This year took all my long-held beliefs of myself and exploded it into millions of tiny brilliant pieces of blossoming possibility. I am changed.
THE BRAVE PROMISES KEPT
1. Childhood. My best friends and I made a childhood dream trip come true. Prince Edward Island was all that was quaint and old-fashioned and magical. For a week, I was Anne Shirley, charmed by the inexplainable quiet beauty of PEI. If you missed this, relive the experience over on instagram at #ENCHANTEDINPEI2015 .
2. Spirit of Place. I’ve been fascinated with the concept of the aliveness of place for a long long time, 15 years at least-a legacy from my architectural studies. So this year I challenged myself to create a Peekaboo! Collection exploring the story of Anne of Green Gables, inspired by my travels to Prince Edward Island. I also decided not to do it in the watercolors of previous series.
It was an audacious goal I set to prove two things: one, that I could make a body of work dedicated to my personal experience of the spirit of place, and two, that I could create a collection in oils, a medium I’ve been quietly working on behind the scenes for a few years.
The result was an excruciating creative block and a dark fog that lingered over 2 months. I shared meaningful lessons from that shadow period here. I almost gave up on the collection as it was holding up my other creative goals, when something deep inside urged me to go on. That this was something I needed to explore.
And so I heeded. The eventual breakthrough was like the first dazzling drops of rain after a long drought, and it almost brought me to my knees in relief. It revealed important clues on the kind of art I really wanted to make and I realized in retrospect, why it was imperative that I accepted the challenge. More on what I learned during this time later, when I unveil 2016’s Big Audacious Art Goal.
If you missed it, listen to Peekaboo! Series 3: “Searching for Anne” story narrative and view the collection here.
3. Labyrinth. Personal mythology. Soul-seeking journey. Creative thinking model. The quest for a life of enchantment. This year the Labyrinth emerged at long last from the mist, 15 years in the making, to herald a significant shift in my upcoming artistic voyage. Read my early thoughts here. So much more to share on this in the new year. Stay tuned.
4. Rituals. A year of exploring rituals in a way I haven’t before. My first community project and unveiling of my Morning Ritual video. Wonder walks and the magic of the everyday it revealed. See it here. More of this in 2016!
5. Big. I bravely signed my Traveling Art Show of Enchantment up for a big 200-vendor fair in town. All kinds of resistance and dread came up at the thought of preparing and showing at such a large fair (for me). But I did it, and it was marvelous! Most importantly, it reminded me why I do what I do.
6. Rhino. I don’t have animal dreams. But one night I dreamed of this strong, magnificent animal from my tropical roots. It showed itself around the time when I made a brave, life-changing health decision.
7. Symbolism. I answered a question I’ve been wondering for awhile now: How do early peoples see the world? What magical stories do they weave of the phenomena around them? I dove into my own mystical, mysterious inner landscape through the study of symbolism with this ongoing series. It began with an immersive exploration of existing archetypal stories and bloomed into deeper understanding and eventually, my own intuitive reading. You can follow this over at #EXPLORINGEVERYDAYSYMBOLISM on my Instagram Feed to see it mature.
8. Mentor. This was a year for mentors. I finally found the courage to seek out my fine art mentors rather than admiring from afar. I began my assistance to one after years of studying under her tutelage, and I flew all the way to Pennsylvania to meet another for a dream portfolio review.
THE THINGS THAT DIDN’T HAPPEN
‘Getting Lost’ : The Collection didn’t happen. But it’s a good thing! The timing just wasn’t right for it. Plenty of studies and sketches were made and a few paintings started but it needed an added layer of ‘something’ that truly didn’t come to light until Peekaboo! Series 3 was completed. And so this year I learned the importance of surrendering to the rightness of moment. To trust that our life events will unfold as they should and that we need not fight it.
OF THINGS TO COME
This year I finally laid down bedrock for experiences I’ve been dreaming of creating for years. At some point the castles we build in our secret journals need more than air beneath them.