Vision of The Future

"Vision of The Future"  153 x 183 cm oil on canvas, 2014

The landscape in this painting was very familiar to me and then I realised where I'd seen it before. This summer I'd gone to a talk in London by Dolores Canon.  She is an American hypnotherapist who started working with people who've experienced being abducted but couldn't remember anything. She is full of fascinating information and has learned that people have had experiences with ET's  from childhood and that often multi~generational relationships exist between Earth family lineages & ET races. The truth is there is a wealth of life out there in the Universe existing in all shapes, forms and sizes.
During the talk she put us under a light trance and asked us to write our future lives 200 years from now. The landscape in the painting was the planet I found myself on.  I did not have form and I felt really free and happy. I could imagine myself into form if I wanted to. It was a very playful planet and there were all sorts of beings there. The vibration was very high and I found myself bouncing around and jumping onto large Tibetan style singing bowls. If I jumped onto the ground it would flash and a tone seemed to emanate from under the earth. I didn't need food. There were sacred geometric shapes which were inter~dimensional healing portals. Perhaps I am existing right now on this planet in a parallel Universe, 200 years in the future...who knows. The large object above the landscape could well be a ship, I'm not sure...or maybe another planet.
The main stream media has manipulated humanity's perspective on other beings ~ few people are able to approach this area with an objective, unbiased stance. I suppose it is understandable that many people are not ready to hear the truth about one of the biggest cover ups in the history of planet Earth as this subject is infused with fear, ridicule or complete denial. I however, believe our galactic brothers and sisters are very close to making themselves known to us.

Not Two

"Not Two" 153 x 183 cm oil on canvas, 2013

Not Two, not one but the positionless position. Really we are dwelling in the one absolute reality and we are that. I can say that this painting was completed during a time of an apparent unveiling of the illusion of separation. I was pointed to this truth rather effortlessly one day in my studio, through some self-inquiry. It became very clear that every object (including my body) had always appeared with "me" at the same time in the same perceived space. Therefore the body/mind is not and has never been the subject of my experience, it is an object that appears and disappears like all the others. All phenomena arise with the light of pure knowing, call this Presence, God, the Source, Consciousness, it doesn't really matter as it's wholly indescribable. That pure Presence is omnipresent and everything is appearing within "that", is permeated by "that" as one boundless, seamless happening. On apparently "seeing" this, there was just a sense of "knowing" on a deep level and then a kind of relaxation. A visit to the local park, sure enough...one thing happening, no separation....no worries just another day. Life is so mysterious.  Pondering the Zen saying..."Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water, after enlightenment, chop wood carry water", there is no big firework display just a recognition that life simply carries on.

That Which You Seek Never Left You

"That Which You Seek Never Left You" 153 x 183 cm, oil on canvas 2013

Hummingbird (detail)

That Which You Seek Never Left You....
This painting  has a feeling of being seen from above. The part of you which is doing the "seeing" is also the "seer" and the "seen" therefore there is no separation. The seen and the seer only come when there is seeing ~ they are merely attributes of seeing. When we as the seeker are searching for something outside of ourselves, for example ~ an amazing experience of enlightenment or something that will give us the answers, (to the great mystery of life) that which we seek, we miss.  The unchanging, ever present non~conceptual awareness is us and everything, simply waiting to be realised. We have been looking for it everywhere but it was right here from the very beginning. This is the nature of our true identity. Hence the title....that which you seek never left you. By dropping the self~identity and the belief that we are separate beings, that which is revealed is boundless consciousness (just a word which doesn't really sum up the vastness it's trying to describe).  Ever present, nowhere to go, nothing to do, pure "being". Once we realise the simplicity of this, all seeking will stop because the very thing we seek  has been here all along, albeit forgotten and so obvious that it has been completely overlooked.
The magical hummingbird represents the nectar within...the sweetness that is within each and every one of us. The tiniest of birds, they have a very important job to do, collecting nectar and pollinating the flowers of the planet thereby spreading beauty, love, joy and colour into our lives. It is the only creature which can stop dead whilst travelling at full speed; can hover, fly backwards and forwards, up and down ~ they represent infinity. They vibrate inner joy, and a wonderful and creative free-spirited aspect of life. I was informed recently in a workshop run by the maestro of lucid dreaming ~Robert Waggoner (the author of "Lucid Dreaming~Gateway to the Inner Self") that the hummingbird was a symbol of lucid dreaming in the Meztica/Toltec tradition and helpers for lucid dreaming... I'm really happy the hummingbird flew into this painting.
The water element appeared again! The mighty wave pulsating with life-force, is representing the sub-conscious coming into our conscious awareness. Nothing to fear, nowhere to hide, "be" the waves as they will simply appear and disappear, and what remains will always be with us. Everything is simply happening and everything that manifests is absolutely neutral.
The islands again seemingly separate, forge together to create the whole. The mountains in the background are soft yet very present. The clouds meander across the painting, both revealing and hiding, highlighting the paradoxes of our existence.
Finally, the shafts of light. These represent the coming of new energies to planet Earth. The raising of the vibrations. The shift in consciousness. The recognition that we are multi~dimensional cosmic beings. Again, it is only the seer doing the seeing of the seen. If we really look we will see this new energy coming to Earth, but it's always been there...it is simply being revealed to us as we continue our journey of transformation.

Ascension Portal

"Ascension Portal" 153 x 183 cm oil on canvas 2013

wave and seagull (detail)

lion/leopard hybrid (detail)

sacred trees (detail)

energy shifting (detail)

"Shady Portal" ~ collage, inspiration for the painting

The initial inspiration for "Ascension Portal" was inspired by the collage above named "Shady Portal".  I started this painting in the latter part of 2012, during the build up to the Winter Solstice date of 21st December, which marked the end of a time cycle predicted centuries ago by the Mayans. Many ancient civilizations such as the Aztecs, Hopis, Incas, Maoris and Egyptians studied the sky and planetary movements and were stunningly accurate with their projections. The galactic alignment of our sun with the centre of the Milky Way on 21.12.12 corresponded with the procession of the equinoxes that happens only once every 26,000 years.
I won't go into detail about this as an astrological/cosmic/spiritual "event", as there is too much information to cover, and plenty of information out there if you are interested. I do believe that we are experiencing an epic evolutionary leap into a new (fifth) dimension, which is predominately a spiritual leap as well as a physical shift for the Earth's axis. This shift has taken us into a higher consciousness urging us to live more in our hearts and less in the ego/fear based lower levels which have dominated and divided humanity for so long.

 Although I have an initial starting point, I rarely know how my paintings will pan out. I like to let the painting unfold intuitively and then later,  start my inquiry into the deeper meanings behind the symbolism that shows up. I feel I am a conduit to receive and transmit messages from the Universe and so like to be as open a channel as I possibly can. I feel very much that my work is a projection of an expansive healing process that starts within and reaches outwards. The more work I do on myself, and the deeper the connection I have with my own truth, the more the messages seem to draw on the wider truth of a universal nature.

In the collage, the central focus is the floating leopard/human head. In the painting, this morphed into a lion/leopard hybrid. Hovering with some authority at the top of the canvas, it seems to me like a knowing behind the consciousness of the painting.  I looked into the meaning of a lion and a leopard and they are both giving strong messages which are very relevant to the present time. The lion is a symbol of the sun and the female as a hunter. We are now entering into a feminine paradigm shift, having been dominated by the masculine/patriarchal for so many centuries and the sun and the female as hunter is a kind of fusing of the masculine and feminine principles. The lion also gives us life lessons involving living harmoniously in groups and working co-operatively. This is very relevant for today, in order to move forwards, we need to join together as a whole in order to live a sustainable life and have utmost respect for our planet and all the creatures that inhabit it. Lions avoid confrontation, but when absolutely necessary, they will fight. This I believe reflects the need to live together peacefully as a universal family, see an end to war and unnecessary bloodshed. Lions also symbolise courage, self-control, leadership, creativity and wisdom, they are the "kings of the jungle" so this is also a message to face your fears and live with absolute confidence and strength.
The leopard symbolises the ability to communicate with other dimensions. In ancient and modern Egypt, the leopard is seen as a sign of divinity. They are solitary animals and they are masters at negotiating their environment and they have an incredible stealth and ability to stalk. They possess vision which is six times as strong as humans and their hearing is twice as acute as humans, and one of the keenest of all land animals. They can literally see and hear things which others cannot. They are extremely beautiful and are camouflaged to protect them from predators, this symbolises the ability to out wit any negative forces in our lives, namely the ego or the false self.
The seagull crept into the painting quite a long time after I thought it was finished. Seagulls symbolically represent spiritual messengers who show us how to see above situations with a higher insight and teach us that there are many perspectives to consider. They, like lions show a sense of community and the co-operation that is needed to successfully operate as a whole. They teach us how to ride the currents of the mental,emotional and physical worlds and soar above your problems. They also give us lessons in the timing of action, awareness and being.
So this painting really symbolises a portal into a new dimension. There are omnipresent spirit guides (hence the swirling misty formations and notice the little faces in the trees and rocks) and the landscape is very dreamy and warm, suggesting an invitation to change our perceptions of our outer reality ~ which is really a projection of our inner landscape.  I decided to draw the 7 sacred trees in pencil as I wanted them to emanate a vulnerability and sensitivity which would contrast with the other rather unshakeable sacred tree.  I see the green tree as being very strong and rooted in its environment, healthy and solid, providing protection and longevity whereas the pink trees are a little uncertain and exposed symbolising the vulnerability and exposure we can encounter on our healing journey. We will inevitably face some great obstacles when we are on the spiritual path, from which we need to learn some important lessons, (see the black spikes coming out of the roots of one of the 7 sacred trees, the uprooted tree and the waves in the water).  But ultimately the painting contains everything and all is being held by an unchanging peaceful awareness so there is nothing to fear. The water element is symbolic of the vastness of ourselves as the ocean, and the waves are the expressions of consciousness.. Every wave that appears is an experience and an expression of the ocean, and every experience is already accepted by the deepest part of ourselves. The acceptance is what you are, not what you do.
When we accept the healing process as a gift, even the challenges which we may perceive as painful, can be transmuted into joy. Once we are on the path to finding out who we truly are, of surrendering and saying "yes' to every moment, we can really start to see the transformation in our lives.