Commonplace I

These mixed media drawings were created in the studio from life drawings and photographs generated during musical rehearsal sessions with The Healing Divas and from a selection of additional photographic source material.

Their invention flowed from the experience of creative exchange, co-mentoring and relationship that occurred during a yearlong collaboration with visual artist colleagues from The Once Around the Sun Collective and The Healing Divas.  This work emerged in conjunction with philosophical and theoretical inquiries into postcolonial theory, postmodern art theory and past and present spiritual material on topics of identity, diversity and human connection.

Spiritual author Eckhart Tolle writes, “[c]ollective human consciousness and life on our planet are intrinsically connected… Once there is a certain degree of Presence, of still and alert attention in human beings perceptions, they can sense the divine life essence, the one indwelling consciousness or spirit in every creature, every life form, recognize it as one with their own essence and so love it as themselves.”

Postcolonial feminist artist, filmmaker and writer, Trinh-Minh-ha theorizes that our connection to and understanding of others cannot be based on an idealized unity grounded in sameness or identity. Rather, it is about finding affinity with and for others through a willingness to learn about our differences and recognize the richness to be found in this diversity.

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing,

There is a field. I’ll meet you there.

When the soul lies down in that grass,

The world is too full to talk about.

Ideas, language, even the phrase each other

Doesn’t make any sense

Rumi