Monday 10 December 2012

Updating my last post on Self-Portrait

I happen to realised that I never posted you the full progress on the making of my self-portrait. I really thought I did, so please forgive me and enjoy the photos of the full progress, from the sketch to the final wash:









Thank you for your patience... :-)

"Have patience with all things, but,
first of all with Yourself"  
-Saint Frances de Sales-

Wednesday 5 December 2012

Unfinished Self-Portrait

I just love this description from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

'An unfinished work is creative work that has not been finished...  The term can also refer to ongoing work which could eventually be finished and is distinguishable from "incomplete work", which can be a work that was finished but is no longer in its complete form.'   

This is exacly what I believe happend with my self-portrait. I eventually finished it, and can be distinguished from 'imcomplete work', but somehow I feel is not in its 'complete form'.

Lets remember the original photo I based myself on to interpretate my self-portrait:


Is not perfect, but, hey! Who is looking for perfection?




What do you think?











Thursday 15 November 2012

Asking for inspiration

I love the colours of autumn and find them very inspirational, very enchanting, very energizing, very soothing and very pleasing to the eye.. I love gathering leaves in my way to the nursery, and wanted so much to paint something while looking at their beautiful shapes and the mixture of their orange, green and yellow colours...

"When you feel you are being moved by the creative spirit, you are in fact being moved by the divine feminine."
 - Teri Degler -

Last Friday, following the above quote (as you have probably noticed, I love inspirational quotes!), I begun to write a few lines asking my creative spirit for inspiration, and I came out with the following words (I hope you can read it, as I was not thinking on posting it at the time of writing..)

I then concentrated in the page and waited to see if I could beging to sketch something.. (a face of course, what else!!..hahaha..), and this is the result:

I could feel the flow so I just kept going..


Yes, I think I was being moved by the creative spirit..


Many of you like myself enjoy watching videos on the progress of a painting, from the sketch to the final result. Unfortunately, I have no means to do that at the moment, but I have recorded a little video on my iphone to show you the nearly finished result of this little project; here it is.. (I hope it works!)


Please forgive me for not having finished this painting, but I have not been able lately of staying up late..

I really hope some of you will get inspired by this post and thank you all very much for reading....x

Wednesday 31 October 2012

The Mysterious

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science.” - Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)


For some reason this quote from Einstein came into mind this morning. I took note of it from something I read a while ago and indeed touched my Inner-Self enough to think about its deep meaning and to share with you today…

The Mysterious….mmmmm… Yes, I believe when we know the existence of something that we cannot understand, explain or identify, it becomes mysterious.…

The Mysterious….mmmmm… What a lovely sounded word, don’t you think?...  Its like a soft whisper in your ear… Have you ever experience the mysterious?... Myself I can only get as close as when I have been painting for hours and felt just like minutes… When suddenly I am aware that ‘time does not exists’… These have been really magical moments... nearly like being in trance (but not quite, I wish!….jejeje)… These have certainly been my mysterious moments… An overwhelming feeling of unison with the Self, of knowing that we are all the same and part of the ‘whole’. We are all connected to the Universe…
 
When Einstein believed it to be ‘the most beautiful thing one can experience’, I can, in my humble being identify with it, even if it is in a very small capacity…

Here below are images of work in progress with the finished painting… This it was one of those mysterious moments…  
Thank you so much for visiting and reading this blog...

Thursday 25 October 2012

Food for Thought

The weather in London is very misty lately, but despite how grey the colour of the sky is, one can always find beauty...

This lovely picture was taken by the river Thames. I am greatful for living so close to this beautiful scenary, so I can go for a walk to feed the swans and the ducks every now and then (my son loves it!!)


I have said to myself that I was going to try and sketch/draw/paint, etc.. almost every day, but there are times when the day has passed and I have not drawn a single line...uuuffff!!..

The following quotation puts me in a reflective mood every time I come accross to it..

"There is a voice in the Universe urging us to remember our purpose for being on this great Earth. This is the voice of inspiration, which is within each and every one of us." 
(Dr. Wayne W. Dyer)

One has to be so attentive to her inner thoughts, and listen very carefully, because the voice of inspiration is certainly there, it is just waiting to be acknowledged, and some times one has just to pick up the pencil and begin to scribble.. (the result maybe something else beyon the scrible)...

Last Friday morning while having my coffee in the kitchen at home, I was driven to sketch a self-portrait, my first attempt ever.. I still do not believe I did it myself, because I think that it's not too bad, isn't?....
 
In due course, I should be posting the finished sketch with the photo I based myself on..

Thank you for reading, I really appreciate you..

Thursday 18 October 2012

On my way to work

This morning was a beautiful and bright morning, at about 7.45am, when I took my son to the nursery, before heading to work. I thought it would be fun sharing with you my journey into work with a few pictures..  Please note that, with the exception of two photos, all the others were taken from my iphone, so the quality is probably not the best... (This is my physical journey into work  from Monday to Thursdays..)..

Yes, the first street I walked on is a very quite pedestrian street; it feels very intimate and full of character.. The sky was awesome!!!


This is the Street where the nursery is located. A nice and long hilly street!


Autum is coming to London slowly and gentle... Some flowers still remain in most of the bases of these magnificent and majestic trees...


This is what happens when you are in a hurry and trying to do too many things at once.... Pushing my child's chair (can you see his lovely legs??), picking up my iphone from my bag and trying to run as fast as possible, as I am always late for work......arrrrggggghhhh!!!....


A very leafy street indeed..


A tree with a secret door... How nice is that?... (there are tiny figures inside, like in Alice and wonderland....mmmmmm, very cute, don't you think? (This door was in white before, but it broke (or perhaps, vandalised?!?), lets be positive; things can brake, can't they?.. There was not door for a couple of days, that is when I saw the tiny figures inside, but had no phone to take a pic, sorry!..)


Here is the door in white... (I took this picture the first week Saul started nursery, I never knew it would be so relevant, specially when I discovered  the new door this morning...  Both beatuful, don't you think?)..


On my way to the office now...  l absolutely love the autum colours..


Yes, there are still some flowers left.... Are you getting inspired???


What a drastic change, don't you think?...arrrgggghhhh...


At the train station...  A train coming.... I better catch it!!!..


And....asphalt, asphalt and more asphalt...... (although it's a nice grey...jejejeje)


As you can see, every morning I pass by the MI6 building... Who knows, one day I might just meet Agent 007, Bond, James Bond...jejejeje... (Sorry to disappoint you Mr. Bond, but you are not quite my type...)


There some little green areas opposite MI6 building...


Yes, yes, this is one of the towers of the Houses of Parlament where....


The famous Big Ben is... Yes, this is the lovely view one can see opposite the building where I work... What a majestic and astonishing building.. A great inspiration to many artist...  (I took this photo from google as my iphone could not bring the whole building close enough to show you properly...)...


And more or less opposite the Big Ben is the UN Headquarters in London, the office where I work... Do you notice the sculture (a seaman on a ship)  coming out of the facade?, is because this UN office is related to maritime matters only...


The image below, the front of this UN building, is the second photo that I've borrowed from google..


Wishing you a wonderful weekend, I leave you with a little drawing..(I cannot finish a post without adding a drawing, it has become a vice... What a great vice...)...

This is the image of and original pastel on canvas (8x10inches). I sold it a few months ago to a colleague at work.  


A closer view..


I have a few pocket mirrors left of this painting (about 2inch size) for sale in my shop in Etsy. Please have a look if you are interested... They are great for a present and a none expensive way to say 'thank-you' this Christmas to your loved ones and friends!

And lastly, thank you very much to all of you who keep reading these words. I really hope that every time you visit my blog you find something that inspires you to create something, because as Thomas Merton, an anglo-american writer and a mystic (1915-1968) said:

"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time".

Oooh! He was so right..... wasn't he?.........mmmmm......I love this quote...



Tuesday 16 October 2012

Spot the difference

Just a quick note today to keep you entertained, and.., to give you a little break from reading about my philosophies and inner reflexions..., I thought it would be fun to share with you one little drawing I did last Friday morning (Yesssssssss, I am not working on Fridays..........juppppiiiiiiiiiiii)...., (some other day I will share with you the joy and extasis of having one day for myself after 3.5 years... Aleluya!!!), which I modified after having finished it...

I am sure you can spot the difference...





Which one you like more?... What does it tells you?... Are you into faces?....  I love painting faces... Like Tam Laporte (I am sure most of you are familiar with her great art) of willowing says, I am getting addicted to faces...arrggggggrrrhhhhhhh... I love seeing them coming through the paper...

Please feel free to share your findings....and......, keep painting.

(L&L)

Thursday 11 October 2012

Vibrations-2

I am so happy to say that Saul, my son, has not cried any more going to the nursery... Ooohhh! such an amazing and joyful emotion when you leave your child in the nursery feeling happy and content while he says: 'bye mummy'...mmmmmmm...

After a few conversations with Saul's key teacher, she thanked me for my imput regarding Saul's needs and took on board all I had to say.. She was very kind and we both agreed that perhaps the fact that she still does not know Saul well enough and the coincidence of her not feeling too well (catching a cold,  and feeling a bit rundown) influenced her animic state and therefore her outward energy was not being very positive, which only children can perceive and abosorve so fast, and in turn children show in  their behaviour and mood... Most likely this caused some rejection in Saul, who is such a happy soul, but requires a bit of attention in moments of transition, ie. when saying bye to mummy in the morning at nursery.... (Ohh!.......a big sigh!!!)  

Since last week I have been praising her key teacher in front of Saul and saying how lovely she is and how much she loves him.... I can see that this approach has helped Saul to tune much more with her energy and this morning I could just see that both were vibrating in the same frequency... Ohhhh! such a releave.. I left the nursery in a total state of bliss...  (This is how happy Saul arrived to the nursery every day)...



Many philosophers, spiritual thinkers and even scientists these days, have confirmed that everything that exists within the universe vibrates; this is because everything within the universe consists of matter and energy... I fully believe this is true, and therefore I also believe that we are all matter and energy.  The aura, that we all are familiarised with, is just energy sorrouding our physical bodies, and is mainly determined by our thoughts and emotions...  I am determined to teach Saul the importance of having control over our thoughts and emotions, as this will allow him to release waves and frequencies required to make his dreams a reality..., and to be in total connection with his 'Self'..

Yes, I believe everything comes in response to the vibration of energy... I could go on and on, but I do not want to bore you... 

What about some painting?...   Because so much going on in my life lately, -i.e. nursery, work, and home (and my cat which has been sneezing so much, poor thing!)... I have a few pieces of work totally unfinished, but, thinking of Saul, an intuitive image of a girl with a owl came to mind, so I wanted to paint it for him.. Here is a couple of images of  'work-in-progress', streight from my sketch book... It is far from finish.. I hope I can post it to you soon...  Enjoy and get inspired... Yeeeeesssss!!!!!!!!



Thank you all for reading...
Lots of Love and Joy going your way....x

Thursday 4 October 2012

Vibrations

Yes, I need to remember to breath... For the last two mornings my son, Saul, has been getting upset going to the nursery, but only on arrival, as soon as he is welcomed by his key teacher...

Yesterday was the worst... It was meant to happen for me to have the opportunity to observe and witness the method the teacher used to calm my son down (this was by saying a loud and forcesful 'stop crying Saul' while placing her hand with opened finguers in front of Saul's face)... Well, I was so shocked, I came back inside the room and nicely explained to this teacher that although I was understanding that she was acting following the way in which she was trained, but  I did not believe this was the right way go about it, and certainly not effective for my son, who, was increasing his crying and getting very distressed... (she could see that her approach was not effective, but did not change it!).. I explained to her that Saul was a very gently and loving child, who listen to you a lot and in a moment of distress all Saul needs is to be talked through and explained the reasons as why getting upset is harmfull and distresfull, and just being there with love and undertanding, and allowing him to cry to release all that negative energy that is generated when being upset . I know that with distraction,  play, and a real understanding of his needs, Saul calms himself  without too much of distress... I left the nursery this morning with tears running down my chiks.., its heart breaking to leave your only child so distressed (your only child that has been so much wanted and desired)... All mothers out there know exactly how hard it is...uuuuffffff!... Yes, lets breathhhhhhhhhh.... and again.... A long and deep inhale and a long exhale....Uuummmm... Much better now...

In my way to the office I was coming to the conclusion that the vibrations between Saul and his key teacher where not tuned with each other... I believe we are like a receiving mechanism that when we set our tuner to the station, we’re going to hear what’s playing.. (lets apply this to our daily interaction with people and the universe)...mmmmm... It really makes you wonder, isn't it?
I believe we are vibrational beings designed to be healthy, happy and live in harmony with nature and our human fellows...



 "No one can deny you or grant you anything. It all comes to you by virtue of your vibration." - Esther Hicks


Since my boy was worn, it came natural for me to tell him that he was all love and light.. 3 years later, every now and then he calls me to say (on his own lenguage, between english and spanish he has created his own...), something like:  Mum, Yio am amour e lu.. (In those moments I just have to squeeze him with kisses and hugs)... He is so funny.. and total magic...Mmmmmm....(I get emotional!!!)

Thank you all for reading...
(To be continued...)


Tuesday 25 September 2012

The past should be left behind, where it belongs

We all step into the past every now and then… Something we see, a noise we hear, someone who reminded us of someone else we met before, a song we used to listen to, the toy our child is playing with, the colours of the rainbow…, and our minds get totally engaged in past events and memories.., which is find as long as our perception is positive, but, are we really referring to the past with optimism and joy, without judging our actions, adventures and misadventures?, That is the question…

An aunt of mine has recently passed away, and joyful memories (we used to laugh a lot together!) are flooding my mind gently, bringing me into those moments of the past, we both shared… As I revive those blissful memories, something tells me to embrace life in the present moment and welcome death as eternal life, as I have no doubt that we are infinite beings of light and can never dye…

We should only bring our attention into the past either to create a better present, or to revive events that, not only bring us joy and happiness, but also heal our present life… When we look at the past with doubts, sadness or regrets (we used to be so happy!.., I really enjoyed that job!.., if only I could do that again!.., I was so fit then!..,), we bring negativity into our minds and our energy field, and ultimately into our bodies.. The medical world has reported many times that people's attitude to past events, present experiences or future expectations, influences their perception of health and their quality of life.

A quote from Henry David Thoreau (a complex man of many talents. I like his hair!) comes to mind: He is blessed over all mortals who loses no moment of the passing life in remembering the past”… Mmmmmmmm….. Wouldn’t you agree?

My own conclusion is that the past should be left behind, where it belongs… and this is what I have tried to represent in this painting (watercolour pencils on 200lb Not Paper, 10x8inch)...  
I hope you like it…

Thank you very much for reading my thoughts, however shallow they might be for some.... Thank you, thank you, thank you…

Tuesday 18 September 2012

Aisha

Like for many of you, life can be very hectic sometimes and even our memories play trick on us… I cannot believe I totally forgot to share with you a true story that really touched my soul and made me to reflect on the unfairness of life… Yes, we all wonder every now and then, why some people have such a hard lives and others so easy?!!!!

I read this article in one of those in flight’s magazines; it was titled ‘The last Nomads’, and it was about the annual journey the Morocco’s Berber tribes make to graze their livestock in the Atlas Mountains.. A vanishing way of life in one of the world’s most majestic scenery..
A part from the hard and extraordinary way of living of the nomads (I remember feeling sensitive when being thought at the school), what it really touched my heart was to see the photo of this woman, Aisha, a forty-six year old Berber (yes, forty-six, will you believe it?), who together with her family, her oldest son Mohamed (32) and Said (15) are on a journey they make twice a year to ensure that their animals (usually goats, sheep and camels) get the best land for grazing.. In an average days’ work, Aisha will spent 12 hours trekking across some of Africa’s most daunting terrain… Uuuuuuffffff!... (did I mentioned to you I had a hard day in the office today???)… My goodness me!  Life is really hard for some human beings… How many things do we take for granted now days???? 


As I kept reading, I felt as my soul was linking with Aisha’s and all of a sudden tears begun running down my chicks, I couldn’t understand what was happening, I just kept crying… until a huge peaceful sensation washed my entire body, the tears stopped, and an overwhelming calm invaded my whole being… It was beautiful.., absolutely beautiful feeling… My eyes intuitively closed and visualized a beam of love and light surrounding Aisha… (my eyes still fill with tears just writing about that moment… I cannot tell you how small I felt… humbleness and gratitude have always been part of my life, but every day now I become more conscious of it…)…

After reading the article, all I wanted was to sketch/draw Aisha (inevitably, my interpretation of her is a much younger Aisha) and since I couldn’t finish the little painting (5.5 x 8 inches approx.) while on the plane, I tore off a couple of pages to show you these images..

The article said that Berber nomads like Aisha have been making this migration for some 4,000 years, but Aisha will be the last of her family, and possibly one of the last of her tribe, to do so. (My heart keeps a very special place for Aisha…UUUUHhhhhmmm…if only she would know that someone in the globe is thinking of her right now and has a little painting of her that will be treasured for ever and ever…)..



Once again thank you all for reading my thoughts, I really appreciate it… This journey in intuitive painting and awakening consciousness would have never had begun without you, and cannot possible continue without you either, so stay tune… and, let’s don’t forget:
To keep painting… J J

Thursday 13 September 2012

Thinking

It has been a little while since I have written to you… Time flies, don’t we know?...  Everything goes so fast…, Hhhmmm… Our minds are constantly buzzing with millions of thoughts… All thoughts want to be heard, and each one of them competes for importance…. Arrrgggghhhhh!... We all know we cannot stop thinking…  The reality is that most of our thoughts are not only repetitive and useless, but because of its often negative nature, much of it is also harmful…  If you observe your thoughts you will realise this is true…

The left side of the brain never gives up and keeps nagging our right side for attention… Although, both halves are connected and involved in the thinking process, the left side is believed to be critical and analytical.., It has always something to say and louder… It also believes is the most important of the team…

As often as I can, I try to be attentive to these mental quarrels and I consciously make the shift to my right side of the brain (the creative and intuitive half !!).  By practising shifting the awareness to the right side, I do not intent to neglect the left side, in the contrary, I recognize its noise, but I ignore it, as this is the best way to keep it quiet…  Nevertheless, sometimes is hard to be so attentive, and I come back to what I have always known best: getting involved in a mental dialogue with my ‘thinking’….arrrggghhhhh!....  But, but, but… wait.., wait…, this time with a difference…  I took a deeply breathe, and consciously stopped the mental dialogue… I observed and acknowledged my thoughts … Then, very calmly, I took my drawing pad, my pencil and some watercolour crayons and very simply said to my left brain: here you are, now, instead of wasting so much energy nagging my head so persistently with staff I do not want to hear, you are going to focus in directing my hand in whatever way the right side brain tells you to go, so we can produce some art here… This will definitely keep you quite... Let’s paint!
And.., guess what? Another one of those magical moments I have mentioned to you before, it happened again… Time lapsed, and I was there, in the zone… I just kept drawing until early hours into the morning, as usual!!…


For me is not only another confirmation of what both halves of the brain can achieve when working together in unison and harmony.., but also, the profound feeling of knowing that I must continue believing in myself (however difficult!)… Trying games like this is fun, please try it yourself, you will be surprised of the results…  We must continue believing in our dreams and enjoying the journey…

My inner thoughts and artistic journey are now being shared with you out there, who are kindly taking your precious time to read my words, and therefore I really hope that between these words each one of you finds at least a bit of inspiration, motivation, courage, tenacity, perseverance.. etc., etc… There are many of us having similar thoughts, concerns, dreams and desires to make it in the artistic world, hence we can all motivate and inspire each other. Isn’t great? 

Let’s remember that the present is here, and the now is very powerful…

Sweet dreams..zzzzzzzzzzz....

(I wrote the above last night but couldn't post it, so while at my lunch break I am posting it now).. Thanks again for reading...x

Monday 27 August 2012

Female and Male

A couple of months or so I found myself thinking and reflecting about the eastern philosophies and their concept of yin (feminine/receptive) and yang (masculine/active).They have said that everything in the universe is made up of these two forces (everything includes each of us)...

Yes, I believe that we all have male and female energies within us, but somehow we have lost these parts of ourselves... Perhaps one of the most difficult task would be to know how to reclaim this lost... Maybe if we would know how to develop these energies fully, we could live our lifes in total bliss.

Lets don't forget that our female aspect is our intuitive self, our deepest and wisest part. One must learn to listen to her carefully to be directed in the right direcction at all times. The male aspect is action, our hability to do things...

Just imaging for a moment the total unison, the total union of these two energies, working together within ourselves.. As they say, this process must certainly be the basis of all creation... Mmmmmm... The thought is just so powerful... It really energise me, like it did at that moment in time, when this painting was created...




Yes, most of my paintings are created with the energy flowing from within.., its like being 'in the zone'... all of the sudden, time does not exists... This, to me, it is a clear example of these two energies working in harmony, listening one another.  Wouldn't you agree that female intuition together with the male action equals creativity?.

Oh! just before I say good night, and for those of you who have asked, you can find my work for sell in Etsy, just click on this link http://www.etsy.com/shop/GEmbid?ref=search_shop_redirect

Thank you so much for reading.