Thought for The Day - The Right Place for Art

Now this may seem bad and if it offends you, I apologize from the beginning. On my daily commute, along the train line, there are places where graffiti artists have made their mark. Some take offense to the work, it is, after all defacing private property and depending on what is displayed, the work can be offensive. But the skills of these people? AMAZING!!!

Certainly, it is risky and illegal to climb into areas reserved for multi-ton commuter and freight vehicles to share your message. And quite honestly, I'm not clear what is the message they are sharing, but I admire the work! And quite honestly, given the bare concrete walls, the number of commuters who pass this way in a given day, this form of art, this media of expression has to be a welcome change! Enjoy my hastily photographed images! Or not...

Thought for The Day - The Winding Road

Follow your path where ever it leads. Don't follow anyone else's path or try to model your life too closely after anyone else. You can desire similar successes, but your life, your journey is yours.

The other day, I talked about "Originality" and tried to present my life's journey as an artist, how I evolved from a kid drawing a portrait of his dad, modeled after a court reporter's rendering to truly doing my own thing. My writing has always been it's own animal. There are author's whose style I love and some parts I emulate, but my voice is my own, in speaking and in writing and it's a lot easier to be me, than anyone else.

You never know where your talents, skills and interests will take you. You may have in mind to go "here," but find you end up "over there." The path winds around, down and up and it is often unclear which way you're going. But keep this in mind: the vision of your life is your's alone. Other singers, musicians, dancers and corporate executives may have walked a similar path but when you find yourself in dark places, while you may want to read the biologies of similar people, you will ultimately have to find your way out of those places alone. It will be your steps, your effort that keeps you moving down that path and to the places you want to be.

One last thought: it's never too late to begin on the journey you had in mind while laying in bed, looking at the ceiling as a child. No matter where you are in life, no matter how far that "childhood wish" is in relation to your current life, you can always start down that path. And truly, only God knows "the way you go." Trust your heart and trust His hand.

Thought for The Day - The Power of a Line

Dance against The Rhythm - pastel 12 x 16

This is not a valuation of one person's work over another and not a promotion of myself or any other artist. Confined to "tan land," the world of cubicles, I created a small sphere of inspiration; I took small photographs of my work and placed them in my cube. Today, contemplating the idea of lines and how we use them to distinguish one shape from another, my eye landed on one piece in particular. A blue and purple line runs diagonally from mid way to the bottom right; it is surrounded by oranges, lilacs and other shades of blue. But looking at the line and the contrasting colors around it, the "power of the line" hit me square in the middle of my forehead!

As I have said many times before, I LOVE COLORS! And to be clear, the brighter the better! Again, this isn't a "plug" for my art, but the power of this ability to express what the soul is privy to. Our senses, our mind tries to put into some form, the message received. It's a communion of humanity and divinity; God and man talking, speaking and touching! This interplay, this dance if you will, is not limited to visual artists; authors, poets, dancers and performers all express a message from above. But this is my expression! This is my purpose!

Now to contrast my style to two other artist who have taken "the line" to a new level: Kevin WAK Williams and Serge Kponton! Now mind you, they aren't the only artists whose work I admire, but they stand out and shine!