Call me Sherlock…

I’m Always Drawn to the Mystery

I love investigating, working out the clues, following the mystery, delving deeply into the Unknown. Wabi-Sabi is perfect! Here is something that many historically say that to speak of it, is impossible. It is an aesthetic, a deep knowing, a feeling, a way of life. Some say it’s the true world. To see Wabi-Sabi is to seek the details, the humble, the rust on metal, the peeling painted wall, bits of old wallpaper, the weathered brick, the crack in the sidewalk with a flower growing thru. It’s the crack in the bell, the vase, window, or tea cup that lets the light come through.

“The Wound is the place where the light enters you” Rumi

Wabi-Sabi feelings can be evoked with the smell of fresh baked bread, newly cut grass, the scent of flowers at twilight, or the smell of the ocean and beach. It’s the sound of wind chimes, wind through the trees, a foghorn or buoy bell guiding sailors to safe harbor. It’s a whole body experience, taking in all the senses, that brings peace and contentment. A memory of grandmother’s house is just as strong an image as a photo or video. This is true beauty in the Wabi-Sabi world. There’s an acceptance of the imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete. It’s life moving through stages of growth, maturity, and decline. It certainly is an unconventional look at beauty, decay, and one-of-a-kind, in the moment Art.

So in my new Wabi-Sabi classes being created at this time, we will work with the happy accidents of ink, paint, and oil pastels. It’s a layering of glazes to show many muted colors showing through. It’s sgraffito, scraping, revealing, dabbing, wiping, and applying of many types of media to create unique effects and textures. It’s the mystery of weathered found objects with all their metaphorical meanings. It’s soft blurred edges with nature objects added as a focal point.

Wabi-Sabi Art is the Zen of life. I call these new classes Wabi-Sabi Alchemy, since our focus will be on the 4 ancient elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Each week we’ll focus on an element, with a new art project each day for 4 weeks. I’m excited about this approach to Art and Life, as we create art to mirror the Wabi-Sabi philosophy. Keep an eye on this site for recent developments: http://www.artisticwaytoenlightenment.com/desktop/.