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Gathering Earth
"The lines between us are strong and beautiful and holding up after all the years we've gathered earth and planted in the same garden."
-- excerpt from "Gathering Years" by Klaaske deKoning
10,000 Graces
A thousand moves toward peace; a thousand gestures of gratitude; a thousand acknowledgements; a thousand expressions of I'm-sorry-I-did-that .... and thousands of glances your way to say I see you as only I see you. And to know that you see me as only you can see me.
Of Mystery and Matter
In the lengthening-of-days season, when northern landscapes return to life with the affirmation that death will not have the final word, hands are clasped around the slender branch of an aspen in humble celebration.
Gentleness, Goodness and Patience Rest on Main
If virtues were actual people..
Some time ago I found an old photograph of two elderly women staring at the camera,. Definitely a Prudence, I thought. Prudence and Wisdom? And what would Mercy look like? Hope? And the virtue series was born.
If the first half of life tends to focus on the establishing of ourselves in the world, let the next half be all about growing in the virtues of mercy, grace, wisdom... remembering that the greatest of these is love.
Prudence and Wisdom Chill Out in the Garden
Some time ago I found an old photograph of two elderly women staring at the camera,. Definitely a Prudence, I thought. Prudence and Wisdom? And what would Mercy look like? Hope? And the virtue series was born.
If the first half of life tends to focus on the establishing of ourselves in the world, let the next half be all about growing in the virtues of mercy, grace, wisdom... remembering that the greatest of these is love.
Faith Discusses Global Affairs with Peace
If virtues were actual people..
Some time ago I found an old photograph of two elderly women staring at the camera,. Definitely a Prudence, I thought. Prudence and Wisdom? And what would Mercy look like? Hope? And the virtue series was born.
If the first half of life tends to focus on the establishing of ourselves in the world, let the next half be all about growing in the virtues of mercy, grace, wisdom... remembering that the greatest of these is love.
Mercy and Grace Stroll Through the Neighbourhood
If virtues were actual people..
Some time ago I found an old photograph of two elderly women staring at the camera,. Definitely a Prudence, I thought. Prudence and Wisdom? And what would Mercy look like? Hope? And the virtue series was born.
If the first half of life tends to focus on the establishing of ourselves in the world, let the next half be all about growing in the virtues of mercy, grace, wisdom... remembering that the greatest of these is love.
Hope Blesses Seven Generations
Al Muhibba (Beloved)
Shelter
I once read an article about two elderly Muslim women who, at the end of their lives, embarked on a pilgrimage to Mecca. It was an 800 km walk for them, yet they could not face the end of their lives without making this one, final journey. It was understood, within this intense gaze, they would likely be parted along the way and forever loose sight of one another. This was their farewell at the start of a pilgrimage that would cost them everything.
What is it that stirs us up to become "pilgrims"? Why are some so compelled to journey?
Love Covers
"Above all, love each other deeply, because love unselfishly seeks the best for others." (I Peter 4:8)
All The Eggs In One Basket
Every egg is identified on the back of this card. Some of them are endangered or extinct; all of them are distinct in their size, colour and markings. Let us take care of this one, precious earth.
From the Hearth
In its long spear-like bill, a great-blue heron holds up a live coal against the darkness. In Celtic mythology, herons were considered messengers of the gods. Consider this most elegant of birds with its glowing coal from the warmth of hearth fires, an invitation to home.
Coordinates
Coordinates, those reliable measurements based on the long-established findings of scientific query, identify one's position in multi-dimensional space. And yet, there are events and relationships that refuse to be pinpointed. We can lose our bearings - or at least feel the impact of a new horizon line when our usual coordinates fail to tell us where we are. Memory and time, mystery and beauty carry us through these times.
Left Wing + Right Wing = LIFT
What matters to you about governance? Nearly 100 responses to this question were written down on the wings of this eagle as I dragged them everywhere I could during our nations various elections. We shared perspectives, argued, misunderstood and circled back to the beginning to try again; we did our best to stay curious, listening for ways to move beyond cynicism and dualisms to find common ground. Not every conversation ended well, but the space made for civil dialogue was at least genuine. We learned from one another, often over tea and coffee, to then add another coffee stain on the painting panel in recognition of our hard work. We need both wings, afterall, to lift toward a broader perspective.
Encounters With God (We Listen)
This unlikely pairing of canoe and eagle is intended to be symbolic of God (Mystery, Spirit, Creator, Love, Beauty....) and a life lived, or more broadly, a people, a culture. In painting these images, I explore the relationships, narratives and cultural contexts we have with a spiritual reality that intersects with humanity in all its hubris and creatureliness.
Encounters With the Divine (We Wait)
The unlikely paring of eagle and boat is a visual metaphor for a visitation of the divine. The boat is still, waiting, and Mystery descends.
The Listener
Falconers commonly use a leather hood to keep their bird calm as they await a hunt. Bird and falconer work together in an uncanny relationship of trust, yet the bird remains wild despite this mutuality. Once released, the falcon would ride the winds out of sight and never return.
The Scout
Ravens will often fly over busy highways in search of roadkill. If you are fortunate enough to have a sunroof, watch their heads turn from side to side to check both sides of the road along the way. One dining raven attracts others; it's not unusual to see a dozen birds join the clean-up crew. They take their custodial duties very seriously, and it's easy hunting.
Magnum Opus
One of a series of paintings that uses the owl to explore ways of knowing and, as this title suggests, this extraordinary large white owl creates quite a stir seen anywhere south of its traditional tundra range in the north. The snowy (Nyctea scandiaca) is a day hunter and will sit on the ground for long stretches of time as it waits for prey, then will strike with surprising agility and speed.
Left Leanings
A small burrowing owl leans far to the left in its characteristic fashion. A playful innuendo to one's political leanings.
The Centalist
One of a set of three, the centralist is the middle (of course), flanked by a burrowing owl leaning to the left, and the other leaning to the right. A playful suggestion toward our political parties.
Right Leanings
A small burrowing owl leans far to the right in its characteristic fashion. A playful innuendo to one's political leanings.
Parliamentary Debate
This is one of a series of paintings that use the owl to explore ways of knowing. This burrowing owl family (Athena cunicularia) grips its owl page from an old birding book and stares at the viewer as though ready to dispute any notion we might have about them. One of the few species of owl to be active during the day, it actually does burrow underground. They were once very common across the prairies, but are in decline mostly due to habitat loss. Incidentally, a group of owls is known as a "parliament".
Test Anxiety
"Test Anxiety" is one of a series of paintings that uses the owl to explore ways of knowing. Saw-whets (Aegolius acadicus) have large heads for their small size and appear to make a variety of human-like expressions that beg for anthropomorphism. Despite their cuteness, these night hunters are fierce, catching from songbirds to frogs, mice or insects. Their name comes from the "skiew" sound they make when alarmed which is much like the sound of a whetting or sharpening saw.
The Scholar (CARDS SOLD OUT)
"The Scholar" is one of a series of paintings that uses the owl to explore ways of knowing. Depicted as a little Renaissance man in this piece, the fierce northern pygmy (Glaucidium gnoma) presides with fixed gaze in his esteemed place of learning. Smaller than a robin, the pygmy owl will hunt day or night and may be seen unabashedly perched at your bird feeder waiting for a songbird snack.
Benediction (CARDS SOLD OUT)
This is one of a series of paintings that uses the owl to explore ways of knowing. This handsome owl perches atop his page of a birding book with stillness and poise in the dark of night. He bows his head as though to express goodwill and blessing. Bene- ("well") and -diction ("to speak") literally translates to "speak well of". The barn owl (Tyto alba) is a silent nocturnal hunter with a ghostly white plumage and distinct heart-shaped face. It gives a thin shriek rather than the expected hoot of other owls. Barn owls are a welcome site in any farmer's field: a single owl can hunt over 1,000 mice in a breeding season.
With Distinction
"With Distinction" is one of a series of paintings that uses the owl to explore ways of knowing. The great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) appears to own any place it perches as it surveys its unchallenged domain - unless a flock of crows happens to spot it. Then all mayhem breaks lose as they mob the owl mercilessly. Success comes easily for this powerful owl; they are not picky about their food and will nest in almost every kind of landscape.
Five Stones and a Pebble
A meditation on the tension between our humanity and grace. Grace is, I believe, the larger, more sustaining part of the equation.
Hello, Mystery
"No one who has gained wisdom wishes to be young again."
In these between years of elderly parents and fledged children, we stand in a marvellous place: we have finally accepted the fact that pain and suffering are unavoidable, but in it, we find mystery too. We have learned to recognize the presence of joy and love, even there.
The Frisian horse - a creature of near mythical stature - stands as the figure, Mystery. May we have the courage to lean into it.
The King's Horse
There is an ancient story of a man named Aiden of Lindisfarne, an Irish monk in the 7th century. Aiden fiercely championed the socially disenfranchised, including children and slaves. It is said of him that he served the king's court so unselfishly that the king wished to reward him with one of his royal horses so he no longer had to endure long walks over rough ground. Aiden refused. He was loath to serve his neighbour from the elevated position of a horse's back. He warned the king that he would only give it away. The king insisted, and Aiden did indeed give away the king's horse. The first peasant farmer he met walked on with a fine new horse.
Take Me Home
Companionship, especially when navigating through unchartered terrain, is a cherished thing. Going-it-alone times are part of life, even necessary, but the reunion as we regather is true wealth! These are what give us our bearings and create belonging, no matter where one is.
The Conversation: Ocean
"If we spoke the same language, what would we say to one another?"
The humpback whale image is from a 3-part piece called "The Conversation" and was part of the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition's (COLC) initiative to engage the public with how we connect to our oceans. See more about this project on this website under "Collaborations", or go to www.colcalition.ca, "Regional Reports - Inland Region".
Red Seeds in a Green World
There is the true story of a small band of idealistic individuals who planted thousands of hardy pines on barren savannah in Colombia. They hoped to create a kinder, more sustainable living environment. Much to everyone's surprise, an entirely new ecosystem emerged under the transformative shade of these carefully tended trees. What they didn't know was that beneath the surface, for uncountable eons, lay the dormant seeds of a primordial rainforest. A rainforest! Today, this place is referred to as the miracle pines of Gavoitas.
Life is not unlike Gavoitas's unexpected forest. We often have no idea what seeds lie hidden under the thin soils, waiting for awakening and renewal.
"Gathering the Graces for the Next Generation"
Grace comes, unexpected and undeserved. It appears in the most subtle of ways: somehow things open, or shift; hope is born in a dark place. It is always a gift. But to gather the graces? Is it even possible, this intentional gathering of graces?
I painted this piece while reading several books on climate change. It is difficult to do this research without a growing anxiety about our future, particularly our children's and their children"s future. It began as a type of self-portrait, a mother tree and her three saplings, then expanded to become a personal reflection of faith. An, even so. The composition is a visual dialogue between despair and hope, resignation and faith, outrage and delight. The outside border suggests entropy as an inevitable reality. In it, are phrases from the book I was reading which were especially inspiring. The crows soar towards the heavens as a prayer of both lament and trust, Hear my cry, O God. In the centre is dancing light, colour, growth. What does this gathering of graces actually look like, then? These are the things I long to pass on to our children and grandchildren: skills to adapt to a changing world, tenderness, thoughtul living, generous open-handedness, and most of all, love. In the face of so much fear and pain, Love.
The Witness II
The Burmis Tree is an iconic feature at the Crowsnest Pass's eastern entrance, and is often described as the most photographed tree in Alberta. Limber pines are a protected species and are a rich food source for black bears and grizzlies as they fatten up for winter. Listen for the noisy Clark's nutcracker as they fly from one cone-laden tree to another.
Treehugger: White Oak With Nel
Count Your Blessings
A flourishing tree drawing up the numbers of BINGO card fragments...which turns out to not by chance at all, but simply through intentional living.
Treehugger: Black Cottonwood With Lee-Anne
The cottonwoods featured in this image come from near Fernie, British Columbia. They are some of the oldest in the world, over 400 years old - a very respectable age for this fast-growing deciduous. To stand next to them, diminished by their deeply-grooved trunks all wrapped in their glorious moss skirting, is a grand thing. You want to listen deeply to what they have to say.
Journey With Flowers No. 10
A reflection of the strange liminal space during a global pandemic and its aftermath, this boat floats with neither anchor nor oars, and speaks of the uncertainty of our times. In contrast, the flowered tree fills its interior space suggesting hope and beauty, even so. May we have the courage to carry flowers with us everywhere we go.
Journey With Flowers No. 4
A reflection of the strange and liminal space during our global pandemic and its aftermath, this boat floats with neither anchor nor oars, and speaks of the uncertainty of our times. In contrast, the flowers it carries enlivens its interior space, suggesting hope and beauty, even so. May we have the courage to carry flowers everywhere we go.
Journey With Flowers No. 20
A reflection of the strange and liminal spaces during a global pandemic and its aftermath, this small canoe floats without paddles and speaks of the uncertainty of our times. In contrast, the abundance of flowers that fills its interior space suggests hope and beauty, even so. May we have the courage to carry flowers with us everywhere we go.