WELCOME Dear Pilgrims, Hallelujah acknowledges YOU for YOUR JOURNEY. What else would you like to be acknowledged for? Have you made a CONNECTION between your mind and heart? Are you living your PASSION? Do you SMELL the coffee brewing and the nag champa incense floating around you? Where are you in your ODYSSEY today that is DIFFERENT from yesterday? Is the fabric of your life velvet, velcro, bamboo, or river stones?
The affirming poetic words that begin this blog were written by a fellow member of the Artist Conference Network (ACN) in response to my artwork. At the conclusion of showing our creative work every two weeks, we ACNers write “love notes” to one another sharing our responses to not only the work but also to the artist’s intentions for the work.
These ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS from our sister and brother artists follow our OWN ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS of ourselves. In ACN, we learn to make distinctions in language and how to talk about our work and ourselves inventively and positively. In fact, we PRACTICE using language to soothe, construct bridges, and to imagine new possibilities, Our intention is to support the creative journey--not to judge it as right or wrong.
In HALLELUJAH’S PILGRIMAGE, there is NO SPACE for the CRITIC or CRITIQUE. Teachers, fellow artists, collaborators, mentors, lovers, peace holders, felines, friends are invited to SHARE THEIR PASSIONS, HEARTS, and JOURNEYS. I “present” my visual art as an ARTIFACT of MY JOURNEY—and I am the AUTHORITY of my journey.
Hallelujah invites, teases you, implores you, and beckons you to intermingle your journey, authority and expression with hers. What do you KNOW? FEEL? How do you EXPRESS the process of YOUR LIFE? SHARE that journey here for all of us pilgrims to experience.
I acknowledge you for your BEINGness. Your YOUness. For being here reading MEness!
I will say farewell by sharing another ACN love note to me:
Hallelujah
Present each morning
1,000 miles into an unknown journey
souls finding you
images that reflect your consciousness
I am warmed by the colors;
My sorrow is seen by eyes that also love.
