Practicing Bamboo

Art can be solitary, but I find that's a necessity if I want to dive deep into my soul to find my voice. By lunchtime I was amused (after a morning of practicing bamboo) as I had a forest literally growing under my feet.

Bamboo looks easy enough, but I find that it's simplicity makes it one of the hardest subjects to paint! There's no covering up mistakes, and since water & ink have their own voice I can only show up with brush in hand, breath & stay present to what happens on the paper.
This afternoon will be making branches and leaves. Today's goal is to come up with one design that's acceptable. I'll let you know if the water & ink have other plans.

A Morning Ritual

Below is a poem that came across my computer this morning. It touched my soul. This came from a site that I follow and enjoy (Heron Dance Art Studio). Rod is an artist and writer who lives seclusively in the wild, while reading great poets, writing, meditating and painting. 

I find these words valuable as I try to clear my thoughts and heart before entering my art place. A cleansing of sorts- getting rid of those negative gremlins that can dwell in my mind. 

Washing at dawn:

Rinse away dreams.

Protect the gods within,

And clarify the inner spirit.

Purification starts all practice. First comes cleansing of the body--not to deny the body, but so that it is refined. Once cleaned, it can help us sense the divine.

Rinsing away drams is a way of saying that we must not only dispel the illusions and anxieties of our sleeping moments but those of our waking ones as well. All life is a dream, not because it isn't there, but because we all project different meanings upon it. We must cleanse away this habit.

-Deng Ming-Dao, 365 Tao, Daily Meditations