We Are the Thing Itself

We Are the Thing Itself

​"We Are the Thing Itself" - oil on clayboard,  14 x 18 inches.  (Click on the image to purchase)

Behind the cotton wool is hidden a pattern… the whole world is a work of art… there is no Shakespeare… no Beethoven… no God; we are the words; we are the music; we are the thing itself.  VIRGINIA WOOLF

​Here we are, near the end of the year, and the full weight of introspection about all that has happened in those twelve months - all that has been said, done, created, destroyed, messed up, built upon, toppled, exulted, celebrated and mourned is upon me.  

But maybe we can narrow that down and  contemplate just one piece of that big ol' pie: what is the state of the art situation?

​Woolf's words grabbed me and plopped me in a chair to face this:  we are the thing itself.

Oh.  Wait.  Hmmm.  My own words fail me, even as the thought of this concept has my brain (and heart and spirit) on high alert because THIS IS SOMETHING BIG. The separation between everything begins to fall, and the words of Thich Nhat Hanh softly nudge me:

​"About thirty years ago I was looking for an English word to describe our deep interconnection with everything else. I liked the word “togetherness,” but I finally came up with the word “interbeing.” The verb “to be” can be misleading, because we cannot be by ourselves, alone. “To be” is always to “inter-be.” If we combine the prefix “inter” with the verb “to be,” we have a new verb, “inter-be.” To inter-be and the action of interbeing reflects reality more accurately. We inter-are with one another and with all life."

​And there we have it.  We cannot be separate from our art or those who see it.  The state of the art situation here in December is:  I can see how I am the thing itself.   And the art is a part of that big ol' pie - it is berries and sugar and butter and flour.  Not just a piece of the pie, but the pie itself.   And all the things that make it - the inspiration, the paint, the brushes, the paper, the sun through the skylights, the music in the background.  I inter-am with the art, and with you, dear reader - we inter-be.  Lucky, lucky me!

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The annual gesso murder/vandalizing has begun!  Take a look!


It's time for the last Reader Giveaway of 2023  Leave a comment. below describing your big AHA of the year.  One (or more) lucky reader (s) will be selected at random to receive something free from the studio.  Hooray!