ReWind and Into the Future….

I’m back to connect with you, my art-loving community.  I hope you are more resilient and grateful after the experiences of the last 3 years… yes, it has been that long since I last sent you ‘art news’.

It has been a wild 3 years; it was about this time in 2020, when I sent my last artist post to you.  I’ll give you a rundown on what has happened in my life, then give you an overview of what I’ve been up to on the art scene.

Backtracking… I’m sure we all have a story of ‘the time of Covid’; I can’t say that my experience was horrible, compared to so many on the front lines, or experienced loss of loved ones, or those with long-term side effects.

In the autumn of 2019, I was feeling the urge to move out of Laramie; I’d ‘sold’ my house, went up to Eastern BC, Canada to find a home. I got caught in 2 major snowstorms (out and back), white-knuckled my way through that escapade. Upon return, the sale fell through, and so I decided to wait out the winter, and put my home up for sale come the Spring 2020. Well we know what March 2020 brought… So, I was in a holding pattern.

Since Covid prevented me from opening my yoga studio, I started to record yoga videos, keeping my yoga community supported.  This was a new adventure into the logistics of recording, editing, uploading to a YouTube channel and so much more. This has helped me in making art video’s; always a silver lining.

Come autumn of 2020, I received a phone call from a local woman, asking if I still wanted to sell my home.  I learned I could pass the border into Canada, since I was a returning citizen, with the required 14-day quarantine period.  Mid-Sept through end of December was a flurry of sorting, selling, giving away and packing.  I’m glad I’d weaned through several layers of accumulation of 27 years in Laramie prior, but it was still intense, and very emotional.  It wasn’t possible to do any real good-byes during those times, which made the transition more challenging.

December 30, 2020, I arrived in Kelowna, BC, Canada (south, central BC).  I spent a year there, with my son living with me, recording/selling yoga video packages; I had a ½ knee replacement in May 2021 and I spent a lot of time looking for a home.  Each day, home prices got higher, and the value lower; I simply couldn’t find a place I could afford, and since I had no credit in Canada (having been away for 30 years), didn’t qualify for a mortgage.  Several other experiences in my ‘home’ country, contributed to me deciding to move back to the USA.  I decided upon Inland PNW, and am now happily settled in Spokane, WA.

Almost 1 year to the day of leaving Laramie, WY, I arrived in Spokane; it was December 31, 2022.  I love the outdoors here; very accessible and a wide variety of hiking, biking, skiing opportunities.  This is a picture of my new Cross County play area on Mt. Spokane.  Because it is a bigger city, there are many options for creating community.  I’ve joined Meet Up groups for hiking, biking, spiritual gatherings, and attended/participated in many art activities: First Friday Art Walks, festivals, Big Inclusive art events with a local art advocacy group called Terrain.  It takes time to create community, but I am so grateful for the numerous opportunities to build connections.  I made a commitment to put the effort in, as I’m not getting any younger, and know community is essential to thriving.

 

During my time in Canada, I continued to make small mixed media art pieces; I didn’t have access to my encaustic (wax) supplies for the entire year of 2021.  All was packed in storage in Laramie, with most my belongings.  It also took an extra month for my belongings to arrive in Spokane (everyone was moving and hauling trucks were in short supply); then it took time to settle in. My son, Eugene, was still living with me, and I spent a lot of energy trying to get him on his feet with the supports he needs. He moved out December 1, 2022, and by the end of December, I had my recreation room converted to an art studio.  Since, I’ve been busy putting those little pieces onto bigger panel boards, creating a backdrop for each of the focal pieces.

I’ll show you one just example, to give you a sense of the direction my work is going. This is the central panel (10”x10”); I’d already put the wax base on before I left Laramie, then transferred the images, added beads and details with the wax hot pen, and gold foil, while in Kelowna.  I continue to use symbols that have similar meanings/intentions across many cultures and spiritual traditions.  In addition to the oft used insects, plants, and hands, I’ve been incorporating cosmic bodies from our solar system. As I attune to planetary energies through astrological studies, I discover how the heavens influence what is happening on Earth. I’m fascinated by this field of knowing.  This small panel, then became the central energy for the final work, which I recently completed here in Spokane.

The Triumph of Venus: The central square green panel holds symbols of triumph (ferns), death/resurrection (dung beetle, butterfly) and protection (hamsa hand). Above the waving ferns are the planets of Mars (left) and Venus (right), a duality of primordial energies. Mars is fiery, active, aggressive, the Lord of War, while Venus is soft, receptive and the Goddess of Love & Beauty. Both are essential players in the duality drama of Earth School. The sunny, glowing backdrop gives birth to dancing flowers, the realm of Venus, while the skies hold another Venus, at the apex of the 3 cosmic bodies. Flying in protection around her, are six crows; 6 is a number of victory, harmony. This new version of Venus at center stage, engages some of Mars’ action-oriented energies to focus on Earth preservation; She approaches life with a compassionate, loving vibration, albeit in a fiery way.

I hope you will revive your interest in my creative endeavors; I love the community I’ve created over the years with you included, and hope you enjoy the expressions of my heart and soul.

I welcome your comments and your updates; please, don’t be shy. We are all in this together.

Debbie Mathew

PS, I’d love it if you joined my more frequent (although not over the top) postings on Instagram.  Follow me at https://www.instagram.com/debbiemathewart/