Posts Tagged ‘Art’
Time For Another Rune
Posted on: July 23, 2022
- In: Art | Inspiration
- 87 Comments
I was dusting in my bedroom, where I keep my set of runes (made by my daughter) when I decided it was time to pull another one. This is what I pulled.
Inguz/Fertility
This rune is about new beginnings, possible pregnancy, good omens, satisfactory conclusions, a new idea or venture, a new path.
You must complete what you have begun. It may be a project of perhaps resolving a personal difficulty.
Very soon you will achieve inner balance, and with that, inner peace.
This was the perfect rune for me at this time. Although I had to chuckle about the possible pregnancy, I do crave new beginnings. I started another Amanda book but have not been working very hard on it, so the suggestion that I finish what I’ve begun is timely. Achieving inner balance and inner peace is a lifelong ambition.
I’m so glad I pulled this rune. Now I suppose I should finish the dusting. Sigh.
I wrote more about runes here, here and here
Enjoy this short video of runes being stained and then fired by Madmudslinger. The runes are made from wild clay dug from the ground on her west coast island home.
From the website of Madmudslinger:
Known as ‘oracle of the self’, Runes help to access the infinite wisdom existing within ourselves. The Runes help to focus and reassure what we usually already know.
The Blank Rune
Posted on: May 27, 2022
- In: Art | Inspiration
- 66 Comments
The first time I pulled the blank rune, I was very disappointed. But then I read the meaning in the booklet my daughter put together and realized it was the perfect rune for me at the time.
The Blank Rune represents the unknowable, fate, nothingness, and mystery.
There is no answer to your issue. Some things are not knowable; that is the wisdom addressed by this rune. Rather than feeling a deeper frustration from no answer to be had, think of the unknowable as a relief. Ah, I no longer need to search for answers here. You must take what is to follow.
There are no specific preparation and certainly no way out. Courage is called for when leaping empty-handed into the void.
I am the sort of person who always wants answers. So this rune really speaks to me. And I often pull it. Like today. So I better gather up my courage and leap into the void once again!
I have written about my set of runes made by my potter daughter before, here and here.
Rune meanings are varied and have been handed down through the mists of time since their ancient beginnings in approximately the 1st Century AD.
The Norse runes are part of an ancient Pro-Germanic tradition and the runic alphabet consists of 24 rune symbols – with the addition of one notably blank rune to allow space for cosmic chance.
Art and Travel Memories
Posted on: June 9, 2020
- In: Art | Memories | Travel
- 118 Comments
My home is decorated mostly with items I´ve brought back from my travels. Since we can’t travel right now, it’s comforting to remember past trips. We enjoy looking through our photographs or at items we have brought back to remind us of wonderful times. I don’t do a lot of shopping when I travel, but I like to bring back a piece of art or handicraft as a memento of the place we’ve visited.
One of these items is a small, rustic vase decorated with rawhide that sits on my mantel. Something I couldn’t bear to leave behind, so it came with me to Spain. I believe I purchased it in Arizona at a Native American craft shop. I remember asking the salesperson about the background of the pottery, as I always like to know about the art I purchase. She kindly wrote the name of the Native North American Indian tribe the artist belonged to on the back of the American Express receipt. I got busy and forgot to do any research when I got home.
The other day as I was dusting the mantel, I wished I had looked up some information about the creators of the pottery. I reached inside and found a piece of paper. I pulled out a yellowed and very faded receipt. The young woman’s printing on the back of it was still clear: TARAHUMARA.
We had just watched a show on TV about the Tarahumara Indians who live in the Copper Canyon, in the state of Chihuahua, Northern Mexico. When I tutored Korean students in English, I used a lesson plan about the Tarahumara Racers who run a 90-mile race non-stop over rough terrain, often barefoot or wearing homemade huaraches, with little difficulty.
After doing some research, I found that author Christopher McDougall has written a book called Born to Run, where he highlights these amazing people with incredible running abilities.
Here is a short video about these special people.
Tarahumara pottery is made of rough earthen clay and is usually white, orange, or brown. A decorative slip made of red ocher powder and water is often applied. The vessel is left to dry and harden in the sun, before being placed into an open, dry flame for about an hour and a half. Rather than being polished and smooth, Tarahumara Indian pottery is rustic and still made as it has been for generations. Often strips of rawhide are stretched around the piece to add to the simple design.
What a great find. Although the American Express receipt was too faded to read the name of the store, I was able to make out the date, 04/15/ 92. I’ve had this piece of pottery for twenty-eight years and only just now learned more about it! It is now even more special.
Do you have anything you have brought back from your travels that has special meaning to you?
Musée d’Orsay
Posted on: March 29, 2019
- In: Art | Travel
- 88 Comments
I can’t believe it is almost a year since we drove to Paris and saw the most amazing sights. I’ve written about it here, here and here. But I haven’t yet mentioned my visit to the fabulous Musée d’Orsay. It was on my list of things to see it but was not sure we would have time. It was our last day and we had a couple of hours free in the late afternoon. My friend said, “Let’s go!” I am so glad we did as it was incredible. Seeing works of art I have admired all my adult life, made my heart sing!
The building itself is a masterpiece. It’s located in the centre of Paris on the banks of the Seine, in the former Orsay railway station, built for the Universal Exhibition of 1900. The building, no longer used as a railway station, was scheduled for demolition when the idea of using it to display collections of art from the period of 1848 to 1914 was suggested. In December of 1986 the museum was opened to the public.
Visitors are greeted by the magnificent decor of this former train station that came so close to being destroyed. I was gobsmacked the minute I walked through the doors.
One of the first paintings that caught my attention was Millet’s The Gleaners. I have always loved this painting of women collecting leftover grain after the harvest. Perhaps because of my rural background.
On the next wall I spotted Corot’s Le Moulin de Saint-Nicholas-lez-Arras and burst into tears. For the first ten years of my working life I was employed by a wonderful German woman who owned a gift shop in Medicine Hat, Alberta, called Ed’s Studio craft. She imported many things from Europe and was an art afficianado. She taught me so much about business, art and culture. We sold among other things, art prints and art cards. She gave me many wonderful gifts over the years which I treasure, including an art card depicting this painting. She sadly passed away at a young age.
Le Moulin de Saint-Nicolas-lez-Arras by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot. I always wished I could step inside that painting.
Of course there were many, many more of my favourites. Here are just a few.
Claude Monet’s Poppies
Renoir’s Dance at Le moulin de la Galette
Renoir’s Dance in the Country
Van Gogh’s Starry Night Over the Rhone
Van Gogh’s The Church at Auvers
From the roof top of the museum is a great view of Montmartre with the imposing La Basilique du Sacre-Coeur (Cathedral of the Sacred Heart)
Inside, looking through the clock with Sacre-Coeur in the background
Because it was once a train station, there are a number of impressive clocks in the building to add to the atmosphere. Perhaps telling us that art is timeless and stirs emotions from the past, the present and the future.
To view these works of art in this amazing place is a must. I wished we had more time but I plan one day to return.
Have you been to Musée d’Orsay? Or any art museum that stirred your soul?
My Amazing Daughter
Posted on: August 17, 2018
- In: Art | Family
- 87 Comments
I have mentioned my talented potter daughter previously. I am so proud of her as she continues to grow and create fabulous art. Recently she has been featured in a glossy magazine from the UK called Art Reveal
In the article she states, I’m privileged to participate in the cycle of handmade artifacts.
Here is the link to the complete article.
https://issuu.com/artrevealmagazine/docs/39/42
If you get a chance to read it, you will see she is not only a talented artist, she is also very articulate.
Following are a few of her recent pieces.
Susa, wood-fired stoneware
Ocean Momma
Amphora
Raku Shake Basket
Rhythm of the Dance
To see more of her work, check out her website. https://madmudslinger.com/
She will ship anywhere in the world!!
To see your children doing what they love and doing it well is the best reward for a parent. I couldn’t be more proud.
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