Holy Loneliness

Holy Loneliness
oil on Yupo
13 x 19 inches
​This item is unmounted and unframed.

Holy Loneliness

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"follow your heart,"
they said - 
forgetting to mention
the terrible exile that comes
after we find the courage
to step out of the great line
we were expected to march in.

-it can be so lonely to chase our dreams.

still, once we begin,
we must keep going -

because the heart
doesn't know the way back, 
only forward.

and once we
taste purpose,

even loneliness feels holy.
- JOHN ROEDEL

How many of you like to step out of the great line we were expected to march in?  It isn't easy. It is fraught with peril! The judgment, the naysayers, the critics, those who want to herd the out-of-line-marchers back into formation - people who step out of line make other people, well nervous.

If you are chasing your dreams, those naysayers may think, why aren't I? So there is often a price to be paid, a terrible exile meant to push you back into the queue. 

I'm guessing anyone of you who is out there creating, pushing, questioning, exploring and adventuring may have experienced this kind of holy loneliness. Which isn't very lonely after all. And is an invitation for others to step out of line. No need to RSVP, that invitation says, just arrive.

I am personally celebrating each and every one of you. Brave souls who follow their hearts, even if there is no path, no guidebook or map and no instruction manual. We don't need to know the way back. We can just take another step forward with glee. 

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About the art: beginning with a gesso'd piece of Yupo and a color palette in my mind, I grabbed a wide brush and just ran with this one.  I wanted to veer away from preciousness, from tiny details, from tightness and over-control. A wide brush and big strokes makes that easy! I drew a basic series of horizon lines with neutral paint, then began blocking in chunks of color. A wash of pale glow and the suggestion of a sun and its reflection. I worked all around those lights, ignoring them until the very end when I could cut in with the paint and reduce them to the most impactful size. I'm pretty stoked about this one. 

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