As Above So Below

As Above So Below.jpg

The old saying points to our three dimensional world as being a reflection of the greater dimensionless world of spirit. That the rules of spirit are the same as the rules of our physical world.

Well, to a point. But let’s not get all carried away with all this. A reflection is not the thing itself. You can’t shake hands with yourself in the mirror. The reflection only points to a reality greater than itself.

And so we have to be very cautious when we try to apply the rules of — well, let’s call it the spirit world for now, although that word carries a lot of unfortunate hitchhikers with it — to the world we seem to inhabit.

A reflection actually can give us very accurate and very helpful information about our world. Is our hair in place, are we buttoned up straight, and more importantly, is there a car coming up in the next lane that I need to be aware of before I move over?

We’re hinting at very large questions here, way too big to cover in a short blog post. But as you look at the little (8″ x 8″) painting with its clouds that are reflected not quite perfectly, and the grasses and flowers in the foreground — now where did they come from, and what are they reflections of? — let it serve as a reminder of the relationship between the big reality and the reflected planet earth physical human animal reality that is our boots on the ground experience.

No big deal. It’s just fun to ponder big ideas. We don’t have to understand them completely or solve anything.

Yet.

This image is from my new gallery, Paintings — check it out here when you get a chance. 

Cactus Valley

Cactus Valley

Amazing things, cacti. Where a human would die for lack of water, some living things can thrive and grow to enormous sizes.

Some people flourish in one set of circumstances where others are overwhelmed and drown or wither and shrivel up in a situation that isn’t right for them. Take a beautiful saguaro and put it in a rain forest, and you’re not doing it any favors. Same for a lush tropical fern if you put it in the desert.

Thing is, the cactus, being a plant, doesn’t try to force the fern into its own comfort zone. And the fern is just as happy to let the cactus be a cactus. Kind of a nice way to veg out, if you think about it.

All depends what you’re built for, I guess.

This image is from my new gallery, Paintings — check it out here when you get a chance.

Yellow Lake

Yellow Lake

So other than the fact that the colors are interesting, why is the lake yellow anyhow?

Well for one thing, the whole darn scene is alive and following its own agenda rather than ours. You’ve got trees marching over the horizon, clouds hanging in the sky checking it all out, and the yellow lake not reflecting the blue sky like it’s supposed to. Darn uppity lake, anyhow.

So who says things have to behave in ways we’re used to? We humans tend to get awfully confused when things don’t follow a “normal” script. And sometimes they just don’t. Or won’t. So we explain those things away as hallucinations, delusions, dreams, mental illness, fabrications, anything to avoid dealing with the reality that sometimes reality doesn’t behave, well, like reality.

Kids know better, of course.

Messes with our tidy boxed up categorized and domesticated safe little worldviews, though. Unless you’re some kind of mystic or shaman or new age flake or something weird like that, which in itself is quite enough for those of us who aren’t to dismiss it anyway. Or a kid. But hey, what do kids know?

Except sometimes the sky is blue and the lake is yellow, and trees march over the horizon. And little orbs of light start floating around.

Oy.

This is one of my favorite styles to work with — it’s reminiscent of a block print, a look I really like, but it isn’t. The original is acrylic, painted with brushes with a strong graphic look. The paint is protected with a semigloss or satin protective varnish. It’s easy to gently clean with a soft cloth and water, even mild soap if necessary, just don’t scrub. I paint on paper mounted on plywood, so it’s very stable and sturdy. And it’s small (the original is 8” x 8” x 1/2”), so it’s perfect for small spaces.

This image is from my new gallery, Paintings — check it out here when you get a chance.

Hot Pink Hiding (Xtreme Floral Twenty One)

Xtreme Floral 21 FAA Small

You know when you’re listening to some music and there’s that one riff or unexpected accent that just kicks the whole thing up another level? Or the little bit of spice in the recipe that takes the meal from good to scrumptious?

Maybe Hot Pink isn’t actually hiding. Maybe it’s more likely that she’s just quietly confident in her role as the catalyst that brings everything together. She knows she doesn’t have to scream and shout and be the center of attention to be a significant part of the mix.

The image works fine without her. But she snuck into the picture, and it works better with her. And she knows that.

Oddball. Weirdo. Not from around here. Doesn’t fit in.

Thank goodness.

This image is from my gallery, Xtreme Florals — check it out when you get a chance! To see a full resolution image of this digital artwork in full detail or to purchase a high quality print either framed or unframed, please go here

Say Ahhhh (Xtreme Floral Twenty)

Xtreme Floral 20 FAAWhen you say ahhhh you are expressing, in the most primal way, gratitude.

Rejoicing.

I have no idea what the consciousness of flowers might be like, but their very existence shouts I am alive, I am here, I am part of the magnificent tapestry of life, from its most complex evolved form, to the simplest subatomic particle/wave, and my existence will not be denied!

A plant’s consciousness is probably not very accessible to most of us, but just looking at how they grow and move and reach out exuberantly, with brilliant color and subtle shades and tints, is a powerful reminder of the deep impulse of life itself to grow, to expand, to fill the universe with the beauty of being.

Just being.

Just be. It’s enough. And it’s beautiful.

This image is from my gallery, Xtreme Florals — check it out when you get a chance! To see a full resolution image of this digital artwork in full detail or to purchase a high quality print either framed or unframed, please go here

Powerful in Pink (Xtreme Floral Nineteen)

Xtreme Floral 19 FAA.jpg

She’s not the brightest or strongest color in the scene, but she completely dominates with her presence. She even has a hint of shyness, a winsome coyness, as she emerges from the shadows.

And yet, even as she commands, everything’s in perfect balance. She lets the others shine, confidently using her power not to diminish, but rather to enhance the others.

Maybe she’s trying to show us what music looks like.

Really? You can listen with your eyes?

This image is from my gallery, Xtreme Florals — check it out when you get a chance! To see a full resolution image of this digital artwork in full detail or to purchase a high quality print either framed or unframed, please go here.

I create images of ordinary scenes that show the invisible behind the visible.

Yellow Unfolding (Xtreme Floral Eighteen)

Xtreme Floral 18 FAA Small

It’s almost liquid, like paint dropped into water, slowly flowing and finding its paths through the energy fields in the water. This is not a photograph of flowers, of objective material things, but a moment unfolding in time, a process caught in the act of becoming, frozen yet dynamic, unfolding before our very eyes as we gaze at what our intellect tells us is a still image.

Silly intellect.

This image is from my gallery, Xtreme Florals — check it out when you get a chance! To see a full resolution image of this digital artwork in full detail or to purchase a high quality print either framed or unframed, please go here

I create images of ordinary scenes that show the invisible behind the visible.