Upon entering the studio, with warm coffee in hand and a fresh mind the painting sesshin may commence. A sesshin is a Zen expression for ‘collecting heart mind’. Which is to say it is the settling of the mind, to touch the mind, and to convey the mind. Traditionally It consists of a 2 to 7 day period of intense practice in seated meditation, referred to as zazen, and also consists of walking and working meditation. It is something I came across only recently and after researching it I found it made a lot of sense to me. I look at painting as a ritualistic, meditative practice of calming the mind, channeling energy and ideas, and being in ‘heart mind’ space. I have adapted certain components of the a sesshin to my process, and my ritual. Fundamental components to positive creative out flow is ritual and practice. Creating your space and being able to immerse into practice with full concentration and discipline may not sound easy, in fact it is does require work. It has taken me many years to figure it out, and perhaps from the observer outside of me, it might seem low tech, and even rather makeshift. It is in fact a streamlined operation. I know my tools, my paint, my brushes, and my set up. The logistics of painting requires its own set of conditions, and in the case of logistics, I am a black belt. It has been fun developing my kit, learning what works and what doesn’t, and trust meI have received many ‘expert’ opinions over the years of what works best and what doesn’t. The thing is we are unique machines in ourselves and what might work for you may not work for me, and this is the ‘compromise’ of making art, choosing your modus operandi wiki link and seeing it through. This is a challenge and one that does come with a slight chance of fear. The fear is learning something new, and thats it. Once you get through the fear, and it does pass, the learning becomes inspired and the work doesn’t seem like work at all. When I am in my space, in sesshin, I am in heart mind, I am flowing and the good work continues to unfold.
If this blog interests you, and you are in Calgary, Ab, Canada, I am running art classes and workshops at Hughes on Tenthlink to Hughes Fine Art, Mondays and Thrusdays, 6:30 to 8:30 pm, and for ages 13 to 17. I have room in my classes for up to 6 students per night. I am looking to also fill a 6 person classroom on Saturdays, 1-4 pm, there is no set age group, it will be a more intensive one on one guidance and instruction, with inspirational and art history forays relevant to the subject. My approach to teaching is unique, dynamic and fun. I offer extensive insight into art, art process, technique and art history. If this interests you and or anyone you know, please send me a message and we can go from there. You can contact me a mahaloness@gmail.com. Thank you.
Fotomahaloness -the studio sesshin and a drawing made in my art class for 13 to 17 year olds, we came up with mythical creatures based on 3 animals: the wandering albatross, the black devilfish, and a sun fish. We had one hour to render the mythological character and than shared and talked about our creations. I really like to emphasize developing your own style and working on techniques that will enhance your creative outflow.