Tuesday, January 9, 2007

Getting my Studio Ready for What?




So I've been in California since Dec. 21 and now the holidays are well past and I am settling down to WORK. The CHASM (Community Health Art Studio Methods) class that Janis Timm-Bottos and I were planning to do did not fill up with folks and so we are off the hook. And yes, that is exactly how it feels. We were conceiving if this as a 5-day retreat for people involved in community building through the arts to come together. I was planning on reorganizing my studio here to welcome folks or maybe that was just an excuse to make the space (a three car garage attached to our house in Ojai) more habitable. So I went ahead and had the floor painted red, moved the furniture around, set up my altar space and began to stencil a mandala on the floor. Why? The two projects I have committed myself to for this stint in Ojai are 1. finishing a novel and 2. finishing a surrealistic film. Neither of these projects require the huge space or materials that the garage holds. Nevertheless, I am following the energy I feel such as picking up a leaf from my neighbor's grapevines and making a stencil for the mandala, gathering chewed out pomegrantes and imagining furnishing the interior spaces with little scenes. The spaciousness, both literal and figurative, that I feel in this landscape encourages me to trust the Creative Source and follow the clues. If I make the space ready, the work will appear? What about community? Maybe it's just me and Bina and the neighborhood dogs? If I choose solitary art like writing a book and making a film, what does community mean?

6 comments:

Adam Koren said...

Pat,

Thanks for starting a blog.
I love hearing what you're up to.
The "garage" looks fantastic.

I'd love to know when you post an entry to your blog. Do you know if there's a way for that to happen automatically? Or would you e-mail me and others who want to know?

Keep up the good inquiry!
Adam

Pat López said...

Ready to create life and to honor it!
Ready to connect with the source and to flow in to the sacred moment of creation...
Ready to create my self..
Thanks Pat for your books and your inspirational work.
I live part time in Bogota Colombia S.A and part time in florida and I would like to connect with you, and to take one of the workshops, please let me Know.If you want you can write to me...: www.mandalataller.com
Pat López

Sallie Wolf said...

The pomegranates are beautiful--I can really see why you are gathering them. Sallie

Anonymous said...

Your studio is a great idea and I love surreal films! Have you ever seen 'MirrorMask' (2005)?

I bought your book 'Art Is A Spiritual path' at my University bookshop recently (it was on sale) and I love it...Thanx so much for writing it :)

I am learning to incorporate intention and witness writing into my work.

Also, I recommend book 'Kabbalah (An introduction to the heart of Jewish mysticisn)' by Tim Dedopulos. It is has great illustrations and talks in beautiful, poetic way about history of Kabbalah and symbology of The Tree of Life. It laso suggests easy meditations to connect to Sephiroth and it actually suggest art as a way to connect to netzach Sephirah. You can find more about it here, if you wish:

http://www.amazon.com/Kabbalah-Illustrated-Introduction-Esoteric-Mysticism/dp/0517226480

Thanx again for your book :)

Jo Ann Hammond-Meiers said...

Pat,
Thanks for being there today, and resonating with my life so deeply. I have a sense that you will draw many people to your place. This blog is important. I've been on a learning curve about blogs and art therapy lately. I am a Canadian Art Therapist. All the people in art therapy in Edmonton,Alberta, Canada, that I know, speak so highly of you. Jo Ann

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