Material Ethereal Constructs: Sequential, Poetic Dialogues
WORK STATEMENT
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”— MAYA ANGELOU
Life is dynamic! Humans select, experience, construct, and reconstruct their lives in the blink of an eye. Beliefs come and go like old shoes that are outgrown or worn out. Artists create and evolve with truths held deep within. I am not old or new school or trendy. I am that I am within the flux of life of which I know very little.
How do we discover who and what we are, where we come from, and where we are going? Live consciously in the moment and ride the roller coaster of life with equanimity while releasing anger, sorrow, and negativity as the stars, planets, ecosystems, and cultures recycle.
The reliance on humanity’s physical senses or scientific measures to determine reality are closer to folly than truth. Are we another form of hologram or "human energy vehicle (HEV)" masquerading as material beings through illusory force fields? Did we pre-select bodies to elevate or debase?
In the end, we are placed in flesh-and-bone junkyards or cremated for interment or the scattering of ashes. Do souls recycle within the mysterious voids as all energies do? Many sages ask, "Are we spiritual beings having physical experiences?" To what end? Karma? Questions like these reflect humanity's greatest mysteries, scientific puzzles, or truths to be known.
I frequently walk in Lakeview and Forest Hill Cemeteries, Chautauqua County, New York; it's time for Day of the Dead inspirations! The rock-hard and stone-cold monuments juxtaposed with the moss, lichen, and lush forest settings to stimulate writing with light. The Sun's seasonal light and shadows are dynamic partners that stimulate imaginal journeys. Forms morph!
Photographs meld non-dualities; they present opportunities to open the third eye to mirror what appears material-ethereal. I stroll and look closely for decisive moments where nature's objects and atmospheres ripen for personal poetic expressions. Henri Cartier-Bresson’s "decisive moments" pass in the blink of an eye, though they remain within crystals or pixels. Consciousness, camera mind, and imaginings become one; memories, worldviews, and subliminal undercurrents add depth and breadth.
My images are sequential, totemic, and poetic. Audiences can touch, feel, and experience the material world's hyperrealities. Some artists spark dialogues by orchestrating a series of images and symbols. The noted teacher, photographer, and visionary Nathan Lyons expresses visual, spiritual, and philosophical conversations within Notations in Passing.
The arts are a means to define, refine, heal, and enrich our lives in manifold ways. "You don't need to be a brain scientist to understand that the arts have physiological, psychological, and spiritual benefits," said Mary Magsamen, Founder and Director of the International Arts + Mind Lab Center for Applied Neuroaesthetics at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
ARTIST ESSAY
We have just enough religion to make us hate but not enough to make us love one another. — JONATHAN SWIFT
Humans are not separate individuals, tribes, religions, or countries artificially defined by customs, beliefs, borders, or languages. We are one indivisible family! Earth is our shared, sacred home. Humanity coalesces within Bob Marley’s “I and I” and Martin Buber’s “I and Thou.” Mutual respect, tolerance, patience, forgiveness, and compassion are keys to healing, sustainability, and survival. Humility, loving-kindness, listening, and introspection will serve us well. Collaboration, cooperation, and compromise are synergistic keys to hope and understanding and solutions to challenges.
The Statue of Liberty's "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free" speaks to all times. Some say this phrase demonstrates America's ideology, some define it as a pipe dream, and others say it is a curse. Social justice mirrors philosophical, democratic, and spiritual ideals, yet clearly reflects pragmatic long-term solutions. "Between 1880 and 1930, more than 27 million immigrants arrived [seeking safety, religious and political freedom, and opportunity] mainly from Europe and Canada." America’s immigration history continues. Do the ends justify the means? What stories will historians tell? Will we create a history we want of forget or remember?
In Mary T. Lathrop's poem Judge Softly, she writes, "See the world through his [or her] spirit and eyes." Remember, vulnerable babies, children, and grand parents, along with mothers and fathers suffer from gang violence, war, ethnic cleansing, and extreme poverty. Earth quakes, fires, floods, and famine devastate humanity and force migration. A friend recently expressed extreme anger and frustration over the border crisis and blamed Congress (not the presidents of either party) for not coming together since George W. Bush briefly enjoyed a majority in both houses. He explained in frustration, “It's wrong, IT'S WRONG, the border should be secured! But if my family were in peril or starving, I would do anything to save them, including crossing the border illegally.” We live in complex, baffling, and contradictory times.
As with couples, families, communities, and nations, kindness, non-judgment, unconditional love, commitment, and selfless service must be part of the global healing formula. A critical mass of healing can only manifest as individuals take responsibility by projecting loving thoughts, words, and actions into everyday life. For insights, search the “Peace Prayer” of St. Francis. Consider Gandhi's simple words: "Be the change you wish to see in the world." This quote (yes, overused) challenges us to radiate loving kindness into our homes, communities, countrie, and collective consciousness.
"Beware of the differences that blind us to the unity that binds us." — HUSTIN SMITH.
Enlightenment reflects the shattering of the ego's pride, greed, indifference, and delusions. Unfortunately, critical imagining, Sophia's wisdom, and common sense often lose out to fears, selfish ways, and tribalism bound up in the lower self’s false narratives and logical fallacies! Let's admit we are all saints and sinners, digest our humble pies, and collectively go to work. Cultural creatives of all ages and non-profit institutions are serving to manifest change; they are finding fulfillment, joy, hope, and transcendence through service and philanthropy. Do you hear their message? Are you listening?
A faster, fairer, focused evolution in the language of love and universal connection to each other and Earth must manifest to achieve sustainability. Can we place the needs of others (at home and globally) before ourselves? Compassion and heroism arise in human hearts daily, but a critical mass of illumined global citizens collaborating and cooperating is essential.
During the early industrial revolution, one billion humans lived on Earth, four billion in 1974, and eight billion in 2024. The Industrial Revolution and mass market consumer capitalism have re-engineered life on Earth within an anemic biosphere and diminished quality of life. "This planet is not terra firma: it is a delicate flower and must be cared for," said Scott Carpenter, Astronaut for NASA's Project Mercury. Arable land, food, and water are now scarce.
Consumer capitalism as we now know it must move into the light of the nature of Nature. The Earth’s atmospheres, ecosystems, forests, freshwater sources, and oceans are like vital external organs shared with Mother Earth and all people, flora, and fauna. All life is inter-connected in manifold ways. Humanity's small selves are like caterpillars crawling, craving, and consuming mindlessly with little holistic awareness. Does humanity possess the imaginal potential for a planetary metamorphosis? Let's hope so!
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." — GEORGE BERNARD SHAW
We witness the Anthropocene's ramifications daily. Unchecked consumerism and waste, pollution, excessive greenhouse gases, deforestation, droughts, floods, forest fires, and plant and species extinction disrupt the planet's innate intelligence and ability to achieve homeostasis. Humanity is one with a tainted biosphere. Wake up! Wake up! We are Earth's ills.
Greed and misunderstanding brought climate change with ripple affects near and far. Altered oceans, diminished polar regions, and tainted atmospheres spark unrest, disease, malnutrition, wars, and mass migrations. We must envision near miraculous solutions, mind by mind, heart by heart, and brick by brick. Humanity evolved from the forests to villages, towns, cities, city-states, great empires, and the global village. We hold awakenings deep inside. Will the Phoenix rise again to dance and sing and shine?
Environmental conferences and summits are moving far too slowly. Could time, energy, and funds be committed (as in an international Manhattan Project) to research and develop sustainable solutions? Radical change does not have to raise fears; this is not beyond human potential.
The industrial revolution's science and technologies are miraculous. The dynamics of a new conscious world order of peace, health, equitable economies, human rights, environmental quality, and sustainability must come to the fore. Our egalitarian natures and self-sacrifice must confidently engage universal truths in regard to the Oneness of all Nature for the good of all.