LolaJovan.com
  • Home
  • ART
  • BLOG
  • Exhibits
    • The Downside of Lycanthropy
    • A Song for the Hunted
    • The Wild God
    • NUDGE - SHOVE
  • BOOKS

The Substance of Personhood

3/18/2018

8 Comments

 
"The Substance of Personhood" - mixed media on Canson art board, 20" by 16".  Ready to frame.  Available here and at Artfinder.

A rare Monday post as we prepare for an evening of revelry!  The Ambassador of Listowel, Damian Stack, has arrived, and we're hosting a soiree in his honor.  I don't know if he will mock our Guinness floats and green sheet cake or find each delicious.  But I do know my heart will rejoice to see a bit of Listowel after many months away.  

One of my traveling companions from the residency, the artist Carolyn Laudati,  is here to greet Damian and to experience a full immersion into abstraction during a week-long workshop we're attending with the artist Pat Dews.  This week is sure to be an adventure!  And so an early  post before the madness begins. :)
Picture
This piece started as an experimental watercolor and an underwater sea creature painting.  Oh yes!  Sharks, manatees and octopi cavorted in a tangle of seaweed and bubbles.  But I didn't love it and so kept tossing chalky paint and burnishing and marking until this star-gazing countenance appeared...the sea became the heavens and the creatures swam away.  Following the paint is a twisty-turning path, filled with surprises.  The one constant between the beginning and the ending of this piece is the orange.  And if you're curious, here is a brief history of that color.

Ultimately, this version resonated with me.  In the current chapter of Mark Nepo's The One Life We're Given, he delves into the three fears: fear of the past, of the present and of the future, and of a time when he was paralyzed by all three occurring simultaneously.  The silver lining of allowing yourself to fully experience fear is to be stripped of all the tools and tactics for dealing with them until "the chance to rely on no tools at all but on the substance of [your] personhood, trusting it [will] eventually meet the wind like a wing."  It's all there - right inside us.  The very substance of our personhood is the only tool we need to traverse the land of fear.   

Let's meet the wind like a wing today.  And raise a pint to our guests!
8 Comments
Diane Pike link
3/19/2018 08:04:58 am

A big hello and hug for Damian! How wonderful that he is visiting. The workshop sounds great—can’t wait to see what you do after it! Much love. Diane

Reply
jen
3/19/2018 10:12:42 am

Hooray! We are having a wonderful visit! It is surreal to be the one driving the car! ha ha! Sláinte!!

Reply
Dotty Seiter link
3/19/2018 08:38:17 am

That upward gaze! That vulnerable throat and heart! Compelling.

Love the story of the transformation of the painting as it progressed.

Thanks for the intro to Pat Dews. Wow. Jealous of your chance to be part of the adventure of her workshop.

Greetings to Damian, and Carolyn, and Pat, and you! Cheers!

Reply
jen
3/19/2018 10:16:59 am

Dotty! Thank you sweet lady. I am SO stoked about 4 days with Pat Dews! And sláinte to you!!!

Reply
Carol Edan link
3/20/2018 12:54:40 am

Oh you must be in seventh heaven! Guests from Ireland, and on St pat's day! And a grand workshop. Love the strong negative space in this. The orange is grand and I will have to delve more into that site! His eyes have a sort of inward glance. Hidden thoughts!

Reply
jen
3/20/2018 06:44:08 am

Carol! I am all aglow! It is a fantastic week. Delighted to hear the Irish brogue right here in my own home. And now off to a four day intensive! I can't wait to be further transformed. xo

Reply
Moss Mahony
4/1/2018 08:59:53 pm

So glad that Damian got to visit with you and Ron. I hope he behaved himself and that he didn't upset any of your friends. I'm sure he was delighted to see you and Carolyn again. Looking forward to seeing you in Listowel again soon. Keep up the good work. How's F&W doing?

Reply
jen
4/2/2018 07:37:36 am

He was the perfect guest, and a delightful entertainer! We all miss him and can't wait for the next time he visits. F&W is simmering...waiting for the three creators to get to work on it! ha ha!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Lola Jovan

    Picture

    Get Mail!

    * indicates required
    /* real people should not fill this in and expect good things - do not remove this or risk form bot signups */

    Intuit Mailchimp

    Categories

    All
    An Unexpected Life
    Bones
    Bossy Pants
    Mischief And Malarkey
    Rewilding
    The Art Of Seeing
    The Inner Landscape
    The Weight Of Words

contact lola
Picture
Here's the blue wild, where
tiny dreamers ride beasts, speak
​ birdsong, hold the moon.

(by poet Mary W. Cox)
​


​Art prints available on request
  • Home
  • ART
  • BLOG
  • Exhibits
    • The Downside of Lycanthropy
    • A Song for the Hunted
    • The Wild God
    • NUDGE - SHOVE
  • BOOKS