OUR MINDS GENERATE IMAGES AND THESE BECOME OUR OWN UNIQUE FORMS: Honor your vision by drawing it!

SEEING IN DARK PLACES. Welcome to one of my personal metaphors representing SEEING IN DARK PLACES!  (art by Hallelujah Truth)

Hallelujah for THE DAILY CREATIVE PRACTICE! For drawing daily and working with imagination--even when it is repetitive! It is by this ongoing behavior that I honor my vision resulting in a large body of work with personal symbols or metaphors.

One of my favorite writers on creativity is Peter London. It is from his book, NO MORE SECOND HAND ART: AWAKENING THE ARTIST WITHIN (1989), that I felt for the first time I had permission to create art from my heart. If you haven't read this book and want support around making art that expresses your unique vision, get yourself a copy as soon as possible! You won't be disappointed.

Here is what Peter London has to say about the value of creating your own metaphors:

“Having created a metaphor within which your meaning resides, you have made that thing called art. In your uniqueness, you have also extended the vocabulary of art by representing for the first time another view of the world. Not gratuitously, not an egotistic display of talents do you seek to be original or creative. You did what you had to do to bear witness to the things you know. That’s all. That’s ALL”

WHIMSEY IN MY MIND OR ANCIENT SEA CREATURE? My dear Chiboogamoo, aka Anthony Martin, gives me the vocabulary and explanation for this creature. "It is reminiscent of the ichthyosaurs, which were marine reptiles that lived from the Triassic through the Cretaceous Periods (about 245-65 million years ago). They had the largest eyes of any known vertebrates. These big eyes were thought to be adaptations for seeing prey in low-light conditions in deep water." (Thanks honey!) After becoming familiarized with these ichthyosaurs both in Australia and in England, I began to allow its shape into my consciousness and to draw it repeatedly. I do not concern myself with accurate depictions but rather what I remember and feel. The drawing then reflects me, some inner state. The reshaped ichthyosaur becomes a personal metaphor! FOR SEEING  and SWIMMING IN DARK PLACES! Notice the multiple fierce teeth! Hallelujah! (art by Hallelujah Truth)

Upon reading and rereading Peter London's words:
In your uniqueness, you have also extended the vocabulary of art by representing for the first time another view of the world.

I burst into a happy dance!

That’s ALL

Peter London's ALL is pretty significant! Your ALL too! No matter how we present ourselves in the world, I believe the most important aspect about doing it, is making it OUR OWN presentation. BE YOURSELF. Let your work be YOURS!

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! SOUL BLOG with me! Let me know what YOUR VOICE IS. Join my Facebook group, THE DAILY PRACTICE, here, and share your ALL!

IN AN ANCIENT SEA. In an ancient sea, I saw myself looking back at me! I love taking one image an altering it on photoshop in order to express different feelings. In this image, you see the ichythosaur, me Hallelujah, Wandjina (Australian creation god), snake (female symbol of creation), and a flower made of gargoyles. (art by Hallelujah Truth)

ANOTHER CREATIVE APPROACH TO THE ICHYTHOSAUR

A dear friend of mine, Robey Tapp, created art inspired by the work of one of the first women paleontologists, Mary Anning, who found fossils of ichthyosaurs. Here is a short video in which Robey explains her creative process.