Learning To See

by Leigh

This has been a year of transformations for me.  It all started last January when I picked mindfulness as my word for the year.  Mindfulness sparked a journey for me both physically and spiritually.  As my outside changed through eating right and exercising, inside began to change as well.  I began to open up and become who I really am.  I learned to embrace my imperfections because that's who I am. Learning to enjoy the journey has become my new mantra.  It's not always about the end result, but what we learn along the way.  

"Because true belonging only happens when we present our authentic, imperfect selves to the world, our sense of belonging can never be greater than our level of self-acceptance." ~Brene Brown

Maybe this is why I've always been so attracted to macro photography.  Instead of showing the whole picture the focus is on a small part that contributes to the whole.  The beauty of macro photography is that it uncovers the often unseen….the overlooked….the cast aside.  Macro photography makes us slow down and uncover the beautiful details….the perfectly imperfect.

We so often expect perfection from ourselves.  We become our worst critic. But there is a lesson in slowing down and taking the time to notice the little things that make us beautiful.  As we learn to love ourselves from the inside out we share that love with others.  Enjoy slowing down with your camera, paying full attention, observing beauty that many people pass right by.  Your generosity of spirit and keen eyes may open the door to many mini miracles others would not have access to otherwise.  And you might just discover something new about yourself along the way.

Loving Your Limits!

by Carol

Zentangle Class - 9 People , using the exact same shapes

There has been a lot of talk in recent posts here, about the struggle to remain creative and original, to keep producing, to avoid ruts and get out of slumps.  I just listened to a program that was so full of inspiration that it shamed me for ever feeling like I was out of ideas. 

Phil Hansen's life was all about art. Well along in art school, his medium was pointillism. He created beautiful canvases by making thousands of tiny dots. But the cosmos had other plans for Phil, and he developed a substantial tremor in his hands that prevented him from holding a pencil. He was crushed. He left art school, and stopped creating art altogether. He tried to explain to his neurologist the impact this particular affliction had on his life, but the neurologist simply said - why don't you just embrace the shake?

Phil continued to mourn the loss of his art, but eventually he got himself back to an art store and bought loads of supplies in order to find a new path. He describes sitting down with his array of supplies, newly energized to work around his disability and free from the constraints of art school for the first time, and he had ....nothing. He was paralyzed by the choices - just creatively paralyzed - until one day, he remembered his neurologist's advice - embrace the shake. And that is when his mind just opened up and his art blossomed. It occurred to him that rather than live within his expectations, why not explore his limitations! 

What if - he thought. What if  I combined squiggles instead of points? What if  I could only afford to use a dollar's worth of art supplies? What if  I could only paint on my chest? What if  I painted with karate chops? Here's one I love: What if  I had to depend on other people's input?  I cannot even begin to describe how he answered these questions within his art!  Here is a link to his Ted Talk, where you can see all of the stunning creations he found within his limitations.

In the journey he discusses last, Phil made destructible art - creating things he knew would not last. Do you hate to cull your Lightroom catalogue, and throw away those images you worked so hard on? Or have you had a computer issue where you lost work you were attached to? I find it so painful! But here is Phil's take-away:

"As I destroyed each project, I was learning to let go. Let go of outcomes, let go of failures, and let go of imperfections." He describes a state of perpetual  creation - "thinking only of what's next and coming up with more ideas than ever." He says that "embracing the shake....turned out to be about life skills. Because ultimately, most of what we do takes place.....with limited resources."

Kim Klassen recently educated me about Wabi-Sabi - the concept of the perfectly imperfect.  John Lennon told us that "life is what happens while you are busy making other plans."  Phil Hansen says "we need first to become limited in order to be limitless." To me this all speaks about knowing yourself so well that you can't help but express your true vision in your art. Maybe we are all putting undue pressure on ourselves to measure up to standards that come from somewhere else. So this week, and always,  I encourage you to stop the comparisons , the insecurities, the standard setting - and express yourself. It's nothing new - it's that old sixties poster about being the best you that you can be. No one is as good at your vision as you are. 

To each his own vision!

This week in our gallery - give us - you on a plate - in YOUR opinion, the best picture you took this week - no matter what it's subject. I can't wait to meet you!