Series - For The Earth
The creative process is for me an act of contemplation. It is my hope that through this sensitive state of being I can be brought a little closer to understanding both the external and internal workings of organic forms, of which our own nature is a part. Carl Jung once wrote: "There is no difference in principle between organic and psychic growth. As a plant produces its flower so the psyche creates its symbols".
Fortunately, I have been able to live in close contact with nature, and like a child I am always in awe of the ever-evolving variations on the theme of life. It is here that my search begins. I love to study nature by saturating my senses with its myriad of beautiful forms. I realize, however, that in trying to understand these external forms one must go inside and beyond the seemingly hard and fast boundaries of each individual species, be it a one-celled plant or animal, a great sequoia, or a blue whale. What are the underlying processes that create and connect living forms in an intricate web of interrelationships? How does the environment support or hinder their growth?
Once removed from external reality, in my studio I come face to face with a blank piece of paper and many questions. It is at this stage of my search that patience and inner quiet are needed to allow my observations of nature and my imagination and intuitive feelings to guide me deeper into the organic processes. Like nature, pictures need time to grow.
In this series of pictures, the focus is on plants and their growth. I started with a dark point, the seed, and after a period of dormancy I began to see, hear, and feel the loving life-giving force that ignites the internal rhythms in all of nature, including us. These rhythms of color, light, and sound dance and, I feel, create a pattern of growth – a structure for a form. The final form comes to fruition only when the environmental conditions are right for supporting the underlying structure. During the process of creating these pictures, this vision expressed itself subconsciously and continually tried to communicate its message to me. In sharing these pictures, my hope is that they will also speak to you. The life-giving force, however, through an eternal interpenetrating movement, goes beyond individual creations to weave with its invisible spirit all living things in an intricate tapestry of life. I would like to close by expressing my deep concern for this tapestry of life on our planet. It is being destroyed at a devastating rate. This is due primarily to both our unconscious acts and our conscious greed. The rich and beautiful threads are giving way under the pressures of pollution, habitat destruction, and the loss of bio-diversity. We all ought to raise our consciousness; from then on, constructive actions will follow. The time is now to begin mending the tapestry of life on Earth. Ava Orphanoudakis
The creative process is for me an act of contemplation. It is my hope that through this sensitive state of being I can be brought a little closer to understanding both the external and internal workings of organic forms, of which our own nature is a part. Carl Jung once wrote: "There is no difference in principle between organic and psychic growth. As a plant produces its flower so the psyche creates its symbols".
Fortunately, I have been able to live in close contact with nature, and like a child I am always in awe of the ever-evolving variations on the theme of life. It is here that my search begins. I love to study nature by saturating my senses with its myriad of beautiful forms. I realize, however, that in trying to understand these external forms one must go inside and beyond the seemingly hard and fast boundaries of each individual species, be it a one-celled plant or animal, a great sequoia, or a blue whale. What are the underlying processes that create and connect living forms in an intricate web of interrelationships? How does the environment support or hinder their growth?
Once removed from external reality, in my studio I come face to face with a blank piece of paper and many questions. It is at this stage of my search that patience and inner quiet are needed to allow my observations of nature and my imagination and intuitive feelings to guide me deeper into the organic processes. Like nature, pictures need time to grow.
In this series of pictures, the focus is on plants and their growth. I started with a dark point, the seed, and after a period of dormancy I began to see, hear, and feel the loving life-giving force that ignites the internal rhythms in all of nature, including us. These rhythms of color, light, and sound dance and, I feel, create a pattern of growth – a structure for a form. The final form comes to fruition only when the environmental conditions are right for supporting the underlying structure. During the process of creating these pictures, this vision expressed itself subconsciously and continually tried to communicate its message to me. In sharing these pictures, my hope is that they will also speak to you.
The life-giving force, however, through an eternal interpenetrating movement, goes beyond individual creations to weave with its invisible spirit all living things in an intricate tapestry of life. I would like to close by expressing my deep concern for this tapestry of life on our planet. It is being destroyed at a devastating rate. This is due primarily to both our unconscious acts and our conscious greed. The rich and beautiful threads are giving way under the pressures of pollution, habitat destruction, and the loss of bio-diversity. We all ought to raise our consciousness; from then on, constructive actions will follow. The time is now to begin mending the tapestry of life on Earth.
Ava Orphanoudakis