MAY 14, 15, 2010. Rick Berg Landscape Workshop:
However hard I scrub, my fingers still bear the marks of applying black gesso to my canvas with a sponge! Had I known, I would have added a surgical glove to the supply list.
On Friday evening and all day Saturday an eager group of 13 artists sat under the teaching of well-known Canadian artist Rick Berg. Rick is a friendly, funny, and knowledgeable instructor. We all learned a lot as he talked us through 2 hands - on demonstrations. I felt like I leapt forward by miles that first day. Suddenly I look at my own artwork in a new light and I have some good ideas to put into practice as soon as I move beyond the inevitable frustration that comes from mastering something new!
There is such value in learning from those who have spent years perfecting their techniques. This is the very first workshop I’ve taken, except for a few excellent classes I had with wildlife artist David Kilter a good 10 or 11 years ago. I know there are those who like to do as many workshops as possible and that’s OK. For me however, I only want to learn specific things from specific painters. There was something about Rick’s work that intrigued me and I just had to place myself under his skilful hand. I hope to keep up the relationship so that I can learn even more. The next person I want to learn from is Dan Schutlz whom I have asked to come and teach a workshop in early September. Be sure to check the workshop tab for details.
Having said that, the last thing any artist or art student wants is to be or create clones. Even on a spiritual level, God is far too diverse to want from all of us to be exactly alike; even when it comes to conforming to His image. God is so marvellously differentiated that He delights in us remaining uniquely who He made us to be, and yet to become just like His Son. This is redemption. It is also a concept so far beyond human comprehension and ability to accomplish that our tendency is to want to dismiss it. How can we be like Christ and be uniquely who we are? For many there is little desire to become like Christ – but for God this is precisely His purpose for each of us. He knows that in Christ you can be the best you and I can be the best me . “In Him we” are to “live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). I suppose it is something like a child whose parents delight in who he or she is, yet they do all they can to help that little one bear the image or character traits of the family likeness, beliefs, and values. Since life in the Kingdom of Heaven which Jesus came to make available to us starting here and now is what God most wants for us, we cannot separate “real life” from “spiritual life” as many seem to want to do. Everything we do therefore is in and under the rule of the God – even painting! And should be done to honor Him. Jesus was after all a blue-collar worker; a carpenter/stone mason who perfectly honored God in the work of His hands.
He came to give us abundant life right where we are and to live His life as a hands-on demonstration of life in the Kingdom, under the emancipating rule of His Father. We pattern our lives after Him who is our joy-filled teacher, mentor, coach, Saviour.
May 2, 2010
The Tree of Life
If the towering Redwoods of the West Coast symbolize North American floral magnificence then the massive Baobab epitomises Africa. As a child I was fascinated by these trees. They were just there. Each one seemed like it had been there forever; as immovable as the rock Koppies (rocky outcrop). The fact is that many of the mature trees seen today were around well before Christ was alive on earth. If you take a moment, that’s quite the thought. Imagine being a contemporary of Jesus – even if you are a tree!
I used to wonder what stories they would tell if Baobabs could speak. History is a fascinating thing. We seem to think that because something happened a long time ago, it somehow loses its “realness.” It’s like because it happened way back it is not really true anymore. But the only thing that separates the reality of an event like the birth of my grandfather, my childhood, my wedding day, last night’s BBQ or - the earthly life of the Creator of the universe is just a stretch of time. The longevity of these gigantic trees helps me bridge the gap.
When I was in the town of Luangwa Boma, on Zambian side of the confluence of the Zambezi and Luangwa Rives, I was taken to an unassuming Baobab at the river’s edge. Pointing east and drawing an imaginary line with his hand, the local pastor told me that when Scottish missionary, David Livingstone came, his party crossed over the river from Portuguese East Africa, now Mozambique, to the very spot we were standing. It was at the foot of that Baobab that the merciless slave traders chained up the men, women and children they harvested on their journey to the coast. The locals suspected Livingstone of being a slave trader. One of his biographers wrote that Luangwa Boma was one of the only places Livingstone ever feared for his life and the lives of those in his party. They quietly got back in their Makoro’s (the hollowed out boat hewn from a tree) and left.
For me, the 150 years between these two moments shrunk in an instant. My heart leaped into my throat as I thought of the unimaginable trauma of those who stood, lay, squatted, and wept into the dirt right where I was standing. I felt the tears coming. I just wanted to scream out against that evil – all the evil that Africa has endured and still endures – and now at the hands of her own people.
The African bush-land is for the most part scrubby. Aside from forested areas where trees are tall and leafy, the trees of the grasslands have thin branches and small leaves. The tallest trees of the Mopani woodlands are just a few meters higher than an adult giraffe can reach. Many have thorns – impressive thorns, but the Baobab is impressive in other ways. It is big; up to 15 meters in diameter and 30 meters high. They flower for the first time at about 20 years of age. In mid-summer, dozens of luminous white blossoms the size of side-plates open at sunset and last less than 24 hours. Their strong musky odour attracts fruit bats and hosts of insects which pollinate the flowers as they feed on the sweet nectar.
Today, many Africans refer to the Baobab as the "Tree of Life". The Fibres from the bark can be turned into rope and cloth; fresh leaves are often eaten to boost the immune system; a single tree can hold up to 4,500 litres of water and the seeds are said to be 12 times richer in vitamin C than an orange. The shredded look of many Baobabs comes from elephants that poke their tusks into the bark and rip off long strips that they chew to get to the moisture. Its branches and hollowed-out trunk provide shelter for a variety of animals, birds, reptiles and even humans. The nests of red-billed Buffalo-weavers are more often found in Baobabs than any other tree. The seeds are housed in a hairy pod that resembles a miniature football and are often referred to as “Monkey Bread.” Once they fall to the ground, the pods are eaten by baboons, monkeys, antelope and elephants that disperse the hard seeds in their dung; fertilized and ready to go!
April 29, 2010
Polar Bear: Ursus Maritimus “Under Construction”
The most interesting thing to me is that although polar bears appear to be white, each hair is actually a transparent tube. It was thought that each hair acted like an optic fibre channelling sunlight and heat to the skin, which is black... a “polar heat” panel! Apparently that theory has been disproved, but how neat would that be! It makes sense – but what do I know. Anyway here is a case where what you see is not what you get!
Also known as a sea or ice bear, polar bears are the world's largest land predators. Over 25 000 polar bears roam the Arctic. Females reach sexual maturity around 4 or 5 years old. They mate in the summer and in the winter give birth to 2 - 4 cubs that weigh less than 2 lbs each. Polar bears don’t hibernate, but the mother stays with the cubs until they emerge in the spring. If the food supply is good, cubs will grow to around 200 lbs within a year. Males can grow 10 feet tall and weigh up to 1500 lbs. Females are only half that size. Their life span in the wild is about 25years. The biggest bear on record weighed in at 2210 lbs! These bears begin to overheat when temperature exceeds 10 °C (50 °F).Polar bears have wide front paws with slightly webbed toes that help them swim at 6 miles per hour and up to 200 miles at a stretch, paddling with their front feet and steering with their hind feet.
Their Paws have rough surfaces to help prevent them from slipping up on the ice.
I started this polar bear painting 15 years ago! It was about a year after we moved from South Africa. I’d never seen a live one before.
Fifteen years might be a little more than putting something aside for a while, but I am glad I toted it along, because it has potential. It’s a reasonably big piece, 48’’x32’’ although I am pretty sure I’m going to cut it down. That’s one reason I paint on board as opposed to canvas. A handsaw can be an artist’s best friend. I will most likely crop it just behind the shoulder, as it is shown in the picture. Right now, it is a full body.
Though I do not paint fulltime, I have at least 5 paintings going at one time. I need to put things down for a while so I can find fresh eyes. I have a friend though, who cannot possibly start any new work without completely finishing the one she’s busy with. That’s OK.
A painting in progress is like a human life. We’re all at different stages of being “done.” Actually, it’s truer to say that as an artist you don’t ever really finish a painting; you just stop when you feel it reflects enough of what you wanted to portray that you can put your signature on it. None of us are ever really “done” either. That means that we’re all still a work in progress... and it is good to remember... so that we’re not too hard on ourselves or on others.
I am often harder on others than I’d like for them to be on me. I don’t like this about myself, so I have taped a small newspaper clipping to the lid of my laptop. It must have served as a bookmark because I found it between the yellowing pages of a book I bought at a second hand book store; Songs and Poems: Compiled by D.R. Broadbent. I want to share it so I’ve pasted it upside down so that it is right way up for whoever sees the lid of my computer when it is open. It says, “We readily excuse our own shortcomings and failures. If we knew others as well as we knew ourselves we might have more charity.” Isn’t that great!
A pastor friend in South Africa, Richard Baird sends me the insightful daily devotional meditations he writes for his “flock.” I loved the one he entitled The Finishing Touch. Here is an excerpt:
“There have been...times in which I simply wanted to give up on myself. My heart gets exposed and immediately I am embarrassed and I sink into a self-pity mode although I generally endeavour to couch my self-pity in more pious terms so as not to sound too pathetic and perhaps even a tad holy! But God does not expose our hearts to condemn us, but to grow us and build us. The exposing of our hearts to ourselves serves as a constant reminder of our need of His grace to be at work in our hearts. As Newton put it: His grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home... Sometimes I think we all need to have a sign on our foreheads which reads ‘Under Construction.’" And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Phil 1:6)
There are three milestones in this journey of charity or grace toward others. You’ve reached the first milestone in personal maturity when you do not immediately blame or condemn another for an indiscretion or their position on something; even in the silence of your heart. My undergrad theology professor, Dr. Bert Dominy use to address us daily as “frail creatures of dust” because that is what we all are. I am – and I must remember that you are too.
You have reached the next milestone when you recognize that it’s OK for others to be who they are. You don’t have to try making them just like you.
You have reached your destination when you can actually enjoy someone else’s uniqueness for what it is. In reality, it’s only when you get to this place that you will find rest and the other person might find that he or she can trust you enough to allow you to share some insights you’ve gained.
Dark days…
…don’t usually come in a sudden thunderous crash on a stormy night when all the lights go down. They come slowly, avoiding eye contact; creeping across the living room floor like the dusk after a bright and sunny day. It’s like being engrossed in a book. You don’t notice the fading light and the cooling air. Without knowing it you’re hunching and squinting; inching you body into what little light is coming through the window and you pull your legs up for warmth… it’s only when you can no longer see a thing, or someone marches through the room and says, “What are you doing here in the dark,” that you realize you are completely engulfed. The same is true for life.
We do not lose sight of God because our circumstances are dark, difficult or overwhelming – it is when we have lost sight of God that we find ourselves overwhelmed by dark and difficult circumstances.
But the light starts breaking through at the darkest hour…
…When you pull back far enough to see that every direction you’ve gone, everything you’ve attempted has led to a dead end and it leads you to search your heart and reach out to God day and night until he responds…
…When you cut lose what you realize you can no longer hold on to or change…
…When you are honest enough to face yourself as you are, admit your failures and make whatever adjustments needed…
…When God reminds you that because He IS, you can BE - who and what you are - with all your faults, shortcomings, limitations, insufficiencies and inabilities – including any physical handicap, mental disadvantage or emotional frailty…
…When God’s Spirit gently and patiently reveals again that it is Him at work, not you and that it is He who has brought your life crashing down around your feet so that you can again adjust your heart to Him and His purpose…
…When God shows you that the only thing that is required to be of use to Him is the very thing that is within reach of every person; an ever deepening personal relationship of intimacy with God, which comes from an ever broadening surrender to Jesus and conformation to His likeness so that when this is pattern is established, it leads to a life through which God can accomplish His redemptive purpose to an extent you cannot comprehend…
Our prayer as we get up every morning should be, “Father, establish my heart and mind in your Son today. Empowering Spirit, help me overcome my flesh, the world and the evil one so that I will eagerly yield even more of myself to Jesus; without your help I can do nothing. I want to know you and your resurrection power which will keep my focus steadily on you so that I am not overpowered by my circumstances but rather by the reality of your presence and the purpose you have for your world today…
I have a new motto.
Not that I had one before, maybe that is the problem! I realized some years ago that I resist finishing things because by finishing them I'm saying this is the best I can do! What a shockingly high opinion I have of myself!
Ever since I read this quote by Scott Allen on an art blog I follow, it has called out to me in the combined voices of everyone I know that has attempted a post graduate degree... and bears a remarkable likeness to the voice of the chair of my doctoral committee. So from that day on, whatever I've done I have been saying to myself:
Done...is better than perfect!
Thank you
... all for the many, many encouraging emails I've received since posting this site, I'm quite taken back! Don't stop! One was from a friend in Alabama. It got me thinking... Our world is filled with people who have no other desire than to make it to the top of the pile. There is nothing wrong with a healthy work ethic or the desire to succeed, but it does matter how you get there. Many do make it to the top. Many more do not. Whether we’re at the top or trying to get there, our tendency is to fight for what we want or think we deserve. If we happen involve God in the process, we often just want to use Him to get us to where we want to go. We set goals and then set about achieving them - often at the expense of others. Think about the capstone of a pyramid which is where it is only because of all the stones upon which it stands.
I hope the following insight regarding God’s nocturnal encounter with Jacob might also be of encouragement to you:
From: Forty Days for God’s Glory.
Day 36
Have you ever found yourself wrestling with God? Your heart is headed in one direction, and suddenly, you find God wants you moving in another. The result is a struggle... We wrestle with God when He asks us to move outside our comfort zone. We resist change. Most of us read this story as if Jacob was wrestling to obtain a blessing. In fact, God was wrestling with Jacob to force his surrender. He sought to bring Jacob to a point of helplessness. He wanted to wrangle with him until he came to the end of his own strength and resources. Finally, crippled by the struggle, Jacob gave up in helpless surrender. Jacob had been wrestling with God all of his life. All of his life he resisted surrender. All of his life he trusted in his own strength rather than in the sufficiency and sovereignty of God... Jacob left that wrestling match a different man. He left weaker but stronger. He left a man under God’s command.
