I gathered images, had an idea and then sat back.
Often this is how a post goes for me. I’m tired today so everything is a little slower but I want to share this, the back story behind my recent call to artists for the exhibition ‘Artwords’ showing at Amanartis at the Atria in Sept.
Zora Neale Hurston
I came across this book whilst at the Lynette Yiadom-Boakye exhibition at the Tate in Feb 2023. It was amongst her book selection of most important reads. So from one Ghanaian artist to another, I thought I’d add it to my collection.
This painting by Lynette perfectly embodies the journey that lead me to the call and the line that moved me so much. I won’t share what it was, just yet as that will be revealed with the piece as part of the show.
For many years I have maintained a part of my personality that was largely anchored in strength of the physical kind as well as the emotional – this strength looked and felt hard, ridged, solid and grounded.
Writing this, it makes me wonder what’s so wrong with that? The problem for me (and it was a problem) was that I was holding onto it so strongly that I wasn’t allowing parts of my character, that I could feel deep within, to grow until…
The funniest circumstances. Last year school sports day – the parents race.
I lined up as I had done years before, to the cheers and whoops of my children and their class mates. However this year I said my chances of winning were not looking good. In all honesty I was relaxed and I love a race, it’s fun right?
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I lost the race and came in a stumbling 3rd – hey a podiumed so all good (so competitive). I really didn’t care, truly but for the rest of the day I couldn’t get the feeling and the event out of my head. Why is this playing on my mind so much because trust me when I say this – I didn’t care that I didn’t win so something else was happening.
Self reflection and taking time to take stock of my emotions and feelings is a life philosphy that I stand by – always look inwards. So as I lay on bed reflecting trying to understand what was so important that my being couldn’t let it go, it came to me.
i don't have to win anymore!
I don’t have to win anymore! Oh my goodness, this. As I repeated this words my chest opened up and with my eyes almost closed I had a vision of my self lying on my back floating upwards. My body was covered in what looked like an armour of rocks. Suddenly the rocks broke away from my body and from it came this graceful, fluid figure, soft and elegant – it was me in a way that I knew existed but hadn’t felt confident enough to own.
The feeling was beautiful, it was light, powerful and certain and I loved her. On reflection this was halfway through my feminine awakening journey. I’d been growing in this way for some time and this was the birth of the full me. Gosh as I write it now the feeling is returning and it’s wonderful, so self assured and fierce in the most graceful, subtle yet powerful way – like a mystical, celestial warrior of the most loving kind.
Blue was colour, waves were the movements.
As an elemental being feeling most at one in the water, this feeling was just joy – an it has not left me.
It was the next phase of my feminine energy awakening which has brought me the most satisfaction and contentment in a long while. It’s what allowed the line and passage in the book to move me so much. I was open and ready to feel and could understand the emotion and feeling that came with it.
I’ve bigged this phrase up so much when you read it you’ll be like “is that it?”, you may not even be moved by it – but it’s like a prayer or a passage in the bible, it will resonate differently to you than to someone else because experiences are made for you, the growth and who you become after are what we are to share.
