What's better than a BFA show? Feng Shui art final!

What I really enjoy and want to explore further with Feng Shui is it's relation to art, specifically. When my class has done practice consultations and space clearings, my first instinct is to assess the images on the walls and the sculptural decorative objects filling the space. Chairs, tables, shelves - these things are all functional. It's the decorative aspects, the things people don't need for function or purpose that are real indicators as to what people perceive, want, feel, like, dislike, etc. These objects seem to mirror life in a way. Feng Shui, in a few words, is about making purposeful environmental decisions to reflect/influence your desires and/or life. Along with the basics of good circulation, art seems like the most influential place to start.

Upon my introduction to Feng Shui, I immediately began to incorporate it's principles with my painting. I've been dealing primarily with the concept of using color and elemental symbolism to influence one particular gua or another. Generally, when I hang work, I consider the layout of the entire building and place the paintings according to their most auspicious location based on the bagua. The more I think about Feng Shui Art, and it's application, the more I dream of installation work, and entire interior renovation based not just on decoration, but an artistic internal construction. For example - using water, not just as a fountain, but visibly flowing in and through the entire building or certain rooms.

Realizing this, I asked my Feng Shui master if she thought we could gear my final consultation a little more specifically to my area of focus. She considered it and came up with this plan: instead of a traditional home or office consultation, we would select 3 spaces for me come up with art adjustments for. I requested to visit the places first, so I could come up with sketches, layouts, swatches, material samples, etc. I was granted this request for two spaces, but the third I will need to assess spontaneously and any sketching to communicate my ideas will be done on the spot. I feel compelled to assess large public spaces where a lot of people traffic daily, although the final locations have not been determined.

Now I'm really excited about this! This is an opportunity for me to work 3-dimensionally beyond my wildest possible dreams. I like to paint large canvases and have taken to multiple panels in an effort to expand my end surface area while keeping the canvases workable in my little space. My Feng Shui final offers me the opportunity to work beyond the canvas in ways that never occurred to me previously and in mediums I've never approached like steel, water, and wind??!!!! Cheers, Feng Shui!

At home with Mertyle.

Art collector extraordinaire, Josh Saathoff, sent over some pics of Mertyle, a piece of mine he acquired in 2010.  Mind you, when I say extraordinaire, I'm not kidding - If you ever had the opportunity to do a 2nd Fridays Pilsen gallery crawl with this kid, you would not want to pass it up.

Josh's place is so absolutely gorgeous, it's really quite an honor to have my work as part of the decor!

 In terms of Feng Shui, I really love that he has orange as a featured color in the dining area. Orange facilitates celebration and sets the perfect tone for sharing meals and socializing.

I'm a fan of Josh's work too - he's the owner and primary designer for NonFiction Tees.

"Factually relevant, conversation-invoking graphic tees based on library categories. Our fascination with print-making combines our favorite things - Fine Art, Graphic Design, Industrial-ness, computers, and Arts & Crafts - into an art form that can be worn."

a-w-e-s-o-m-e! Check out his Etsy shop when you have a chance and thanks for the pictures, Josh!

What IS this bagua thingy?!

Simply put, the bagua (or pa-k'ua) I often refer to is a "chart" that can be laid over floor plans to designate strategic areas for symbolic enhancements according to Feng Shui. Early baguas were used in consideration of burial plots and areas for settlement. The practice of Feng Shui is centuries old, and as with every other aspect of humanity, there has been quite an evolution. The foundation remains the same, and I thought it'd be interesting to take a look at the origins compared to what is being used today.

The words feng and shui mean wind and water, respectively. These were the two single most important factors for migrating villagers looking for prosperous settlement. Gentle winds meant good harvest & healthy livestock. Steady water was a good source of food and meant survival against drought.  Conversely, harsh winds destroyed crops, stagnant water promoted disease, and rushing waters were not a good source of food. Wind, water, rain, fog, sun, and clouds were believed to be the energy of heaven and earth. The flow of energy in an environment was of utmost importance to the survival of the establishing tribe. For this reason early Chinese tribal leaders were shaman-kings that knew the ways of wind and water.

One such shaman-king was the sage Fu Hsi. Fu Hsi was especially knowledgeable in the ways of animals, hence his discovery of the Ho-t'u. The Ho-t'u is a pattern inscribed on a horse Fu-Hsi witnessed emerging from the river Ho. Fu Hsi translated the pattern into what became the Earlier Heaven pa-k'ua. The Earlier Heaven pa-k'ua describes the underlying nature of all things. To understand the Ho-t'u is to understand the foundation of the universe and humanity.

Ancient Ho-t'u                      Modern Ho-t'u

Another Early shaman-king was Yu. Yu was crippled, but trained as a shaman and destined to be the leader of his people. Shun was an aging leader at a time when flood waters threatened to wipe out the tribal settlements in which Yu lived. After the failed efforts of several nobles, Yu stepped forward organizing the other villagers to build canals and dikes that subsided the flood waters. As the rivers calmed, Yu witnessed a tortoise emerging from the river adorned with the pattern from the river Lo. This pattern was called the Lo-shu and became the prototype for the Later Heaven pa-k'ua. The Later Heaven pa-k'ua is used to predict the phenomena of flux and change.  

Ancient Lo-shu                      Modern Lo-shu

It's advantageous to consider the principles of Feng Shui when looking for a place to live or work,  however, the bagua can be used to help improve the flow of energy anywhere. The most outright commonality between the original bagua designs and the most contemporary rendition is the number of circles or shapes associated with each area. The same number associations are made in each rendering.

Number Associations to Areas on a Bagua

Why do I use "pa-k'ua" and "bagua" interchangeably?  Because they are really one in the same. The different words result from different dialects as written language was developed. There are multiple schools of Feng Shui and I'm finding that each school tends to use one word over the other. In my studies thus far, the ideologies have been the same.

Major Transformation Begins!

My big project this year is the decoration of my living room. I've lived here for 3 years and hardly use this room for anything except yoga. Last year, I had the idea that I'd use it as an computer room and do any digital design or other computer work here. Here's some before shots picture:

 

As it turns out, I still ended up in my kitchen with the laptop. The kitchen/dining room takes up some of the Creative area of my home according to the Feng Shui Bagua, so it makes sense. Or who knows, maybe the living room was just too sterile. Looking back at these pictures, it's even more apparent just how uninviting it is.

I got rid of my old work table in the kitchen/workspace area and put in my desk. I moved the art stuff that was sitting around to the storage basement. Easy peasy. I got rid of all the un-essentials in the living room.

What I'm going for in the living room is cozy. I want an inviting space for  yoga practice. I want to want to read in there instead of the kitchen. I want to be in there playing records. I want a place for guests to relax and feel comfortable. All this on top of the fact that it's important to actually use all rooms of your home.

Step 1 - paint those hospital walls!!!

Purple is the natural choice for the back wall in the Wealth area - it can encourage all kinds of other abundance. The warm grey-brown is a great backdrop for the blues, oranges, and greens I intend on coordinating in. Brown shades are auspicious for these areas in my house too, so everything works out perfectly!

Even though there is actually less stuff in the room, I feel like it's already more cozy already and I'm so excited for the next steps!

"Go Big or Go Home"

Friend and fellow artist Andrew Lautner coined this phrase (atleast I believe he coined it) when discussing the merit of painting large format - and I concur.

In part, the concept of working on 10x10 canvases is to allow flexibility for hanging art in small spaces. However, I couldn't resist using a total of 9 for my first venture in this series. I set out to design canvases for the reputation area of my place according to the feng shui bagua.  The number nine is lucky when used in this area.

As an area enhanced by fire, I used triangles, yellow, red, and rose as primary design elements. The surprise bonus is (drum roll....) animal print! Animal prints can be used to enhance fire areas because they represent fast, very active energy. I was so excited when I learned this - I really dig appropriate use of animal prints...

I combined canvases using very simple design with more complex layouts to keep the overall composition balanced and not too busy. The zebra print adds visual texture and gives some organic interest to the very geometric nature of the other squares.

Here's another pic, to show how these canvases relate to the other components of the room.

Next, I'll embark on another series of nine using the same theme for a non-specific location. I'm also plotting for the health area of my home.

New Series: Mixin 'n Matchin Elements

It can be difficult to find enough wall space to accommodate large canvases. It's also pretty tricky to paint all encompassing feng shui solutions for the needs of a gazillion places I've never been.

These two constraints are the inspiration for a new painting series. All canvases will be 10" x 10". Each canvas will be designed with a particular element in mind - wood, fire, soil, water, or metal. The canvases can be used individually or grouped with others to create a perfect feng shui solution specifically for a particular location.

Of course, I will be guinea-pigging the idea in my own place :)

Here are the first few Illustrator sketches that I will turn into paintings:

The wall space I'm looking to fill with art is in the "reputation" area of my place according to the bagua. This is a fire area. Rose, yellow, and red are all fire colors and work with the existing color scheme of the room. Triangle is the key symbolic shape for fire, hence repeated throughout the designs. Metallics are good for me in general, so I've worked silver into the color pallet (this room could use a little more metal anyway :).

I've got a few new tricks up my sleeve too that I'll unveil when I post the completed installation!

Year of the Rabbit (yippee!) & what it means for YOUR animal...

Sooo - as many of you may know, the Chinese new year begins Feb 3. If you didn't know, now ya do :) I wanted to take this opportunity to share the potential forecast for your year, based on your feng shui animal. Keep in mind that we all have free will to use this information to make us aware of challenges, change them and/or use them to our benefit.

First off - credit where credit is due: Pam Kai Tollefson is the first Feng Shui master I ever spoke with. In fact, she's the one who connected me with my teacher, Laurie Pawli. This is a brief synopsis taken from several of Pam's masters and published in her newsletter.

You can read various reports on the internet but keep in mind that if you are born in mid January to mid February, you may not be the animal you think you are. (You may think you are a rat but you really are a pig, for example.) Consult a Chinese horoscope for the dates. 

 

Rabbits, this is your year! This means that it will be an important, possibly life changing year. Rabbits are known for being classy, sophisticated, well mannered, compassionate, sociable, creative, partner and peace seekers, conservative risk avoiders and perhaps the luckiest animal in the Chinese Zodiac.

This Rabbit year is going to be a better year than last year for everybody in general and the Rabbits (1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999) in particular. The metal rabbits of 1951 turn 60 throughout the year and have good money luck on their side. This makes everyone very happy because of all the twelve Chinese animal signs, we all know many rabbits. Rabbits are very prolific and they are everywhere. (1951 Rabbits make up a great percentage of my feng shui clients.) There are so many of you and you are used to being successful and lucky; this year won’t disappoint. Don’t completely ignore the old saying;

“Sitting in the year god’s seat, harm or disaster you will meet.”

Stay alert to danger but plan for a wonderful life changing year for you. All rabbits have many opportunities, just be careful to take care of yourselves health wise and tend to your close relationships.

Rabbit characteristics: Talented & articulate, affectionate, yet shy, seeks peace.

Dragons (1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000) have even more than their usual leadership potential and charm. As always, they should try to curb their confidence and pride. Watch out for stress, be health conscious and especially aware of food and drink consumption. Romance is promising.

Dragon characteristics: Eccentric, your life is complex, you have a passionate nature and abundant health.

 

The Snake (1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001) has a mixed money bag year. Many changes require that you be able to adapt to any situation. This transforming to fit the circumstance is usually easy for the charming snake to do. A new social life looks promising.

Snake characteristics: Wise & intense, tends to be beautiful, vain & high tempered. 

The Horse (1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002) has the potential for luck in career and the money that comes with it. Work hard to achieve the maximum results but don’t burn out. Romance is a highlight if the horses concentrate on the future, not the past.

Horse characteristics: Popular & attractive to opposite sex. Often ostentatious & impatient. You need people.

 

The Sheep (1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003) has a moderate year to start, but it improves steadily. By July they are ready for a new venture. Health is generally good. Those born in 1955 and 1979 could suffer consequences if they drink too much alcohol. Married couples need to keep the lines of communication open and free from another involvement.

Ram (sheep) characteristics: Elegant & creative, timid, prefer anonymity.

The Monkey (1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004) will have a better year than last year but it will take until almost July to be back on an even keel. Don’t lend money and keep on guard for backstabbers in career and business. Stay positive, don’t drink and watch what they eat to keep digestion sound. Romance is uneventful. Couples should avoid getting picky over insignificant matters.

Monkey characteristics: Very intelligent & able to influence people. Enthusiastic achiever, easily discouraged & confused.

The Rooster (1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005) will have to be on guard this year. The Rabbit year is the opposition year (Po Sui) for the Rooster. It happens every twelve years for every animal sign. Fortunately for the Rooster, it has some lucky stars to protect it. The year begins a bit shaky and is up and down until the fall season when opportunities in finance and business present themselves. Those born in 1969 will have stress at work. Be careful with money and how it is spent. Make wellness a priority and they will be fine. If open to it, there is the chance of an sensational love affair.

Rooster characteristics: A pioneer in spirit, devoted to work & quest after knowledge, often selfish & eccentric.

The Dog (1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006) has no obstacles in its way this year. Career and money can be even better with hard work. Dogs could change jobs or travel overseas, excel in academics or succeed in anything they do – if they do their homework and remain self disciplined. Make health a top priority to feel up to enjoying the relationship they have been seeking. They could find a life partner.

Dog characteristics: Loyal & honest, works well with others. Generous, yet stubborn, often selfish.

 

The Pig (1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007) will have some challenges and some opportunities in the Rabbit year. Career changes may seem dubious at first but will turn out better than expected if patient. By September money will more abundant. Health is okay as long as they get plenty of rest and sleep. Romance takes a backseat this year. If considering marriage, wait until next year.

Pig characteristics: Noble & chivalrous. Your friends will be life long, yet you are prone to impulsiveness.  

The Rat (1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008) has good career and financial opportunities this year. You may need to take a different direction than the one you have been working toward for the last two years, but if open minded and willing to diversify, Rats will make great gains. Lucrative prospects abound. Beware of over extending in work to avoid burn out. Sleep and exercise are very important. Romance is in the foreground and Rats could get married.

Rat characteristics: Born leaders, ambitious, honest, free spending, has many friends.

The Ox ( 1949, 1961, 1973,1985, 1997, 2009) should keep their shoulder to the plow and work for steady, but slow monetary progress. Don’t make waves or do anything risky to jeopardize your finances. Save money. Let romance take a pass until the mood improves. Be mellow and avoid quarrels with a partner.

Ox characteristics: Bright, patient & inspiring to others, you can be happy by yourself.

The Tiger’s year (1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010) is over and they should take a break and lay low. Hidden dangers lurk in every area – money, love, legal issues. Just bide your time. Think twice, act carefully and all will be fine.

Tiger characteristics: Aggressive, courageous, candid & sensitive.

Happy new year, everyone!!!