“Your light is more magnificent than sunrise or sunset” — Rumi
“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm,
but to add color to my sunset sky.” ― Rabindranath Tagore
Jo, the Beautiful Irish Woman
Gustave Courbet
Oil on canvas (1866)
"This canvas celebrates Gustave Courbet’s feeling for his subject Jo Hiffernan, whom he affectionately called “the beautiful Irish woman.” He painted the portrait shortly after meeting Hiffernan, the studio model and mistress of the American painter James McNeill Whistler, during the summer of 1865. As the composition was incredibly popular with Courbet’s middle-class patrons, he painted four almost identical versions around 1866, including this one. He kept one of the portraits until his death, making copies from it upon request."
Song of the Reed
~Rumi~
Listen to the story told by the reed,
of being separated.
“Since I was cut from the reedbed,
I have made this crying sound.
Anyone apart from someone he loves
understands what I say.
Anyone pulled from a source
longs to go back.
At any gathering I am there,
mingling in the laughing and grieving,
a friend to each, but few
will hear the secrets hidden
within the notes. No ears for that.
Body flowing out of spirit,
spirit up from body: no concealing
that mixing. But it’s not given us
to see the soul. The reed flute
is fire, not wind. Be that empty.”
Hear the love fire tangled
in the reed notes, as bewilderment
melts into wine. The reed is a friend
to all who want the fabric torn
and drawn away. The reed is hurt
and salve combining. Intimacy
and longing for intimacy, one
song. A disastrous surrender
and a fine love, together. The one
who secretly hears this is senseless.
A tongue has one customer, the ear.
A sugarcane flute has such effect
because it was able to make sugar
in the reedbed. The sound it makes
is for everyone. Days full of wanting,
let them go by without worrying
that they do. Stay where you are
inside such a pure, hollow note.
Every thirst gets satisfied except
that of these fish, the mystics,
who swim a vast ocean of grace
still somehow longing for it!
No one lives in that without
being nourished every day.
But if someone doesn’t want to hear
the song of the reed flute,
it’s best to cut conversation
short, say good-bye, and leave.
Yoruba Peoples Sculpture, Nigeria
Elaborately carved bowls such as this one were receptacles for the sixteen
palm nuts and other equipment used during the ifá divination oracle.
"Ife ( pronounced ee-feh) is today regarded as the spiritual heartland of the Yoruba people living in Nigeria, the Republic of Benin and their many descendants around the world. It is rightly regarded as the birthplace of some of the highest achievements of African art and culture, combining technical accomplishment with strong aesthetic appeal. From the 12th to the 15th centuries, Ife flourished as a powerful, cosmopolitan and wealthy city-state in West Africa, in what is now modern Nigeria. It was an influential centre of trade connected to extensive local and long-distance trade networks which enabled the region to prosper."
Madonna and Child
Giovanni Bellini
Oil on canvas, transferred from wood panel
"Behind a marbelized parapet, a seated, three-quarter length female figure (the Virgin Mary) holds a naked child (Christ). The Virgin Mary wears a white veil over her head and around her neck, and an aquamarine robe and mantel. The Christ child holds his left hand at his chin; his right arm is bent at the elbow. In the distance, behind the Christ child head, is a fortress with a central tower set upon a steep hill. In the right background is a vista of blue mountains. A narrow billowing cloud extends across the sky. Giovanni Bellini was the greatest painter of the late 15th century in Venice, where oil paint first began to replace tempera as a favored medium for artists. With the richer more varied effects of oil combined with pigments, Bellini was able to convey a greater sense of naturalism and atmospheric unity and to take full advantage of light to express emotion. In this Madonna and Child, Bellini created a golden light that unites the looming figures of the Madonna and Child, thrust toward the spectator's space. The tower above the Child's head may refer to the 18th Psalm, "The Lord is my rock and my fortress, and my deliverer… and my high tower," but the site has yet to be identified."
The Lock of Saint-Mammès
Alfred Sisley
"Horizontal in format, this landscape features a view of a waterway populated by several barges. The foreground is entirely comprised of water, while the middle ground is occupied by an embankment and low lavender-hued wall that runs the length of the canvas. Small figures can be seen on the boats as well as the embankment. Three houses can be seen on the left side of the middle ground, with green trees visible behind multiple points of the wall. A hazy blue sky occupies most of the top half of the composition. The brushwork is short and choppy, and can be seen throughout the picture’s surface. The overall aesthetic is sketch-like, with unpainted or thinly painted areas in the sky suggesting atmosphere and transparent clouds.
The best quote for this theme is “my favorite place is in the arms of a loved one”, but Powell Gardens in the photo above is close. Especially when spring is blooming with azaleas, crocus, daffodils, forsythia, hyacinth, peonies, quince, dogwoods, redbuds, magnolias, tulips, and wisteria.
Later in the season there’s Unity Village's rose garden where there’s an abundance and variety of roses amongst the fountains and Mediterranean architecture. Another favorite.
Figure et profil
Pablo Picasso
"Another interesting surrealist painting is Figure et profil that left a hint of autobiographical note. How many faces can you see? I see three: one on the left hand side, beside the window; another is the geometrical white figure itself; and the last is the alien – looking black outline – respectively representing Picasso’s progression from classical drawing in early years, then Cubism, and Surrealism later." [Source]
Let us fall in love again
and scatter gold dust all over the world.
Let us become a new spring
and feel the breeze drift in the heavens’ scent.
Let us dress the earth in green,
and like the sap of a young tree
let the grace from within sustain us.
Let us carve gems out of our stony hearts
and let them light our path to Love.
The glance of Love is crystal clear
and we are blessed by its light.
~Rumi
Maverick Mist 