Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Vase de fleurs, n.d., oil on canvas, private collection.

I was at an art exhibit the other day, after I walked through the gallery, I took a seat on a bench, and began the art of watching those observing art. It was interesting to see how people in an art display are in a receptive mode. In this case- no one was selling anything. So the viewers were at ease, but you could see in their body language how they were open and interested. They wanted to know what the painter was saying, and delving into the artists renderings. I like to think of art as a sort of “playground of the mind”. The artist can portray anything in the world or out of this world & make a statement. The options of whatever medium you can use are virtually endless, and there is no restriction on content. Different piece of art give you an immediate sense of what the artist was “saying” with their piece. You do get a sense of calm, upset, confusion, joy just from a glimpse.

Nature has her own art- the plants & geography. We took a stroll in the Rhodendendron gardens the other day. It was a nice sunny day, the plants in full bloom… it was refreshing to sit for a while. Meditate under a cascading batch of light pink flowers with a slight sweet scent.

So different from the corporate work world, where the focus on almost robotic time demands crush humanity & reality.
A recent memo at work had me thinking- Life is too short - but I refrained from sending that thought back in an e mail to the boss. Does not mean I abandoned the thought though. Life IS too short to get into some unrealistic time demands.

So I make it a point to not forget those core values. I consider myself an artist- I have dabbled in ink drawings, photography, collage pieces, etc. I never want to forget to keep my mind open to that receptive, perceptive, thought provoking state of being.

Still life.

Life still.

Monet

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