An Artist's Process
In 1988 I visited Flash, and saw her new house for the first time.
There was a gigantic gnarled oak that had split, and from the fissure of
the two downward facing arcs of the limbs, a new shoot sprang, totally
directed at the sky, true to its course of light. It was so unlike the
meandering trunk from which it emerged. In the shade of the spreading
canopy was a pyramid supporting a large crystal. A metal chair was set
up directly under the peak.
“What’s this for?”, I asked.
“A place to focus,” Flash answered.
I sat for a while before leaving.
“What did you focus on?”, she asked later.
“My artwork,” I said.
I was newly sober, and fearful that I had severed my cosmic link to
the universe. Wherever would I get inspiration if not from alcohol and
dope?
“Oh, I forgot you were an artist,” Flash said. “I have this
project....”
After an excited discussion, I took the Lovers section home, and with
its return, started a long collaboration (over 500 miles and 4 years).
We began with the Major Arcana. I had done figure drawing for many years, and also drew on my history of T’ai Chi, which helped enormously
with the placement of the figures, especially the hands and feet. If
something was unclear, I would call, but mostly, I just took her words and
put them into pictures, then mailed them back. It was as if we spoke
two different languages, and understood each other perfectly. It pleased me that the images pleased Flash.
It was sometimes very intense while painting the cards. I would
submerge myself in the art of the culture, read the excerpt several times,
open myself to help from the universe, often from the character of the
card being painted, then begin. The Star, Tara, has a chant, which I
used for several days while painting. Kuan Yin is very helpful in stressful situations. Often, it was intuitive. One day I was very angry, and
wondered if I could work. I randomly chose Pele’s card, and in a burst
of energy the painting erupted. I was naive; Flash later told me that
was Pele’s energy.
When I painted Hippolyta dead (Ten of Swords), it turned out to be the
anniversary of my father’s death — another unconscious choice, or
rather a guidance of which I was not yet aware.
Morrigan was the final card — a very confident note on which to end,
as I felt I learned so much during this project. I saw how to break a
huge project into manageable segments. I saw I could complete something
I’d set my mind to. It was a wonderful experience to have a long term
project, and such a focus. Thank you.
Barbara Vogel
Key West, Florida
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