Red Bird on My Shoulder, 11.5" x 14" crayone on dry media paper by Tammy Vitale

Rummaging through my files this a.m. to find this drawing (yes – now that I'm working a do work ahead of time on free days) I realize that I had a very lot of 2D work.  I don't think of myself as a painter or drawer or even crayoner (although my inner child is most definitely a crayon lover), yet I have most definitely created a body of 2D work – 3 pieces of which sold at PRAD in October…all to one person. 

In light of Barack Obama's president elect status, and all the voices saying:  this changes the way we see ourselves, this little discovery about myself is interesting.

I am an artist.  More particularly I am a sculptor – I work in clay.  I draw for relaxation and fun, and, apparently, also for sale professionally.

When I step back a moment, this all ties into a lifelong quest of mine (tied integrally into my master's work) about stories:  the stories we tell ourselves, the stories we tell others.  They aren't just stories, they are foundational beliefs by which we define ourselves, others and our world.  And a shift in a sentance in a paragraph in a story, or even just noticing a narrative line for the first time and looking at it in the light of day can change everything.  This isn't voodoo or airy-fairy positing.  This is real stuff.  Barack Obama is giving us a new narrative for our country – a narrative of hope, a narrative of unity and inclusion, a narrative we haven't heard from a leader for a very long time.  Already, of course, those who make a living in divisiveness and hate (all burrowing into fears that many of us aren't even aware of), are on the attack.  Like Alice, I find myself most curious of all to see if Obama can continue his narrative, incorporating and thus deflecting the smaller narratives of special interests.  It is a fascinating intellectual enterprise.  Unfortunately or fortunately depending on the outcome, it must unreel in real time.  I am sure it will not be boring, may be very scarey and most possibly even exhilerating.

Brian Greene has written about string theory which suggests that at any point in time there are multiple strands of reality that we could be living.  (here's a video url in case this video takes a long time to load))

During the run-up (well, 2 years actually) to the actual election, I took to saying "In my world, Barack Obama is president."  Now I wonder if there is a string somewhere where that isn't true, because on the string I'm personally riding right now, it's delightfully, ecstatically true.   From here on out, I'm living in a world where Barack Obama's vision is a vision we all adopt and move forward with.

Much of this may be  brought on by browsing a book at work yesterday on determinism/free will which got me to thinking about the work I've done in consciousness studies (fascinating). (authors include Ken Wilber who I don't like but must admit is good for synthesizing vast amounts of info.  I believe much of his work is losely based on Erich Neumann's work on consciousness.  Neumann is much more balanced.  Wilber is the darling of intellectuals, who can have him.  I find him mysogenistic).

All of this may lead to new paintings (I hope!).  Meanwhile it is all also tied in with Art Every Day Month at Creative Every Day.  If you want some lovely browsing, go click through participants' blogs.  Leah has done an amazing job of creating a space for all of us to gather and share (including a flicker page).

I have no idea where this is going, so before I get too deep into things that may bore you to tears, I'll stop. 

thought for the day: 'And God blew upon the waters of the deep, and created cosmos.' In Hebrew 'the deep' is Tehom, which is etymologically linked to Tiamat the ancient Middle Eastern dragon goddess of chaos.  In order for your spirit to blow strong enough to create cosmos, you need a certain water level of chaos to blow upon.  As we have seen, present civilization, as well as planetary necessity, is an extraordinary vehicle to engender chaos to provoke in you the desire for cosmogenesis and the search for the Divine Beloved.  Thus, chaos is a movement toward consciousness, which is also a movement into conscious creation, conscious genesis, and conscious loving.  Jean Houston The Search for the Beloved