contemporary collage paintings
the process
Leslie Avon Miller

My life flows when I'm in my art.


Jean De Muzio

Sunday, March 31, 2013

giving thanks for the light and beauty









Drink your tea slowly and reverently, 
as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves
 - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future.



Thich Nhat Hanh


The hummingbirds have returned, with their quick flights, and territorial behaviors. Some Native American’s call them warriors. Hummingbirds were thought to be the sun, courting a beautiful woman, the moon. They are also a symbol of good luck and joy. Off in the woods I hear the quail call for the first time this season. It is fully spring.







A pattern forms, built over time, influenced by dark and light, warmth and cold, proximity and personal preference. Awareness and gratitude play a part.

This weekend is Opening of the Studio.  My studio beckons in the light of the changing season, in the warmth of the space and daylight for the walk back and forth. The sound track in the background is the song of birds in the day and the one billion frogs crocking in a near by pond in the evening. 




I’m a fair weather painter. I create all winter, in a small warm spot near the fire. The studio is welcoming in spring and summer and fall. And so the painting experiments continue. Water colors, papers. Monoprinting. They cover the floor and any flat surface. Each day I pull the dried papers apart to see what has happened.







The gardener called me to the door and said “I’ve found a treasure.” In his hands was a year old nest found in the honeysuckle. 




The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes. 
If you foolishly ignore beauty, you will soon find yourself without it.
 Your life will be impoverished. 
But if you invest in beauty, it will remain with you all the days of your life.


Frank Lloyd Wright
 


I’m drinking tea, making marks and giving thanks for the light and beauty in my life.
 

32 comments:

  1. Over the years of blogging I have noticed that in spring/fall we are all much more content with the weather than we are in summer/winter. For myself, creating takes a similar path. If the weather is good, so is the creating!

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  2. Thank you Eric. The papers are a combination of some marks previously made with acrylic, with water color additions and then inks. It is an engaging experiment.

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  3. There is always such a lovely feel, a flavour to your posts, a beckoning, a reminder; in this case, to drink our tea slowly, to steep in the beauty of the world and to savour it all with a little bow.

    I am enjoying the amazing weather and assuming you are having the same. I have been hijacked by the garden but the studio is calling. Tomorrow.

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    1. The amazing weather is so very enjoyable, Carole. Today, cooler with a long slow cup of tea. I wish you a good day in your studio.

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  4. I know what you mean about creating and the seasons, winter is the hardest for me. Off to drink my tea . . . slowly.

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    1. Hi Kathryn; It has taken me a few years to realize I am just not going to be over in the studio much in the winter.

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  5. Beautiful quotes and these rolls tied with wonderful mystery. Keeping on !
    I drink my tea in the afternoon when I leave the studio...it is a rest time and maybe tomorrow I'll be more aware of drinking ....slowly.

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    1. I think there is mystery in the scrolls Mary Ann. I thought of that and asked myself what I was rolling up. No answer yet!

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  6. A long sigh of contentment...... a reminder of simple pleasures. Each image a meditation. Thank you Leslie.

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    1. I am a real fan of simple pleasures Robyn. Thank you.

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  7. Sitting here smiling and sipping my tea (jasmine green) as I read your lovely and oh so insightful post. The nest is indeed a treasure, but it's the simple black and white scrolls at the beginning that have captivated me. An installation as is. Perfect.

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    1. Yum, jasmine tea. How elegant. Thanks Jennifer.

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  8. It sounds like you are in a good place...

    The scrolls are simply divine - and the nest so precious, and the call for quietness, slowness so appealing.

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    1. Thanks Fiona. I think this is a good place. And I have had a quiet afternoon today as a bonus. It's so refreshing to enjoy slow quiet.

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  9. a beautiful post which exudes peace. lovely paintings, lovely nest. and oh, so excited--you enter your studio again, can spread your work out on the floor, can expand after the small space of winter.

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    1. Hi Suki: Spreading out one's work is a real joy. It's amazing how much room it can take!

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  10. Sensitive and artful words and images . . a delight!

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  11. I LOVE the idea of opening your studio in the spring. I have seen working without heat as a disadvantage. Now I will see it as an opportunity to shift my focus. Thank You...and Happy Spring!
    I have had my first scent of apricot blooms....heavenly.

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    1. Oh, apricots! A blossoms I have never had the pleasure of smelling. It must be wonderful.

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  12. I LOVE the idea of opening your studio in the spring. I have seen working without heat as a disadvantage. Now I will see it as an opportunity to shift my focus. Thank You...and Happy Spring!
    I have had my first scent of apricot blooms....heavenly.

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  13. LAM - what a beautiful approach to life - "I’m drinking tea, making marks and giving thanks for the light and beauty in my life." I'm totally with you on that. Go well and more creatively into spring. B

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  14. I like the notion of a season called
    springfall

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  15. Hi Leslie, what a beautiful post - I am off to bed now with a cup of tea and a new found gratitude for a studio which is exceedingly comfortable all year round. X

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  16. beautiful writing and art...yours and the birds:-)

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  17. such a feeling of openness and blessedness here today! when the weather is good, so is the creating. so true! fling open your heart and drink in the season! p.s. the paper rolls are scrumptious!

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  18. Lovely scrolls Leslie, and your birds nest is indeed a small treasure. You have found the beauty and light we are all looking for.

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  19. There is poetry in this post. Treasures to be found in your words, your scrolls and that nest!

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  20. your flexibility inspires my heart so:)
    glad thanks,
    Jennifer

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  21. Such a beautiful and tranquil blog, thank you for sharing your thoughts Leslie, coming to your blog for me, is a form of meditation and peace. Beautiful work and words. You inspire me in many ways. Susan Jensen.

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  22. Such a beautiful and tranquil blog, thank you for sharing your work and peaceful thoughts. You inspire me in many ways. Susan

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