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A Textual Relationship with Art


"Hope is that thing inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us if we have the courage to reach for it and to work for it and to fight for it."  - Barack Obama



I love a quote that reminds me to think bigger.  I especially love a quote on a beautiful screen print.  I am not an idiot when it comes to abstract art--which is my favorite kind--but something in my brain relaxes when I see art with words on it.   It's like the bookworm and the pretend artist parts of my brain find each other and hold hands.

When I went to seminary (long story, 'nother post) I had to write too many papers, so I put aside creative writing and took up painting as an outlet.  I even tried to make some of my papers be about painting (and salsa dancing, and anything else interesting I was doing instead of studyign that I could somehow create a metaphor between it and theology).  But one of my favorite things became painting with words.  I have shamelessly "borrowed" my favorite poet's words for several paintings.  David Whyte will forever be my hero for coming from the corporate world, becoming a poet and then trying to bring poetry back to the corporate world.  My paintings have very little skill and are purely for my own delight, so I haven't really done his poetry justice in my paintings (refer to the blue green image below for proof), but I do love how someone's words can inspire an image in someone else, that becomes a piece of art, one that communicates the original words in a new way.  Isn't that kind of the whole impetus and joy of writing (or creating): what it might inspire in others.  

So, I'm excited about my new screen print, and I'm excited that next week I get to be a part of a wonderful new exhibit by Dora Garcia at the SFMOMA where I will be live-writing as museum visitors move throughout the space.  How cool is that???  There are over a hundred volunteers live-writing continuously through the duration of the show.  If you are in the San Francisco area, I encourage you to check it out.  Just not when I'm there.  That would make me nervous.  Typing performance anxiety and all.  But if you do show up, I promise to only type nice things about you.

Words and art.    I dig it.

Comments

  1. Wow, no pressure. This post struck a chord with me. It's been awhile since I've been to the MOMA and this exhibit is actually something I would really enjoy seeing. How long will this exhibit be up and how did you come to be a part of it?

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    Replies
    1. Hey Jeremy! It will be up through April 15th. A friend of mine who volunteers at the museum gave me the info about the exhibit, and I'm so glad she did! If you end up visiting let me know and maybe we can get coffee. There's a great rooftop cafe at the museum.

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