The work that wasn't

 I started a new mandala form the other day, and the concentric rings aren't pleasing yet, so I haven't tried to design anything on it.  I may just chuck it back in the bucket.

 On the same day I started this one, which needs to have more carving on the mountains, and some texturing as well.  I should have worked on it today.  But life interfered.

The 5 piece mandala is almost dry, but not quite.  Several of the pieces seem bowed up in the middle, which is the opposite of what I expected.  We shal see how it fires.

Life's interference was strange. Saturday I had all these mandalas to work on, but my hands were kind of jittery. I had trouble breathing so used my inhaler. Maybe asthma? But still didn't feel right. Then I noticed my face felt hot, and was red and flushed.  That meant the sun block I'd put on (for the first time this year) was causing some irritation.  I decided it was an allergic type reaction, tried washing it off with water and a napkin.  I ended up putting everything away and going home where I could do hot water and soap removal.  My face still was flushed for another coupe of hours.  This was the same sunblock I used last year. I threw it out.  I never went for the walk I had hoped to, and the sun went behind clouds most of the afternoon, as if she were sorry I'd not gone walking in her sunbeams.

A mandala puzzle

The back sides of puzzle pieces of the mandala which I just created.  Still has several more stages to go through...drying, bisque firing, staining, glaze firing and then assembling on a board.

The right side up version, drying slowly on newspaper, soon to be wrapped in plastic to let the air come in ever so gently to dry it.  i hope the edges don't lift up, which is a possibility since it's not being weighed down with a board on top of it.

fingers and toes crossed.

today's Quote:
(first, appologies because the shift key is out of whack so capital letters are somewhat arbitrary...as are 's' and 'l' with this keyboard!)

Balance must be created when taking in news media, not allowing ourselves to BECOME the bad news.

Tree stained and glazed

OK, these photos were taken before the actual glaze had been added! The perforated bowl was covered in celadon glaze, after waxing the outlined branches so they might remain white.  We shall see.

The tree itself had a coat of dark black wash, which was sponged to just leave it in the textural lines. Then I applied a coat of matt clear. This is expected to give a sepia tone to the white clay. We shall see.

By glazing them separately, I can decide whether or not the sculpture really works or not.  I admit to leaning toward "not."  In a week or so ...shall see!

Today's quote:
Like a tree, our growth depends upon our ability to soften, loosen, and shed defenses we no longer need.

More simple stamping

 The edge of the bowl didn't stay perfectly straight as it was stamped, and then it was too dry to try to even it out...so it's the way it is.

I didn't do as much on the plate, and the stamps didn't need to be pressed as hard. 

Today's quote:

Trust yourself; you know more than you think you do.

BENJAMIN SPOCK

A bit of purple

All around the exterior of the geodesic dome at the Light Center, are these sweet delicate purple flowers.

And though the rubber tree leans, and the floor line goes at an angle, just look at the vertical line by the alcove and get your bearings...it is a dome after all!

Another rubber tree which shows off the beautiful purple carpet!

The pine outside climbs to the sky.

And deep red petunias offer another color to enjoy.

Now we're back to purple!

The pitcher plant seems lonely and Linda wondered if it was a volunteer.

Today's quote:
It is possible to find happiness in any job because what you do is often less important than how you do it.

Flowers at the dome

North Carolina mountains have woods aplenty!

As I walked around the geodesic dome last Sunday, I enjoyed the color of flowers planted next to the rough textured walls.  Very few corners were spied!

I liked the pattern of the steps next to the flower.

Stamps (no not for the mail)

Stamping bowls...oh my, not exactly easy on a very humid day.  I waited and tried it, then kind of swept over the messed up stamps, and tried again.

This is such a pretty thing to do, I want to master it.  After all, how hard can it be? Well, the clay has to be the right consistency, not too wet, and not too hard (dry).  And it has to be the right thickness, not too thin...you've got the idea.

I'm going to be continuing in my pursuit of the right method.  And I'm going to go find the box of stamps I made myself, rather than keep on using these that were manufactured...or made by others.

I still need to trim the bottoms of these shallow bowls.  Maybe tomorrow, maybe not till Wed. night when they will have set up enough. Yes, with the amount of humidity I had today, I'm voting for Wed.

The substitute teacher

While our studio manager is on vacation, he had his class continue with Louise Cecil giving the students the benefit of her fun and enjoyable style.

Lou is in the striped shirt!

Red House Gallery opening July 12, 2019

 My small bust of Kali, the fierce goddess of Hindu fame.

 I almost stuck out my tongue in the Kali pose...but the cameraman wasn't fast enough.

 My friend from the Black Mountain Cay Studio, Susan Wilkerson, won third prize for her Wren.

Susan puts a lot of time and attention into her sculptures, and this tiny bird is just one example of her work.  It was great to see so many people at the opening reception last night!

A juried show

The Red House is having a juried show of the member's works. Each artist can only submit 1 piece, and there are cash prizes for the top artworks. I'm pleased to be part of this exhibit, with the opening reception today 5-7 pm.

And what, you may ask, have I submitted?

Kali, the bust, the goddess, the fierce one!

Some organic shapes I've been working on

My goal is to glaze them separately and then add the bowl onto the branches of the tree.  We shall see...

The last 3 cards...this has gone on quite long enough!

The here and now of my life

Continuing a Tarot Card Reading and how my inner psyche relates to it!

The card I drew to represent the environment of my life was the Ten of Swords...major changes!

OK, I asked for it didn't I!  What do I learn about myself from thinking of a complete end to life as I know it? Would I be suicidal if it came to it? I usually don't want to give up a fight. Goddess knows I've been accused of always wanting to win any argument.

So at what point would I realize that I (and others like me) would be so brutalized that we would just give up all we know in the face of the disaster that presented itself?

We won't know till it happens.

For now can I let go of any idea or rigid system of thinking/expression/feeling to which my ego is so attached that it would feel like the end of my existence by doing so? Can I come to terms with my idealized rose-colored glasses interpretation of life and accept reality? Can I give up my hopes and dreams if it comes down to it, to sacrifice all I hold dear?

The answer today is a resounding no.  But I will keep this thought in the back of my mind.  My survivalist friends are thinking of another reality of life...and occasionally I think of what all of our lives might become.

"What if"...is the name of my mental game.

What if the ocean did rise a couple of feet?
What if crops were no longer pollinated because of the crazy use of pesticides?
What if all the fossil fuels actually were gone...all gone?
What if a war happened in the US?
What if there was no more transportation with gas/oil?
What if there was no more electricity?
what if there was no more water/sewer?
what if I had no access to food
what if the internet stopped?
what if we didn't have phones?

So that's a mind-game for which I have no answers. I'd like to think I could survive a while, but I probably would be among the elderly frail to die early with any of those crisis situations.

I would be very sorry about it though, and will struggle as I can in the meantime to keep any of those things from happening. Like most 76 year old voters, I have all the power of the pen, and the ballot box.

Next card:
My hopes/fears...two sides of the same coin

all have them, and with the other cards in this spread, I expected more things that I am afraid of. However the card Son of Cups (aka Knight or Jack of Hearts)

Hopes are one side of the coin when we face the future, and as with the last card I played the "what if" mind game which gives incredible anxiety to me, fears are just the other side of a possible future. We know we don't know. But being human, we wonder.

Here's a young man playing his flute/recorder, sitting inside an egg-shape, on water while in the lotus pose of yoga.  He represents male energy surrendered to feminine energy.  Cups represent feelings/emotions, as the heart suit of our playing cards.  He offers the gift of music, and flowers, perhaps giving a message. The trident is the symbol of poetry, visions and trances.

So this card is a bit up-beat. The flower in the foreground can offer trances or poison if you aren't careful.  So I like seeing this young man, but I am also a bit guarded about the sweetness he offers.  How much of this is realistic?

And the last card of the spread:
The outcome of my question to the universe through cards

Outcome - a place on the Celtic Cross spread with a culmination of things that have come up in the reading.  After all, this is all just a depiction of my own unconscious...and does bring to my thoughts some ideas that I may prefer not to think on a usual level.

So I have this Daughter of Wands card as the outcome. A fiery young woman who is dancing holding a wheel in one hand.  Vicki Noble (the author) tells us it's the wheel of Nemesis, the Goddess of retribution for breaches of taboo.  Yes, that's a very good thing to dance around with...as a threat perhaps? Or is it just that she is confident that Nemesis will balance things that have gotten all out of whack.

But I need to also go back to my original question to these cards...dealing with aging and changes.  This is my younger self who certainly did have lots of fire in her belly, and not much thought to the future.  She had quite the tendency to rush into things with little thought, or even little sense of feeling. A quick mover, that was me. And carrying around the unicorn who danced with me, ah the dreams and fun I've had!

And now I've slowed down and the world rushes past, with many young people dancing into their lives. I do hope they all have as much fulfillment as I have had in mine.

But to have my "outcome" card just remind me of the past doesn't quite make sense.  It has to have to do with the Devil card, and the nightmare, and the Emperor, and the surrender, as well as the two young men, the first being Pan who turns the Devil away, and the latter being that yoga musician who is full of emotions.  I think my imagination can still let me be a young dancing girl, with the fire that pushes us both to do whatever comes our way.

The card of 4 of discs may mean that any answers I'll have from this reading will be found when I make my own sanctuary and spend time in it. That is how I can feel grounded with all the turmoil that exists all around me. I have a little altar, and it's been kind of stacked with other stuff lately. Going to refurbish it next! I have even used my sage smudge stick to purify the environment of my home...and to ward away any energies that might do me harm. Now I'll have my sketchbook by my side, and sit with a candle in the dark, letting myself be open to whatever else might come my way.

Thank you for reading this with me.

Now to any readers out there...have you had your Tarot Cards read? What did you think? Has my experience been too personal, or too wild and weird? I am happy that you shared it with me.

Let's observe my own shadow self

Continuing a Tarot Card Reading and how my inner psyche relates to it!

Yep, as Karl Jung suggests, we carry around a shadow self, which we don't want to see, because it's the negative parts of oneself. (I like that there's also a bright shadow, the part that is good that I also deny existence to.)

My card to represent myself is none other than the Emperor. Yikes! It's a Trump card (pardon the intentional pun!) So much as I dislike the man, I must have some of what he is within me. How terribly distasteful to me. I've often tried to find a way to give love and forgiveness to him for his being another human...and I fail terribly because I won't ever forgive the hurts he is responsible for causing for so many others. There are so few redeeming qualities in the man, I find it a challenge to see how a dear relative can support him.

But to see my own Emperor qualities is my task today.  Am I detached from my feelings?  I cried when I read the blog a few days ago of a friend blogger who's dog died.  That started my day.

I may avoid some of my angry feelings about the government's misadventures (to put it mildly.)

Am I rigid? OK, perhaps a bit. I like my life simple and with just enough free time that I can stop and do something different every few days.  I do like having control over my life...which any day could tumble into a state of disease with crisis....and then I'd either be dead or under the control of medical professionals.

Am I afraid? Yes, of the end of this life as I know it...through disaster, through a government which seems bent on hurting those I support, through my personal crisis as I mentioned, of being victimized in any way.

Am I defensive? I have been many times in the past. I don't want to ever be hurt the way I have in the past, so I do defend myself pretty strongly when I get the hint that anything might go that way. I'm vulnerable in so many ways.

My positive message is to get in touch with my inner child and connect back to nature...the opposite of the Emperor.  Unfortunately I have to shield my eyes so I don't pay any attention to the dangerous childishness of Trump...which is more scary than fun.

What comes next?

Come along with me this week as I explore a Tarot Card Reading and how my inner psyche relates to it! Yes very personal, but also political, environmental and even somewhat humorous.

Though I often try the Zen approach by focusing on the Now rather than the future (or the past), a bit of consideration would help in planning things. Like is it going to rain, so I'll be able to wear the right clothes. These days I move beyond one plan for the day, and often have a Plan B. But I do stay flexible enough to go to another direction if it seems wise.

A four of discs...a future of meditation, establishing sanctuary for yourself...this card comes up frequently these days for me.  The meditative self led me to do this Tarot reading...to spend the time and attention to let subconscious information come to my awakened knowing.

The card suggests that I need to find an answer to the question...what do you need for yourself?  My first thought is "meditation."

That may sound a bit like circular reasoning...but as many other areas of my life are rich with people, ideas, art, spirituality, and circles of support, I keep coming back to what I most need is to look within, to turn off the outside world much as the woman in the card is doing. She has mandalas on her wall, as do I.  I think perhaps I should consider creating some more.