Last night I sold this painting, "Prayer Flags for Old Donkey".
I took it as a very special message, on many levels. Creating art for creation sake is always why I paint, but sharing it and allowing it to breathe into another person is part of the importance and beauty of all art. Art is like a full circle, I think. When I paint something I have my own resonance with the finished work, and the viewer has his or her own reaction to it-sometimes my resonance might play into theirs, we don't always know, but I like to think I birth the piece and like a child send it out into the world with good bones, and its purpose or message will fall where it is needed.
I did this piece back before we had even the courage to talk about relocating our lives, animals and farm to Maine. Most of my paintings last year involved wings, but prayer flags too. I knew something big was coming. I also knew there would be many of my elders leaving me, and that happened-last year we said goodbye to so many, it seemed all at once-Aldo, Stevie, Rudy, Victor, Professor, Priscilla- but I remember when Stevie died, a very hard goodbye, I also had this sense of what a gift it was, a release, that some how he was so connected to my internal ramblings that he knew I needed some strings cut so I could move onto my next giant project. Stevie was special that way. If you ever met him, you would know.
So this piece will go east too-or mid way-to Minnesota, my old homeland. So fitting. It will live with another of my pieces with a woman who found my art last year and really appreciates it and the feelings it brings into her world-and visual sensations too. I appreciate when people invest in art, mine or another's. Not only do artists feel great joy to share art, and be paid and feel they have worth, but it helps us continue. I am not bragging when I say this, but we artists are treasures, all of us. And when we have our work validated, it is like icing on a very good, moist cake.
You can always look at my art on my site and if there is one you like, I can let you know if it is available, and where.
