Artistic self-mastery in Bali

Bali 2018, A Journey into Self-Mastery, has been cancelled because of uncertainty regarding the ongoing volcanic activity of Mt. Agung.  Our sincere apology to those who anticipated joining Ann Mortifee and me on this extraordinary journey.   

A unique opportunity is coming in August 2018.  Come to Bali, Indonesia for a journey into artistic and spiritual self-mastery with Ann Mortifee and  myself. Kristen Scholfield-Sweet,   Begin this journey with us into the magic and mystery of Bali by enjoying my thoughts about "What is artistic self-mastery?"  Thanks to Alex Joy for his images of Bali, the cards illustrating artistic self-mastery are from my divination wisdom deck, the Journey Oracle.

One purpose of artistic self-mastery is going into the blood pulse.  This means to evoke our creative soul, our guiding spirit, and go into a way of being in which an ongoing exchange of giving and receiving creative impulses are constantly available. 

One mission of artistic self-mastery is finding eloquence with which to give a gift.  As Lewis Hyde says of Walt Whitman, "Those who can express themselves in speech have been given that mysterious something, like the mouthpiece of a trumpet or the reed of a wind instrument, through which experience is transmuted into sound." With self-mastery we begin by taking in the gifts of deep experience and then bestow these gifts outward in a flow of gratitude.

One strategy of artistic self-mastery is really seeing something.  When a fully lived experience passes deeply into us, it increases in both inner and outer meaning.

One gift of artistic self-mastery is self-confidence. This is the state of climbing out and up into a clear space.  Not into haughtiness but to a way of being that is active, autonomous, self-contained.

Great experiences fracture the acceptable truths of how we imagine our lives.  When our imagination is awakened--as it will be by learning the way of Balinese prayer, dance, theatre, cooking, music, painting, mask-making and ceremonial practices--revelation will emerge.  Discover the excitement of exploring the artistic mastery of Bali in this extraordinary itinerary offered by Mystic Traveller in Bali 2018.

For more information and to reserve your place email Alex Joy at alex@mystictraveller.world

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Thanksgiving blessing from a little deer

I put out a call for deer skins for my drum making on our Cortes island website.  I did not imagine that it would be Nature who would answer my advertisement.  There is an image in this post that may be upsetting for some to see, so please be forewarned. 

Five times I knew about, and yet did not manage to find this little deer I first saw dead beside the road.  I went back and did not locate it.  Then a neighbor called to say there was a little deer by the road.  My partner and I went to look and still we did not find it.  Finally, on my way to do an errand, I noticed a raven near the location we had be searching.  Sure enough, the deer's body had been pulled further back in the bush, either by two- or four-leggeds.

It is very unlike me to try and lift a deer, even a little one, into a car trunk, but there was no one to help, and I did ask for drum skins so how could I give up?

I have only once skinned a deer and so I felt like a student presenting a"how to workshop" and doing a terrible job.  However, just before I began I was thinking of the elder friend who helped me the first time, and while on my errand there he was, walking down the road.  I told him I had a young deer in my trunk ( not a typical greeting) and could he help me remember what to do.  I had good support from his advice. 

This became my first drum skin of the autumn season. I know it may seem grim to some to be showing this effort, but I feel it is important to experience the entire process of my art, so that every part, and every part between the part, receives respect.

Certainly I could start a new university course about ways that people show disrespect for the animals that give themselves to either our intention or inattention.

This tambourine drum was brought to me to repair because it was  left in a garage for years until the skin weakened, and then a child accidentally put her foot through it.

This drum head was rescued from a small dog that was busy trying to swallow it.

I learned I could sew up a tear and it would not affect the drum's voice.

This drum skin had the worst wound I have ever worked with.  Of course there is no way of knowing just how the deer was hurt, but I was amazed at this wild creature's resiliency and will to survive

Perhaps the most beautiful drum I have ever painted arrived in a plastic bag filled with maggots.  The skin looked as if the deer had been dragged through the bush behind a truck since all the hair was worn off the hindquarters.  The dark pattern in the lower part of the painting is where the skin was damaged from abrasion.

And yet Nature's creatures love us still. Like Royalty.  Not in arrogance and privilege, but in their willingness to care for us, and receive us when we call.

What makes good or bad art?

I have completed a new series of small paintings on Yupo, a paper-like surface made of 100% polypropylene.  Ink behaves very unpredictably on its smooth finish and so its use can clearly show some qualities of what I think makes good and bad art. 

This painting of sand dollars matches the sensation of walking along the beach and suddenly coming upon a group of sand dollars in shallow sub-tidal waters. The image is immediately recognizable and yet the placement of the main subject is unexpected, which creates an impression of effective surprise.  So good art makes me stop and look more carefully. 

This painting of a Northern Ronquil is not very successful.  The left and right portions of the painting are not handled the same.  The tail of the fish is certainly in water, but the head of the fish is maybe not.  There is not an overall unity to the image.

This image of a small beach crab is one of my favorite in the series.  What an attitude!  The painting captures the feeling these creatures evoke when I see them scurrying on the tidal flats.   Good art evokes feelings as well as visual impressions.

Although Calcareous tube worms are some of the most beautiful and unusual creatures to be seen attached to rocks, floats and the underside of pilings, this painting is confusing and does not show clearly their gracefully meandering shapes.  The painting is more about my indecision than about my subject.

This painting of Spindle Whelks is simple--with clean lines and a good mix of representation and abstraction.  The few areas of dense colour are balanced by the white space in a moving rather than a static way.  It is as much about the easy confidence of the marks as it is about the subject they portray.  Good art feels intentional. 

This Bull Kelp was the first painting in this series, just as the Whelks shown above were the last. The application of the ink feels more tentative in this piece; some areas are almost overworked while others feel incomplete.  This work is more about learning how to put the ink and water on the paper.

Of course in a series, one painting has to stand out as the one that "gets it right."  This Sea Blubber jellyfish image has all the qualities I have been describing: effective surprise,  evocative feelings,  a balance of simplicity and complexity, and especially, confident mark-making. 

Perhaps the best part of understanding what makes good or bad art is the enthusiasm I feel to begin a new series.  I think flowers will be next. 

Look for these sea creatures to become a series of art cards in my Etsy webstore. 

Make art with oyster shells

I am an oyster farmer as well as a drum maker and visual artist who created the Journey Oracle, so it seems natural that these materials and skills would come together in a new art idea: a rattle made by covering an oyster shell with salmon skin. 

Salmon skin is tough and flexible.  It dries to a beautiful translucent sheen, sparkling with scales that reflect the light.

I understand that a rattle has an inner as well as outer sound and so the shell is filled inside with a bright, steady sound, and the outside is embellished with a moving shifting sound.  This outer sound can be played on either side of the rattle.

The outer design of this rattle is inspired by the "bubble nets" that Humpback whales create around fish when they are feeding.  This rattle of catching salmon will know how to find home.

Sometimes something is left behind.  A swirl of circumstances takes us away from attention, and something small and beautiful leaves our awareness.

This little oyster shell rattle had such a beginning. It was lost and then was found again.  The inner sound is made with every kind of old voice: bone, stone and metal. 

The outer voice came as a surprise in a button box.  A package of abalone shell buttons became became an inspiration for finding beauty in simplicity.

The little rattle of the lost and found also has a sister.  A rattle that was forgotten but then remembered. 

This larger rattle of remembering was resewn with gratitude for the opportunity to be of service.

Its inner sound is made of  a rose quartz bead and a bead that was drilled in more than one direction, just as memory searches in every direction for what it is calling.

And the sound from simple beauty creates its outer voice, just like the simple aah we say when we remember what we have forgotten.

Spirit companions are family

These two new drums from the Journey Oracle are spirit companions and family.  Both drums came from the same deer hide, which is very rare in my experience as a drum maker.

And so is their numerology and symbolism related like a sister and brother.  Sometimes I think I make these choices with my conscious intention, and sometimes it just happens.

The interlacement patterns are a "knotless" design to prevent negative forces from attaching to the drum or the drummer when being played.

This 14" drum brings energy and inner strength. 

It helps the drummer have courage, strength, and self-control by bringing the power of 11 to being and staying in one's own center. 

The handhold features a 5-pointed star for clarity and illumination.  While drumming, the drummer experiences a harmony and closeness to spirit.  

This 12" drum brings clarity to thought, calms the mind and is a guide for inner peace.  It helps the drummer find new inspiration by bringing the strength of 9 to help one recognize one's talents. 

The handhold features a 9-pointed star for the power of faith and kindness toward oneself.  The cedar withe is wrapped with traditionally prepared smoke-tanned leather.  While drumming, the drummer experiences meditation as sound.

  These drums will be a big or little sister or brother to the drummer in every realm.  Listen to the 14" drum of inner strength being played with a felted beater by clicking on this link: https://youtu.be/sAAwxJWCvn8.  Listen to the 12" drum of calm mind being played with a felted beater by clicking on this link: https://youtu.be/v-JCuOGBuMA.  You can hear the  unique voices of each drum, and also the family resemblance.

It's good to go on a journey with your sister or brother. 

These drums are available for purchase in my webstore, or contact Kristen at journeyoracle@gmail.com for more information.