Tag Archives: nature

art, intuition, intuitive, magic, nature

Magic making in the park

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Magic making in the park requires a sense of openness.

I went to a nearby park by a big lake with a friend yesterday.  We had decided to paint by the water. I brought my art journal and a box of Neocolors2 and some water.

My friend Sheri brought a large canvas and loads of paint. We spread out our materials on the tables in the shelter. The weather was perfect; the humid heat had broken for once. A gentle breeze flowed over the water.  I wish I had taken some pictures.

The area around the shelter holds many old live oaks. There is an energy of magic all around and many birthday parties and wedding receptions have been held at that shelter.

Every time I go to the park I slow down, breathe, and feel the energy. I connect with the trees and feel into their energy to see if there is a message or an inspiration there. I ask if it’s okay to connect. Approaching nature in a humble way opens the door to communication.

Without the magic, there would be only Sheri and I making art, maybe copying a tree or drawing something realistic.

What I’m getting at is that magic happens in the moment. Either you allow it to sweep you along or you look at the surroundings with “tired” eyes.

I have lived “tired” for a long time and now all I want is the sense of magic, of connection with nature.

I doodled in my art journal feeling into the energy of my favorite tree. There were some colors, kind of like an aura. Mostly I got a clear blue. I don’t think the rendition was wholly true, but I have free will. 🙂

I have no idea where the giraffe came from…

magic making

Being aware of the subtle energies doesn’t mean I can depict them on paper, but I do my best.

Sheri started pouring paint all over her canvas and I watched in fascination. She only works on big canvases. I like a variety of sizes.

She spreads the paint with her hands in an intuitive process, which comes naturally to her. When done with that process, she looks to see what might appear in the paint.

We saw a turtle and a face, and I love how all the colors blended perfectly without particular care. When the paint dries, she enhances the images that pop up.

I own one of her large paintings and I never grow tired of it because the energy is timeless. Still, to this day I see new creatures in the painting.  I love the riot of colors.

magic making
art by Sheri Salin

The most magic part of her art is that people find her art mysteriously–locally. People just show up and want to buy a painting. She doesn’t even actively sell them locally although she has in the past.

Her intuitive painting process is lovely and I admire her fearless approach to art.

You can find some more pictures on her page at Saatchi art. CLICK HERE.

It takes guts and openness to create in the moment as it takes openness to connect with the essence of nature.  It is in that space that magic truly happens.

You can choose every day to feel the magic. I meditate to slow down and then I look at the living being that is our earth. Every blade of grass, every tiny bug is alive with magic.

Either we choose magic or choose fear. Fear is the conditioning we carry with us from our upbringing and the pressures of society.

All you need is to find a way to SLOW DOWN and truly look and feel into the natural surroundings or the paint if you’re creating something.

Feel into it and trust what comes out of the moment. To approach nature it’s good  ask for permission to communicate.  Nature wants to communicate with humans to make the world a better place.

Magic is real, folks. It swirls within us and everywhere outside. Open up to it and you won’t look at your surroundings with “tired” eyes ever again!

Here is an older blog post I wrote about magic:

Magic is afoot!

Have a great weekend!

xo

Maria

 

beauty, gratitude, nature

Do you see beauty?

I got up very early this morning to wish the world Happy 4th, but the world was still asleep and nature didn’t care about dates.  The silence was wonderful. No cars, no people, no noises of any kind. Peace reigned and everything was in order.  That is how it feels when nature steps to the forefront.

All is well. Peace.

I decided to look for beauty in my backyard first thing. I saw some fallen flowers from yesterday and new flowers budding on my 2 o’clock plant (Mexican petunia.) My collard greens from last year have died in the heat.  Time to pull them up and thank them for their service.  Come late August I will plant some tomatoes.

Today, I might paint the flowers I saw; red geraniums, some unnamed pink flower, white wild flower, yellow allamanda, and I still have a few jasmine blooms.

red geranium
Red geranium
allamanda
Beauty
starjasmine
Star jasmine

Woodpeckers, red cardinals, tufted titmice, chickadees, and squirrels were out looking for food, but they were quiet. I feed the birds so there is traffic all day long at the bird feeder. The squirrels are the fattest in the area.

redcardinal
Red cardinal

Every morning I have a choice, to think about what isn’t working in my life, or cheer myself on for what works, and look for beauty all around.

It’s a lot more fun looking for beauty than focus on negativity.  I also have a gratitude journal going, and I write down everything I’m grateful for. This is my morning tea ritual, Earl Grey and gratitude.  That would make a good title for something…

There are so many things to be grateful for and we live in the midst of magic. Nature is magical to me. Life is magical when I allow it to be.

Do you look for beauty when you go outside?

I’m working on seeing more beauty in people, and sometimes that can be a challenge, but it’s there.

The more I focus on beauty, the more I see it.  And so it is.

xo

Maria 🙂

art, creativity, inspirational, life, nature

Hundred percent nature.

I am hundred percent nature, and so are you.  Day 2 of the 30 day blogging challenge.

I get a lot of inspiration for my art in nature.  Every form, color, and impression can be found there.  Basically, it’s all outside and all in my mind. Mind in this case would be imagination.

There is a difference between imagination and fantasy.  Imagination is a way to travel through time and space whereas fantasy is something, some item or scenario, we wish we had.

Imagination is accessible to everyone.  Have you ever tried to connect with metaphysical nature?

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Live oak

All you  have to do is to be willing and ask for a connection, say, to a tree you like. Then you have to be still and listen. That is often the hardest part. You can ask the tree questions and you might get a sense of an answer as an impression, or a thought, like a revelation.  Nature will use your imagination to communicate.

It can be quite an adventure to work with nature. The God of Nature is Pan. He has gotten a bad rap with the horns and the cloven feet in history, but he has a very high, pure, yet earthy vibe. This morning I asked him which part of nature to work with and he said: “there is no part of nature that is not you.  You are all nature, nothing else, so there is no separation.”

Consciousness is the spirit part we also share with nature besides our physical manifestation in the world. His simple words were profound.  I am all water, minerals, other matter, and spirit. Most of the time, I feel separate, but that is the mind, the chatterbox upstairs that doesn’t like to be silent and just BE.

When I AM I do feel the connection without beginning or end.

Modern people are often afraid of nature.  All they see is the challenge; the bugs, the “dangerous” wildlife that carries all sorts of diseases, the creepy crawlies on the ground.  How many times do you interact or touch, say, a raccoon or possum?  Pretty much never, so why the fear?  It’s the programming we receive. Living a fearful antiseptic and sterile life to shut out any connection with the “earthy” part of life equals a deep lack of something.  A bit of earthiness will not harm you as any farmer will tell you.

A connection with nature is healthy, natural, and healing. No reason to deprive oneself of that. Concrete buildings and streets are not as conducive to communing with nature even if the energy is present everywhere.

What does nature have to do with art?

Since art originates from within, it’s totally part of me, and since I’m one with nature, art IS nature.  I don’t have to go to the park and paint a tree, but by feeling into my inner self, how does a particular tree feel like? I can paint that feeling. It might not end up looking like a tree, but the energy will be there.

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energy art journaling

Communing with nature is a truly exciting journey. It is inspiring and inner growth inducing. That can be uncomfortable, but it’s even more uncomfortable to live with all the hang-ups we carry around.

Nature is free and filled with inspiration.  Art is free and nature can be like a vitamin injection to one’s inner life, which then shows up on the canvas or in the art journal.

Nature wants to work with you!  Bring a new level to your art?  The sky’s the limit as they say.  It’s up to you. 🙂

Many creative blessings flying your way today.

xo

Maria

P.S. Please buy one of my art offerings on etsy! Makes a great gift to yourself or someone special.  🙂  HERE.

art, inspirational, intuitive, life, nature

I joined a 30 day blog writing challenge.

Yes, I joined, gasp.  What was I thinking?

I love to write, but having to come up with interesting posts every day is not easy.  I do love to inspire where I can, so expect to see some inspirational posts and art of course.

soap-bubble-1388505__180Life is truly about following one’s dreams and that is what I’m doing, but I have found that my dream is morphing into something slightly different.  I love art and art classes that expand my skills and imagination. Art is a constant exploration, not a fixed “dream” per se.  Being immersed in art is being inside the dream, so it’s process. Nothing new there but sometimes I look at art as something concrete and inflexible.

In the nineties I was obsessed with communicating with nature and learning about flower essences. I lived in Upstate New York at the time and then I moved to Florida and all that work went by the wayside. I have not had the same connection with Florida nature since it’s very different.  Think savage and tough to survive the heat. Lots of prickly and biting things, but every landscape has its own beauty.

I have always been fascinated with the metaphysical aspects of nature.

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nature

Have you ever stopped by a tree and felt its presence?  Why are we drawn to certain areas of nature but not others? It is an intuitive reaction and the body might feel more comfortable by the beach than in the mountains.

Working with nature metaphysically takes patience and stillness.  The challenge is to still the mind and be in the present. All of nature lives in the present, so the gateway is NOW. The more we practice being in the moment of now, the more open we become to energies.

I believe the destruction of nature will end if people become aware of the beautiful life force of everything.  We won’t be so eager to do, make, and use things that destroy.

Since I’m aware that nature is highly intelligent and a totally AWARE Being and WANTS to work with us, I feel it’s only right that I endeavor to inspire others to grow that connection  Nature can help us with every aspect of life.  Nature spirits are not a myth, but they only exist on the inner plane, though people have seen them. They can appear as any form.  🙂

dwarf-972875__180Next time you go out in nature, pick out a tree that seems friendly or any other plant. Take a deep breath to still yourself and see if you can tune into the energy of the plant.  It might surprise you.  The energy is usually loving and fun.

That would be a first step to connecting with nature. If you don’t feel anything, keep trying. It can take some time so practice the connection. If you can, go to the same plant each time. You can also use a house plant.

How does this connect to art? Art is energy and if I were to translate nature’s energy into art, it would be mostly  colors in an abstract way for me. I believe we recognize the energy that flows  through everything and that’s why we like good art.

All for now. More tomorrow about the wonders of nature and other things. 🙂

I wish you a creative week!!

xo

Maria

P.S. I have three evergreen mixed media art e-courses available for self study.  CLICK HERE.

inspirational, life, motivational, transformation

Instant gratification.

Why are we addicted to instant gratification?   I guess it has been a gradual process in our society, and a huge disservice to humankind.  But we chose it.

Nature does not practice instant gratification.  There is a dormant period, a rising of the life force, a budding, a flowering, a setting of seed.  Repeat the cycle.

When we try to push through something that isn’t ready to get pushed through, it doesn’t happen, does it?  Not through our own efforts.  If it does, it’s not satisfying or fully integrated.

Whether we like it or not, we’re still bound to the process dictated by Nature, because we are connected to that same force.  Elementary, right?

If you rush through life, nothing good will come of it.  The actions might look productive on the surface but in the long run it’s a house of cards being built since the substance is missing.

Usually, all for a quick profit.

Do you want to feel proud, accomplished, and satisfied with your actions?  I know I do.  So let the project take its sweet ole time.  Follow the natural rhythm of things and know that it is the best way to get things accomplished, even if the world is clamoring for  hyper speed!!!

Do you want an ulcer or peace of mind?

What is so important that is has to happen right away?  Rome wasn’t built in a day as they say.  Nor was a baby.

If your baby is a business, it’s not going to be successful overnight, no matter what the gurus say.  Ideas have to be incubated, action has to be measured, a learning curve has to be followed to completion.

What if the path of joy is to do everything organically, at its own best pace?  The outcome is never the great climax we hope for, the satisfaction of each step taken, IS.  And it’s a quiet kind of triumph.

I’m all for a softer, more reflective pace.  The madness in the world goes on, but I choose not to be part of it.  You can do the same and be happier.  Guaranteed.  Just sayin’…  Up to you.