November 5, 2013
It’s become a bit like being in my own reality TV show, this process of getting paintings out the door. The day has just passed that I’d targeted as my deadline, barring a major dharmic intervention. I will say that I have made great progress, and these two huge impossibles are very close to being their actual selves. And out my door.
detail, Axe
But there was a major dharmic intervention on Sunday – one that snuck up on me like a viper and bit me so subtly I didn’t realize it until later when I felt myself go into shock. I kept painting, but in fact I was at full stop.
detail d. intervention 2
To back up and provide some clarity, I’ve found a description of dharma that fits here,
“Dharma means the intrinsic nature of a thing. Just like the dharma of sugar is sweetness and the dharma of water is wetness. The dharma of the living being is to render service to God….”
(my apologies, this is not sourced properly in the Urban Dictionary where I found it, so I can’t tell you which guru originally said it)
In my world then, a dharmic intervention is an unexpected event that hits you on all levels – emotional, physical, psychological, professional, personal (insert others of your choice) and shocks you enough that veils you’d never known were there are ripped away to reveal some Home Truths – the difficult ones. In these instances there’s no avoiding or denying whatever has become crystal clear. It’s impossible NOT to have a new perspective about what you’re doing and why you’re doing it.
So to translate: I thought I was painting about something incredibly deep and wise and well-crafted, from a place of experienced and well-honed detatchment. Something big and unexpected happened, and because of it I now know the paintings are about something else entirely. In a way, they’ve been painting me.
So, another week will do it, I think. I begin an intense course of study today, and every evening is also booked with rehearsals. But I don’t need that much sleep…..