“LISTENING TO TREES"

“LISTENING TO TREES”

By Sophia
Watercolor

“BE WILLING TO ACCEPT THE SHADOWS THAT WALK ACROSS THE SUN”
Quote by Emmanuel from
“Emmanuel’s Book: A Manual for Living Comfortably in the Cosmos”
through Pat Rodegast

Watercolor, metallic paint, metallic pen

So these paintings that repeat their symbols! A tear, the woman from the back, the trees, the windows. . . What is that all about? Same old thing over and over? Why bother?

The symbols are meaningful forms of communication ~ tear of joy or sorrow? Look at the colors, look at the density of the colors. Find the emotion that is being expressed. Lighter colors express lighter emotions. Darker colors denser emotions. Do the paintings express hope or despair?Ambivalence? The woman from the back? Stepping back from oneself to see/feel what is going on within at the moment. Again, what is the feeling you get from any of the paintings? Not how "good" is it? (It's always nice however, when they do come out to be lovely.)

It's not about how artistically perfect the painting looks, but rather how well it shows the person who is painting, what they are truly feeling in the moment. To give them insight into their own emotional state. That is the definition of "Art Therapy".

Some of my most artistically gifted students were the worst at expressing and discovering their inner feelings. They could not by-pass their technical artistic training.

This particular painting is expressing the wisdom of accepting of what appears in our daily lives, through an image with which we easily identify; clouds, dark and menacing, in this instance.