfunctional and over-wrought with cost. It is an education system that is mostly for profit (remember when the California State Schools were free). It is a manufacturing sector that barely exists. And it is a corrupt body of government that wants to protect the rich, sustained the rich and become rich, at the expense of the poor.
And the attack is calculated and vicious to the core.
But I love America. With all its faults, it still has the potential to be a great nation. But we must learn from our past, and if possible turn back the hand of time just for a moment. And perhaps in that moment we can have a true political and social conversation, wherein we remember what we fought so hard for—a fair and equal society for all.
This post is in support of all those who participate in the Occupy Wall Street protests in America and around the world.
The Setting Sun and the Years of Our Descent (Recovery Remix 2011)
The city series….
From across the park I see the days end and the last day begin
We remember what we shared—the deep dark place and beautiful heaven.
And to never forget is now the bond that liberates and heals.
It is the recovery we now hold dear
and
the rising sun….
The Ending Memories of a Deep Dark Place and a Beautiful Heaven (Turning the Page – Recovery Remix 2011)
The City series….
A deep dark place a beautiful heaven to lose yourself forever
small towns…
big cities
where hopeless dreams
dance
swim
when the carnival is over
and
we are lost at sea
the magic escapes us
and the years are gone
small towns
big cities…
where the dreams
we shared
in the deep dark place
and
beautiful heaven
are
just moments
now forgotten
The Seamless Memory of Beautiful Places Left Behind
The city series….
Seamless thoughts in various colors
At night we often wonder where the memories have gone….
The Uncertainty Of Where Our Thoughts Are At Any Given Time
The city series….
Looking out beyond my window I am startled by the heavens
Bonus video imagery by ben2thewild, uploaded on Oct 11 2010. Featuring the music of Startle the Heavens – “Lull of the Storm” from the CD “Lull”.
All that I dream is free and alive….
From Across the Park I See the Brownstones Decaying (Recovery Remix 2011)
The city series….
The cyclical life of urban decay
from across the park
i remember
seeing
the place where all this started
the decaying brownstones
and
embracing the thirst that consumes
seeking awareness
in things we knew not of
finding the descent that limits
and subtracts
life
the city was dying…
and we too for years to come
Urban Contemplation: 13 – The French Quarter
The city series….
There is always music in the French Quarter
A journey in the French Quarter through a landscape of sound, imagery, and fine cuisine.
Urban Contemplation: 10 – Music for Entangled Thoughts – Lawrence English & Ai Yamamoto
The city series….
Music for Entangled Thoughts
http://youtu.be/gy1C5Jj6zNQ – Lawrence English & Ai Yamamoto – Plateau 2007
Detail of entangled thoughts and attached emotions
Where the Entanglement of Our Thoughts and Emotions Reside
The city series….
The ambiguity of a certain step
life and stolen moments….
where things are taken away
and given back with bated breath
while we intrepidly
hesitatingly
transcend the mundane
where things are like yesterday
and in every breath
life is given hope
like tomorrow’s dream….
the American dream
in the illusion of timelessness
where things are the same
on either side
of the entangled thought
and attached emotion
where the city sleeps
at the crossing of life and liberation
Everywhere I looked the City Hosted the Old-Timey Bikes
The city series….
A biking city is a beautiful city
a city
a bike
and streets to explore
we’re downtown
and all around
by the river
on the pier
stopping for art
ipod in ears
moving there
nestled here
we love the journey
yours and mine
with personal finds
a city
a bike
as one….
Across the River There’s A Place Not Far From Here
The city series….
The bridge that takes us there
it’s there just beyond my reach
a bridge to cross
yesterday I am here
in a present moment
happiness
tomorrow I am there
in a dream to share
ambiguity
across the river
on either side
it’s just the same
nowhere
now
here….
a place not far from myself
Urban Contemplation: 09 – Music in the Streets – Painting in the Air
The city series….
The sounds of the streets and the color of music
color takes a form
finding it
only takes
a moment
to listen
hearing the blue
seeing the red
feeling the glow
of fair music
painting in the air
….
sounds flow like palettes
of greens and yellows
just sitting
by you
feeling mellow
listening
smiling
and hearing colors…
and knowing
it’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood
Urban Contemplation: 08 – Art Work Ahead
The city series….
Art work ahead on the city streets
Finding the way through the narrow streets
searching for the deeper sentiment
of thought
of ideas
drifting block by block
glancing right
turning left
hoping to find
colors that speak
forms that convey
it’s a beautiful day
a wonderful life
finding art everywhere
inside and out
where there is work ahead
on the city streets
All I Ask Is That I Am Allowed To Have A Voice
The beauty of art in all its various disciplines is the formulation of ideas. At the core of those ideas is a social, historical, political, and creative construct that merges our identity with our life experience.
All I ask is that I am allowed to have a voice….
I have a voice ... I have hope ... I have you to listen
why do i have a voice
is it to liberate
illuminate
educate
or
bring together the gathering of
ideas
dreams
consciousness
do I dance to give voice
paint to give voice
act to give voice
react to give voice
how am i heard
listen
and tell me
for
your voice whispers to me….
Tell me what your voice means to you. How do you express and connect with the inner longing of your dreams; the ideas that keep you up at night; the need to share something, everything with everyone you meet?
This post is inspired by the voice of Bill T. Jones / Choreographer, Dancer and Artistic Director
Share your voice….
The Dreams We Seek Descend Like the Colors Purple Blue and White
A dream is like a palette of colors we sleep with every night….
Dreaming in purple and blue
Moments that follow you everywhere are like the dreams that wake you from sleep….
The Granite Wall of Thoughts Still Remain
I look out beyond my surroundings only to find the granite wall of thoughts … leaving me perplexed….
It is in my thoughts that I face myself
Standing at the edge of everything … my back against the wall….
A Granite Wall of Thoughts
Sometimes we want to see things, but the granite wall of thoughts obscure our desires….
It's a granite wall of thoughts with green dreams
Moments Descend On My Mind Like White Red and Yellow Colors
Often the thoughts in color are just shaded in white….
Moments in thought
The Silence in Transformation
Towards the transformation that your Mind can see….
The act or process of transforming somebody or something.
Transformation 01
Transformation 02
One powerful way to evoke compassion, and to transform is to think of others as exactly the same as you.
“All human beings are the same—made of human flesh, bones, and blood. We all want happiness and want to avoid suffering. Further, we have an equal right to be happy. In other words, it is important to realize our sameness as human beings.” – Dalai Lama
Transformation 03
Transformation 04
when the View is constant
the flow of Rigpa unfailing
and the merging of the two luminosities continuous and spontaneous
all possible delusion is liberated at its very root
and your entire perception arises, without a break, as Rigpa – Sogyal Rinpoche
Transformation 05
Transformation 06
Do not make the mistake of imagining that the nature of mind is exclusive only to our minds. It is in fact the nature of everything. It can never be said too often that to realize the nature of mind is to realize the nature of all things. – Sogyal Rinpoche
Transformation 07
Transformation 08
Moving through the transformation that the Heart can feel….
Transformation 09: Heart
How Do You Negotiate Your Time Between the Things You Love
Searching for that time, seeing it just beyond the window….
Finding the time for things we love
Do you ever feel like time is slipping by, and the things you love are being left behind? And do you find you must choose between one thing and the other because of the lack of time?
Well over the past year I have found that I must negotiate my time wisely if I am to achieve some of my goals as an artist and pursue my love of outdoor adventure. During this fall period when the weather is so nice, I long for those exciting treks up and around the mountains of South and North Carolina. Yes, the mountains are calling, but then too is the late nights in my studio—in front of my computer, creating art, developing ideas, and writing.
What is one to do? My work schedule provides me with very little time for my personal activities. If I stay up late until 3 or 4 a.m., I do not have the energy for early rising and working out. The choices we make because of limited time, energy, and work schedules all play an important part in how we approach the things we love. A solution that I have found is to break up these different interests into separate yearly periods. With one activity being the most dominate. The past year my personal emphasis has been on my art, website and art blog with a minor contribution to outdoor activities. Instead of the daily schedule of work-outs (that I was consistent with 2 years ago), I opted for the big one day adventures such as all day biking, caving, zip-lining, and long hikes. As I approach 2012 and the New Year, I hope to perhaps find a strong 50/50 mix that includes gym workouts, outdoor adventures such as rock climbing, kayaking and perhaps even sky diving, while simultaneously furthering my artistic endeavors.
Do you find it difficult to juggle the things you love? How do you negotiate your time? Have your thought about 2012 and how to get the most out the New Year?
What do you think?
n e w d i g i t a l s c a p e s 