While at an appointment with my doctor, I noticed the caligraphy and words of Thich Nhat Hanh: “No Mud, No Lotus”. When I asked about it, she shared her interpretation – it spoke of noble purposes springing from humble grounds.  And I thought that we share an aspiration to draw forth higher purposes from our day to day more mundane routines.  However, the challenge at hand is to learn to perceive the wonder of the present moment just as it is – even in the mud.   Meditation as a daily practice is a catalyst for such an awakening.

I have come to realize that many of the obstacles I face tend to come from a tendency to react – either to cling to or reject life scenarios as a modus operandi.  It appears to be a conditioning pattern that is fairly universal.  This tendency can be surmounted through contemplation. I shared some of those insights in my prior post.

Art-making draws me into a transformative journey of welcoming the immediate moment for the mystery that unfolds through the creative process.  The process is enigmatic, fascinating and captivating.  While painting, I set aside readymade notions and look for the response that grows within me.   Art is like the “lotus” that grows from the grounds of my day to day life.

Following are the 8 paintings that I have been working on recently:

After the last blog post’s reflections about this 8 panel composition, I recognized that I had described an earlier period of understanding of its progress. But what about the creative experience now?  It is worth considering these paintings as a progression.  I intend to just be still and observe them – without rejecting or clinging to any one particular artwork or concept.

One of the qualities that’s clear, as I described at another point, is that these geometric works have a floral-plant-undulating and life-like set of attributes.  Like leaves and petals with their interconnected lines and forms, these combine to stimulate a visual sense of expansion, movement and vibrancy.

In nature, a shared numerical pattern (Fibonacci sequence) permeates the arrangement of parts amongst the whole, as seen in the leaves and branches of a tree or the petals of a flower.  These 8 artworks (mentioned above) are drawn from my daily sojourn with the beauty (and the mud) that surrounds me.

The geometric aspect of my artwork is evident in the layering of circular patterns. The designs suggest an encircling movement to embrace, enclose and enfold the many parts within the whole.   Similarly, and much like the contemplative path, I am learning to welcome the unexpected changes in my creative journey.

I will keep you posted on the developments ahead.