A few months ago I received a very humbling honor. I was asked to be one of the artists to participate in the Arkansas Heart Ball. Compared to some, I am relatively a newbie to this world of being an "artist." And I have to admit, it has been very hard to call myself an artist.
I had to make the decision of whether to do that one day about 3 years ago when a painting of mine was chosen to hang in an exhibit sponsored by Mid-southern Watercolorists. At that point in time my 9 year old granddaughter questioned me, "Mimi, are you an artist?" I remember having to make a split-section decision at that moment. And I said, "Yes, Sweetheart, your Mimi is an artist."
I was astounded that those words had actually come out of my mouth and I almost felt guilty--UNTIL I started thinking about our Creator and the FACT that we are created in His Image. I think He has placed inside all of us the ability to create and the need to create. It takes many forms--the surgeon, the teacher, the architect, the cosmetologist, the quilter, the engineer, the baker, the homemaker, the blogger (ahem), the scrapbooker--I could go on and on--
So, here is a sneak preview of the canvas I painted to be auctioned to help raise money for heart research here in the state of Arkansas. It is rather large, 3' by 4', so this is just a small section of it.
I'll show you the whole canvas on September 15. The unveiling for the public is the 14th.
My inspiration for this piece:
When I started thinking about trying to paint a picture that would reflect the heart and what it does, my mind went way past just the pumping of blood. My thoughts went to a recent interview I heard with the pilot of the airliner that went down over the Hudson River a few months ago. He said, "After I walked the aisle of the plane and saw that everyone had gotten off safely, I felt the weight of the world lift from my heart." He didn't say "lift from my chest," he said, "lift from my heart." I thought that was interesting--a "cut to the chase, straight shooting, matter of fact talking" pilot had referred to "his heart."
I had been thinking about what all the heart does besides pump blood and I came up with seven words that symbolize the most important things (to me) that our hearts do. I chose seven because that is the number in scripture that symbolizes perfection. The words are love, laugh, remember, wonder, embrace, play, and believe.
Some of the vertical and horizontal lines of calligraphy are very precise but the large letters are painted very expressively--once again symbolizing the purposes of the heart but also trying to capture the emotions and rhythms of the heart.
No other organ of the body embodies these personal characteristics such as the heart. That God could and did create it to be a physical and emotional entity is once again proof of His ingenuity, creativeness, power and love.
Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Proverbs 4:23
