Orchids. Watercolour Paintings. A Lamp for the Homesteaders Coop? Magic Wands?

Wishing you
A year of love and light.
Inspiration. Exploration. Discovery.
With renewed expectations.
Seeing with new eyes.
All the Stars.
~Ally.

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Beginning again: Steemit and 2019.

Over the Festive Season: While celebrating Christmas and the dawning of a new year, both with friends and in solitude in the local bushland: As I've been decluttering my living and working space: As I've been working in the garden: I've noticed that my resolve to return to drawing and painting this year, and share my processes at Steemit has strengthened a hundredfold.

And then visiting the Art Gallery of New South Wales a few days ago: 'Enchanted' by the Pukumani Grave Posts/Burial Poles in the Australian indigenous section there, my resolve increased maybe a thousandfold.

I've had a feeling for making and then drawing and painting my own 'Magic Wands' and 'Poles' ~ 'Figures' and 'Obelisques' for eons: Ideas that continue to filter into the initial concept of a major work I installed for Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi at the end of 2011.

While I've been happily making my small Nests and Baskets with papers embedded with natural materials, with the intention of developing them as my first product line for a store on The Homesteaders Co-op ~ I started noticing a feeling, like a fine mist wafting around my heart, that the 'Wands' and 'Poles' are also calling to be made. And VERY soon. The Obelisques and Figures will be able to follow.

Watercolour painting.

Whilst sifting through some old photographs and fragmentary drawings, I came across four small watercolours that I'd painted some light years ago.

The voice I usually hear said:

These paintings are so childish: So naive: But a memento, so don't throw them out just yet.

But then another voice said:

Ally, if you wish to work with watercolour in a NEW way, then openly share these little paintings. They may be old but there's something unpretentious in their childlike quality: They may be a little ragged but there's a beauty in their fragility: They may be nothing like what you contemplate doing now but they have been an essential part of your journey.

So I'd like to present them now, along with some gems of wisdom by John O'Donohue in his book: Anum Cara: Spiritual Wisdom from the Celtic World: Words that are the closest I can find to express the way in which I would like to be able to work this year.

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Anam Cara

Anam is the Gaelic term for soul and Cara is the word for friend. So Anum Cara in the Gaelic world is 'soul friend.'

When you had an Anam Cara, your friendship cut across all convention and categories. You were joined in an ancient and eternal way with the friend of your soul. ~John O'Donohue: Anum Cara.

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Orchids.
So delicate and dainty.
A lamp: Made for and given to my mother.
Paper: Aged. Yellowed. Blemished.
Watercolour: Memories.
Love and Light.
~Ally.

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May the light of your soul bless the work you do
With the secret love and warmth of your heart.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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May the sacredness of your work bring healing, light and renewal to those who work with you and to those who see and receive your work.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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May it release within you:
Wellsprings of refreshment, inspiration and excitment..
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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May you never become lost in the bland absences
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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May evening find you gracious and fulfilled.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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May your soul calm, console and renew you.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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May you have respect for your own individuality and difference.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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That behind the facade of your life
There is something beautiful, good and eternal happening.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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Beginning again with Watercolour.

I've been pondering on where to start for what seems like a lifetime. Should I work with drawing or painting: Charcoal or pastel, watercolour, acrylic or oils? I've worked with them all and love them all equally.

In this state of unknowing: All I know is that my new drawings and paintings will not be like anything I've ever done before.

As a way of inspiring myself to draw again, I shared these two coloured pencil drawings:

• Guided by the Star
• The Journey

When I first thought about sharing the drawing of The Journey I was feeling very uncertain as to whether people at Steemit would like it or not. But then I realized that sharing it was a necessary part of my process: Acknowledging all the drawing I've ever done ~ So that the 'Creative Muse' can reinvent herself. ~Ally.

And so it is now with painting.

These paintings are quite small, each measuring 80 x 160 mms and designed so that the orchids and leaves more or less flowed from one panel to the next.

As panels for a small rectangular lamp, the paper needed to be light enough for the light to shine through and so instead of using watercolour paper, I selected a lightweight Canson drawing paper ~ Which was definitely not the ultimate paper for obtaining lovely even grades of washes and tonal values.

Painted on white paper, the original paintings were much lighter and brighter in colour. However, being for a lamp, they were sealed with a few light coats of varnish ~ Which was clearly not the ultimate way of protecting watercolour paintings and hence the yellowish tones.

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May you find a wonderful love
In yourself for yourself.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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The lamp.

Making small rectangular wooden table lamps with panels of watercolour paintings and Sumi-e paintings on Japanese Rice Paper was one of my first 'ventures.' However, like most of my 'ventures' it wasn't a sensational commercial success as I gave most of them away.

Funny how the Universe works.

The lamp with the orchid watercolour panels had been made especially for my mother. It was treasured, but when she moved into a much smaller residence, and only wanted the minimum of ornaments in her single room, the lamp was passed on to one of my sisters. Eventually finding its way back to me.

In the photographs below you can see the torn edges of the papers as well as the pencil lines that defined the rectangular area that would show on the lamp.

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May you learn to see yourself
With the same delight, pride and expectation
With which God sees you in every moment.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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A NEW Lamp.

A few days ago I restored the lamp frame with the intent of inserting the watercolour paintings back into it: Sanding it down, varnishing it with a clear lacquer.

And then it dawned on me:

I had always wondered why my sister had taken the paintings out of the frame of the lamp. But as I began to restore the frame, I FINALLY understood. My sister was much better at taking care of my paintings than I ever was. She knew that left in the lamp the paintings would eventually crumble and turn to dust.

So I decided to keep the watercolour paintings just as they are: And look after them. Perhaps one day they'll even be framed.

And now:

The lamp has beautifully textured off-white Japanese Rice Paper panels. It's like having a totally NEW lamp.

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May the light of your soul mind you.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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Soft lighting.

The NEW lamp has found its home on a table with some of my special ornaments. A surprise awaits anyone who can tell me what any of the three ornaments are.

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May you have the committment to harvest your life.
To heal what has hurt you. To allow it to come closer to you.
And become one with you.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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Another Product for the Homesteaders Co-op?

The Homesteaders Co-op is a collective group of Steemit artisans that accept STEEM, SBD (and now USD with Paypal) for their handmade, sustainable, environmentally friendly products, services and handicrafts. ~@homesteaderscoop

• Learn more about the Homesteaders Co-op in @homesteaderscoop's Introductory Article: Supporting a Steem Community Economy: Intention, values and ethics in our products.
• As well as some of the vendors of the Homesteaders Co-op in @thistle-rock's article: Growing a Homesteaders Co-op

I'm not exactly sure what the panels will be made out of just yet ~ However, I've been feeling the 'nudge' to design and make a more minimalist lamp as another specialty product line for the Homesteaders Co-op.

I love the idea of being able to sell a variety of eco-friendly handmade products for SBD/STEEM and becoming a part of the Homesteaders Co-op and I'm aiming to apply to become one of the vendors at the end of this week now.

Magic Wands.

A few years we had a few hens in our backyard. At the time I made a small Magic Wand from multicoloured silk yarns with some of their feathers as tassels. It was a fun present for a young girl and I remember the sheer joy of making it ~ Especially for her. There's a magic in making something especially with someone in mind.

As I've been making my Heart Baskets the idea has been forming to make a range of similar Magic Wands as my third range of products for the Homesteaders Co-op.

Feathers and Hearts.

Walking around the Roseville lake early yesterday morning, I collected some perfectly shaped feathers, gifted by the resident native ducks there. The longer feathers were silvery white and were still holding droplets of morning dew: The smaller ones looked a little draggled under the weight of the moisture but didn't take long to dry out and become fluffy again.

Only wouldn't you know it? Before settling into working out how to make the new Magical Wands the Creative Muse wanted to photograph EVERY feather and was then inspired to make some new 'Flatlays' with the feathers. And there went another day ~ In the twinkling of an artist's eye for beauty.

If you click on this image to bring up the larger version of it, you'll see the fine droplets of the morning dew still on some of the larger feathers. So exquisite.

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May you have a sense of how free you are.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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One of the Flatlays featuring the feathers.

I decided to include this image because it indicates ~ To me anyway ~ Some of the shifts that have taken place in my artwork over the years.

• I still have a love of order and precision ~ At the same time I equally like to work with (arranged) disorder and randomness.
• I still have a love of clear bright colour ~ At the same time, I equally love all the subtle tones of muted colour, especially in the natural earthy hues.
• Where once my structures were quite flat and apparent, they're now much more subtle, usually lying half or completely hidden underneath other layers. For instance: In this image the 11:11 formed by the feathers and the heart formed by the shells, rather than being obvious, blend with the whole.

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May you be blessed.
~John O'Donohue. Anum Cara.

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Watercolour Paintings
Ephemeral Art and Photography: ©Alison Lee Cousland.
SONY Mark2 A7: 35 mm.

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Posted from Earth ♥︎ Sand ♥︎ Water ♥︎ Ice with SteemPress : http://www.allyinspirit.info/2019/01/09/848/

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