Aaron Paquette Journal

War Paint - New Works by Aaron Paquette

2011-09-17T20:22:00.000-06:00

War Paint

An exhibition of new works by

Aaron Paquette

Opening Reception on Saturday, October 1, 2011

with the artist in attendance

from 2pm - 4pm

Exhibition continues to October 13

How long have we been at war? How long have we been trying to build these bridges between us? Between cultures, economies, sorrows? How long have we painted masks on our faces, bright colours belying dangerous times?Too, too long.Come stand with me. I live where the war is over. I have painted it. I have painted it so we can see the future. I have painted the beautiful places where we can live instead of dying on the terrible fields of where we have been. Come lay down your burdens and stay awhile, here where you don’t have to be anyone but your self.Take off your masks. It’s safe here, and you are loved. My War Paint is off.

Thunderbird Woman

36" x 48"

Mixed Media on Canvas

We hear the Thunderbird in the spring time, calling to us from across the plains, telling us it's time to begin anew. Things we've set aside or neglected, relationships gone stale with hurt silence, or dropping the ball in caring for ourselves or for our community. The things that make us human and give us the chance to become great, these are the things Thunderbird calls out to remind us of. "Rise up! Stand! Speak and do! The time for sleeping is over!" This past spring and summer the nights were filled the call - insistent, refusing to be ignored. Put away the keyboards and screens, resist the call of apathy and strike that lightning inside of ourselves, let the spark of action fill us. Though it always burns right at first it soon becomes a cherished flame. One day we will wake up and it will be our last day on earth. Before then, let's heed the reminder and live larger than we dreamed before. Let's listen to the Thunderbird Woman.

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Come out to meet award nominated First Nations Metis Artist - Aaron Paquette

www.bearclawgallery.com

www.aaronpaquette.net

Bearclaw Gallery is located at:

10403 - 124st

Edmonton, AB

780.482.1204

info@bearclawgallery.com

I'm Going to Quit This Blog - and a surprise

2011-04-09T03:24:00.009-06:00

Hello my friend!

You've followed me at this blog and I'm grateful for it, but it's time for me to hang up my hat, or at least slow down here somewhat.

All my archives will remain, but don't worry! I'm not going to stop creating, posting, sharing...in fact I'll be doing it even more and I really hope you'll join me on the ride!

I have a new website up (finally!) at: aaronpaquette.net

There may be a few kinks & quirks here and there but it seems to work pretty good.

Did you think that was the surprise?

Because there's more!

The surprise is that I've been working away at a novel called Lightfinder. It should be finished by mid May and I'll need your help to figure a couple things out (but I'll get back to you when we get to that point).

In the meantime, check out my new site and if you click on the big link for the book you'll see a little hidden Easter Egg. I know, I know... Easter isn't for a little while yet, but it's the right month, anyway.

:)

Please feel free to leave me your comments, let me know what you think and what you'd like to see more of at the site. I'll have the comments open on my facebook page:

AaronPaquetteArt

So join in on the discussion.

In the meantime, browse around, buy a print, a t-shirt, or follow the links for an original art piece. I know I'd appreciate it, and I hope you'll love whatever you choose!

Yours, after a week of 18 hour days,

Aaron

ps. for those interested, I'll be sharing more "behind the scenes" stuff on art creation, creativity in general, and so on, so make sure to bookmark the site and I'll do my best to share some of the things I've learned these past few decades. Also, always let me know what you'd like to know more of. I really want to help and the best way to do that is to know what it is you need. :)

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iPad 2 - Creation Tool

2011-03-26T17:36:00.005-06:00

Well, I finally did it. I broke down and got the iPad 2. It's amazing. I've seen it in stores, I've clicked the little icons, but something about owning one, customizing it, making it your very own.

That's powerful.

So of course, one of the first things I did was draw.

Here it is:

What I've found is that contrary to what I've been hearing, I'm actually not that interested in watching movies or YouTube, I'm just right in there wanting to create, create, create! The sketch above was rendered in SketchBook Pro.

More to come.

Gretel Parker - Her First Book!

2011-03-22T13:13:00.006-06:00

I have an online artist friend named Gretel Parker. We ran into each other (digitally, at least) many years ago and have been supportive fans of each other the whole time. I am so very proud of her as she has just released her first book, "Mrs. Mouse's Cupcakes, a Puddletown Tale".

If you are not familiar with Gretel Parker's artwork, prepare yourself for whimsy and delight. Her work has never failed to make me smile.

And I think you'll smile, too!

Congratulations, Gretel and here's to more and more Puddletown Tales to come until we are all sick of just how cute and sweet and funny it all is! Until then, go buy her book!!

All You Amazing People!

2011-03-14T21:18:00.003-06:00

I want to ask you something.

Over the years I've been asked to give personal art lessons. Instead I've been going to schools, doing workshops, and using my art as both a teaching tool and as a way to promote cooperation in communities. For me art has not just been about painting a picture, but something I feel is far more important.

Art has been my path to reach a deeper understanding of what it takes to be successful both professionally and personally.

I've had my highs and lows and learned A LOT along the way and nothing gets me more excited and to feel more in purpose with my life than to share these things.

My question is simple:

Would this be something you'd be interested in hearing about? Would it be of value if I were to put together the most important things I've learned about art and provide them to you?

I'm talking about people with no skills who are just starting out.

I'm also talking about artists who are further along and want to learn the final keys that I believe would work for anyone to take their work to the next level.

And even more important I'm talking about learning powerful ways of thinking about life and creativity that let you leave your troubles behind and open up to all the wayyy more awesome things in store for you!

Basically, I'm talking about a few simple steps that will improve your art, your career and your life.

I have decades of experience and feel like I really want to share it on a larger stage than I have been.

So what would you like to learn? What would be the biggest questions you have and the most important things you've always wanted to get a handle on or get better at? Please leave a comment below to let me know. I want to create something special that will really help people.

Thanks again and I look forward to hearing from you.

Aaron

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Creative Secrets - Episode 1 - Test Episode

2011-02-12T01:11:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is, my experimental first attempt at a vlog. Bear with me as I'm learning the ropes, but please do share this with friends, click the old 'thumbs up' icon under the video on the YouTube page and throw it around in Facebook while you're at it!

If this generates enough interest, I'll go ahead with planning out more episodes.

One thing I've learned: Maybe not so much the filming under yellow light.

And remember: Feedback would be awesome and appreciated!

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Northern Pastoral

2011-02-07T11:22:00.004-07:00

Home
16" x 24"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

This is a painting for my wife's sister. Included are her husband, their little baby and their even littler pup. She is beckoning from the distance and above it all is the spirit of their grandfather, a happy man in life, and even more satisfied now seeing how amazing his grandchildren have become. There is sweetgrass burning at the bottom of the painting in constant thanks, prayer and purification.

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Sci Fi Friday

2011-02-04T12:38:00.003-07:00

Somehow I've Always Known
9" x 12"
Mixed Media
on Watercolour Paper
2011

I grew up in the 80's.

That means that my chances of being a kid completely obsessed with Star Wars was pretty good. And obsessed I was.

My older brother had an 8mm camera and he and his friend used to make stop motion movies recreating the battle scenes on Hoth, strafing missions, etc.

My younger brother had all the toys. All of Them.

For me, the mythology, the archetypes...they got mixed in with every other belief system I was exposed to.

And so we have this painting. I've always wanted to do my own interpretation of classic Star Wars characters but there just didn't seem to be the time. I'm glad I finally got around to it.

Here we see the Princess Leia. She is clothed in green and rather than the young virginal damsel in distress, I have chosen to portray her as someone more wise, more in keeping with a woman born with the genetic disposition to feel the energy of all living things. She is in the midst of a waking dream which she will not remember on a conscious level, but will instead become an instinctive knowing. As events unfold, they will seem destined, as though she had been there before.

Instead of the brassy, 70's child Carrie Fisher portrayed, I have given her a wisdom borne of life under an autocratic thumb, always living with one face in public, but concealing a deep, rich inner life filled with her own thoughts and aspirations, bearing the fate of millions upon her skill at navigating between two worlds.

One day in the future she will receive news that will change the course of an already tumultuous life and rather than balk at it or attempt to explain it away she will state quietly and simply, "I know. Somehow I've always known."

However, let's keep in mind she will also utter such nuggets as, "I'd just as soon kiss a Wookie," but I digress.

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Sketchy!

2011-02-03T15:19:00.004-07:00

Mama - In Progress
Ink and Graphite on Paper

Today I thought I'd share with you a work in progress. I draw, but rarely consider the drawings a finished work of art. I'm trying to overcome that self imposed bias. I'm thinking about adding a few washes of colour to this piece once the inking is complete.

In working on a few pieces like this lately Ive found I've had to let go of the crutch of colour and paint (which it really can become!) and rely on the concept, the learned skill of a steady hand and deliberate mark making. I've had to allow my idea to be stripped bare of it's multi-hued clothing and stand on it's own.

Creating art tends to draw my focus inward and I inevitably begin asking what other crutches I'm using in life, what other ways am I "dressing things up" so that I don't have to look at the stark truth.

Am I being honest enough? Am I being open enough?

It's in the the places we feel most vulnerable that we have the opportunity for the most growth so I welcome the questions. And, just like getting down to work on a drawing, I can get down to work on being more loving, supportive and giving to those around me, but even more importantly, to myself.

That's right! All the good qualities you want to share with other people, just heap them onto yourself. Give yourself patience, time, love, motivation and ALL that awesome good stuff.

If you're selfish with yourself, how can you be generous with others? Well, let's be honest- it all starts with you. Be healthy, happy, joyful and super cool. Then spread it around like Nutella.

Can you dig it?

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Mist on the Mountainside

2011-02-02T13:10:00.003-07:00

Mist on the Mountainside
Digital (iPhone + Brushes App)
2010

Here's a quick piece I created on my iPhone using the Brushes App. I'm actually a closet watercolourist but still working on my skills. I found the interface easy to use but the screen 'real estate' far too small. This is what would prompt me toward an iPad, creating quick sketches in full colour any time any place.

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I love the mountains. When I was younger I would get an overpowering urge to return. We lived hours away on the plains and I would squint at the clouds on the horizon, imagining them to be a wall of stone and valley. As I grew older I was able to make my way there on my own, even to the extent of making the choice of living under their shadow, training as a goldsmith in the Waterton Valley.

I saw the many and sudden changes in the weather, the shifts from rain to sunshine and then to snow, all in a day.

I walked seldom used trails, scaling higher and higher until there were no more trees, just me, the wind, and the eagle.

I explored the valley depths, the secret pools and whispering streams. Clean, cold water flowing silkily over moss covered rocks.

I spoke with the animals, with a distant wolf, the bear, a cougar up in a tree who considered me for lunch but for reasons unknown changed menu plans. The birds were my constant companions and the fragile forest floor was home to the most exquisite, delicate flowers.

In the years that have passed, I see now that the mountains were my cure for a deep and aching pain that left untreated would have lead to insanity. They took my anxiety, fears and hurt away from me and gave me in turn a solid place to return to in my life, my thoughts, and my dreams.

I still return for short periods of time at least once a year. Where others see recreation, I see the place where I was wild, the place where I left behind the world and became a child of the forest. I see my place of healing and the fields of my awakening.

I learned that I can control nothing, manage nothing, save for myself. I learned I have a choice and that life is nothing but choices. I learned about laziness, excuses, blindness. I learned that the poison of one life can be passed to new, innocent lives and that this poison really can be drawn out of us.

We are all poisoned before we have a chance to choose, just as our parents were and their parents were. This poison can cause us to behave in irrational, desperate ways. Until we accept this we'll live by the will of the poison, and not by our own will.

Accept it and the healing already starts to happen.

The Rocky Mountains drew out my poison and gave me the gift of thinking on my own, of making decisions that were healthy, and giving me patience in the face of other people's poison.

We can all heal. And then we can heal all.

The Mist on the Mountainside is an expression of my gratitude and humility before nature. It represents where I was, where I went and where I am going. Those mountains clad and caressed by the ethereal clouds are the safeguards of my soul.

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More from the archives

2011-02-01T14:54:00.002-07:00

Life Seeks It's Reflection
Mixed Media on Canvas
2008

Here is a little more from my conversation with my sons and wife.

In talking about miracles - and life in the universe - the question came up as it always will: Why? What's it all for? Is God a guy with a beard?

Well, I can't answer these questions for anyone. The search for the answers is what can come to define the shape of your life, so I leave that entirely up to you. All I know is what I know.

In my own meditations and dreaming I have found that it is all a beautiful, timeless weave, everything touches everything eventually. We are a fabric, a song.

We are life's longing for itself, the universe seeking it's own reflection. I look at you and I see the spark of the divine in you. I see that you are not only a part of creation, you are creation fulfilled. You are the dreaming creator. So am I. So is everyone and everything. Behind the mask of our physical forms lies the underlying and awesome truth: we are all the same.

When you look down past molecules, past electrons, past quarks, and so on, you come to it. The place where there is nothing. A vast emptiness. It is neither cold, nor warm. Neither dark nor light. It is the place where the dream of existence originates.

There is no dichotomy or good or evil or right or wrong. All is one with no judgments.

Where do our prayers go? Where does our meditation take us? Could it be that place where nothing is written, where all things are possible?

Could there have been nothing and so at the same time everything?

Could it be that we are the mind of the universe? That we are it's senses? That if that is so, then perhaps one day we will know the slow burning thoughts of a star, the great song of a galaxy and witness the dance of a trillion souls in endless variety, played out against this cosmic playground.

But for now it's enough to look at a leaf, breathe in the air, feel the beating of your own heart. For now, listen to the silence, for it too is a song. Watch a mote of dust spinning through the air, pushed by nothing but the warmth of the sun through a windowpane. You are watching an entire reality float by in the late afternoon light.

For now breathe and let love be your truth. It's enough. Indeed, it's all there is.

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From the Archives

2011-01-31T21:30:00.004-07:00

The Old Saint
Mixed Media on Canvas
2009

I painted this last year for a friend who really loves art, collects art and is just a good all round guy.

It's an old spiritual man, a saint, listening to the whisperings of the spirits of the land. In Old Europe, Christianity was pretty much the only option for spiritual expression, so I really respect these old saints who tried to do what good they were able in their time. They were deep thinkers, clear writers, and really did their best to peer past the world we take for granted to understand the wonder that connects it all.

In front of him lies an illuminated manuscript. As Stephen King has said, telepathy exists and we call it books. We can literally read the minds of those who wrote their thoughts out for us.

I believe everyone has something to offer. The problem is we think we have to be experts or create the Most Amazing Thing Ever! If everyone who put themselves out there thought that, we'd live in a truly desolate creative landscape.

Whatever you have to give, give it now. There's no better day to offer your gift than today, and whether the audience is great or small doesn't matter. The truth is, whatever you do will pass through the years, through the generations and one day just might be the thing that changes someone's life. We can never know what it will be or when it will happen.

So just create!

Offer what you can.

And let it go.

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Miracles

2011-01-30T15:43:00.003-07:00

Moon Song
9" x 6"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

Go into the wild. Don't let yourself be trapped by city lights like a deer in the middle of the road. Get out, get away, get free.

If we are separated from the land for too long we start to lose our true, wild selves in gray and steel. We lose our connection to the earth. That means that we lose our connection to nature and each other.

My sons asked if miracles happen.

We are surrounded by miracles!

In this endless universe we are the only conscious life we have ever known. This planet is a rare and precious thing, the only living planet we have seen! With telescopes we cast farther and farther, looking for a duplicate, a sister, to this Mother Earth.

There is none that we know of.

Every breath we take, every seed that grows, every new life - all are miracles.

Never doubt that you are special. Because we are each of us a part of billions we forget it. We forget because no one reminds us. I will remind you.

I will remind you that you are worth everything that has happened. Billions of years of stars and dust, lives lived, children born, all to make you. You are a gift.

You are a gift and have been given a gift so precious it only exists here on earth: life!

Life that knows it's alive!

We are the children of the universe, you and I. We are all connected.

Go into the wild. Press your bare feet against the soil and feel the heartbeat of your loving mother who provided such a special place for you to live. Remember how beautiful it all is. Forget dogma, forget hate, forget tribe and nation. Return to the wild and remember that we are a family and this is our home.

The lone wolf will return to it's pack. You have been alone too long. Come back to your family.

Come back.

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Revealed

2011-01-28T14:39:00.002-07:00

By Fire and Storm Transformed
18" x 36"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

This piece is a commission for the Eagle Feather Gallery in Victoria, BC. It's from a personal story of someone who was touched by lightning. I thought about this painting for a very long time, hoping to find the right balance between the drama such an event would hold with the aftereffect it would have on someone's life.

I hope they enjoy it as much as I loved creating it.

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Sneak Peek

2011-01-27T18:28:00.005-07:00

Here's a sneak peek of a piece I'm shipping off to the Eagle Feather Gallery in Victoria (I have a link for them on the sidebar). I don't normally go in for commissions as they tend to take me a very long time. This has to do with the fact that I'm not an art churning machine. Most of my work is a months long process. Add to that the desire to "get it right" and this can stretch out to half a year or even longer.

The only time it doesn't apply is when it's for a dear friend or family member and all the pressure is off.

But I'm very proud of this one and I hope whoever it's going to loves it as much as I do.

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You can't hit a target you can't see

2011-01-27T14:05:00.002-07:00

Buffalo Woman
16" x 20"
Mixed Media on Art Board
2010

Sometimes I work with schools and kids and the message I try to leave is to have actual achievable goals. After you have a few achievable short term goals, then dream bigger than big. Dream ridiculously impossible stuff.

If you aim for the impossible, what you determine to be achievable changes and magnifies exponentially. You get way more out of life than you ever thought possible. If you look for average or normal, if you try to fit in with everyone else your life will be, well, normal. And that's not such a bad thing if it makes you happy. What I would suggest is that your life can be something truly special. You can think different, think larger, more encompassing. Make travel, adventure, service, and pure joy your every day experience. We have one shot at it, so why not go all the way?

Apply the miracle of your mind and the beauty of your heart to your life and see what the Creator can make happen.

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For My Wife When We're Apart -part2

2011-01-26T22:12:00.004-07:00

Gateway of the Sun
9" x 12"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

I will fly to that star
Wings fall apart in the distance
Falling
Through to you
My gateway of the sun

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For My Wife When We're Apart -part1

2011-01-26T17:24:00.004-07:00

Star Traveller
9" x 12"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

Travel to me through the stars
Send only your love
So you may find me
My heart is in a wide blue ocean
Waiting for your return

A Gift to Honor Survivors. All Surviviors

2011-01-22T21:58:00.004-07:00

Returning Home
30" x 40"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

I'm allowing free full sized download of this image. For those who need it you are welcome to it. Click here.

If you like any of my other work to purchase, it would be appreciated but is absolutely not necessary. This is my gift and now it's yours. Here's why:

This was painted for the survivors of the Canadian Residential School experience. For those who don't know, it was government policy to "kill the Indian" in children by taking them forcibly from their homes and transporting them to far away schools. These Schools were run primarily by religious organizations and many of the children were physically and sexually abused. They were forbidden to speak their own language and at the end of their experience were broken people with many unresolved emotional scars. My grandmother was one of them. This policy ended in the 1990's. Not the 1890's. The 1990's.

Every First Nations (Native) family has someone who was subjected to this purposeful abuse and the long ranging results are alcoholism, drug abuse, perpetuation of the abuse they suffered on the next generation, mental illness and so on.

Sometimes white society in Canada gets frustrated at the repetition of these facts. I guess it's a sort of "blame the victim" mentality and they wish Aboriginal people would just get over it. Of course, it is my most sincere wish that one day First Nations people heal and do get over the abuse.

But something that took hundreds of years to mess up probably won't be fixed overnight. It will take generations, and that's just the simple, unvarnished truth. White society should be outraged at their government. Locking someone in a room and allowing them to be molested by a man or woman of god for ten years might take more than an apology to make all right.

Anyway, it's kind of depressing information, I agree, so I'll leave you with the write up I created for this work.

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The idea for this painting was to communicate safety, security, a return to tradition and traditional teachings. In essence, it was to be about healing. I considered the challenge it represented and in an instant this image appeared to me. A tipi lit from within, offering sanctuary against winter’s chill. The warmth is so overpowering that it spills out through the skin, much like the glow of a person who has found a truth and lives by it, their own personal light shining out into the world offering hope to everyone. And better yet, there is a community here. No one is alone. In every home is a family, laughing, playing, dancing or praying. This is a good place to be.

Above the still and silent night hangs a full moon, lighting the way for travelers who are still out in the hills, showing them the way back to hearth and comfort. They carry burdens but will be able to put them down when their lonely journey ends. Watching over it all are the Aurora Borealis, our Northern Lights. Swaying, shining, the light of those who have gone before - our grandmothers and grandfathers - are holding hands, keeping the beat of the Round Dance. We watch this beautiful dance and are reminded of the old ways, the old teachings. We are reminded of our connection to heaven and earth, past and future. We are reminded to live here and now, in each other’s hearts.

Though the journey seems far, we are never alone. The spirits of the land surround us, the spirits of the sky watch over us, and the Great Spirit, our Creator, leads us to our greatest happiness. It’s hard to believe it when we are alone in the wilderness, but come home, be safe, be warm. Come home and rest. Come home at last, and heal.

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With thanks to Honor Walk: Residential School Healing

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From the Collection of the Artist

2011-01-21T15:28:00.006-07:00

Caleoni
14" x 18"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

This was painted half in Hawaii and half in Canada. It was my first time being overseas and the experience of Oahu really touched me. My time there was very special for me and I came to understand something amazing. When I first arrived, I was struck by the sheer humidity of the air, the gentle feeling on my skin. As the days passed and I walked in the valleys and along the beaches, as I swam and soaked in the sun, I began to see the spirit of the land, the energy. I saw the underlying currents of the winds, the water, the rock and soil. The entire island came alive under my feet!

I couldn't delay. I bought paints, canvasses, supplies and sat in the hotel room every evening, painting away, the song of the island birds coming in through the vast windows.

I felt like a Black feathered Corvid out of my element and yet completely at home. A stranger in a strange and welcoming land.

My wife and I were talking about children, the possibility of a daughter. In that place of renewal and peace I imagined the child of our dreams, perhaps not this physical form represented, but I hope it captured the spiritual essence of what that child might be.

Since that time we have settled in at home and we are expecting a son. Perhaps that daughter is in the future, but for now, just knowing that a new little life is on it's way, feeling him dance and kick in her belly, fills me with a wonderful joy.

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Dull drums decline

2011-01-20T20:39:00.003-07:00

Fleur-ish
Chalk Pastel on Paper
12"x 16"
2011

I know spring is months away, but I feel like I'm waking up a little early. I've been laying fallow for the past six weeks or so, seemingly unable to do anything art related. Create, ship, whatever. This week has seen a rejuvenation. I'm ready again.

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A New World Awakens

2011-01-19T15:19:00.002-07:00

Seventh Fire
12" x 16"
Oil Pastel, Gold Leaf
on Paper
2011

Endless fields of snow. Cold with no relief. A darkness that weighs heavy and long. There are times in our lives when it feels as though everything we touch turns to dust and there is nothing good that is lasting and true. W all have our times of despair, where hope can find no foothold.

Then for no reason we can ever truly explain something changes. A spark lights up inside and re-ignites the fire of our vision, the heat that fuels our heart. We find that not only are we alive but we are strong. We are bright. We are perfect beings and the beauty of our souls light up the night like the sun.

We are the Seventh Fire and we are strong.

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A Prayer

2011-01-18T23:54:00.006-07:00

Thunderherd
28" x 22"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

Where are my brothers?
Where is the thunder?
Where is the passing storm
that leaves destruction and new life
in it's wake?

They are gone
They are gone
Into the bosom of the Mother
Into the Mountain
They are gone

They will return

Snow Snow Snow

2011-01-17T14:24:00.003-07:00

Boreal Morning
12" x 16"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

Life in the North is a different kind of thing. Where I am, we are just on the verge of the Great White Expanse. In my journeys up to the Northwest Territories and throughout Northern Alberta there is one thing I've come to understand and appreciate.

They make them different up here. Like a Raven we'll caw and complain but in the end, we get to work. We live through the mountains of snow and ice, we help dig out our neighbours, we still do our jobs and take care of our families.

Sometimes we'll get that far away look, that thousand yard stare, and everyone who lives here knows what it's like to get that need to go, to leave to walk away into the wilderness and never come back. I think it's the balance we have to strike between our animal nature and the demands of a modern life.

Yes, it's cold, people die of exposure, tips of ears or fingers can freeze away if you get caught in it, but it's also our blessing. We don't flood, we don't shake, we just freeze. And the spring always comes. Is it possible that one day, after we've wrecked it enough that it will all change? Of course. Maybe one year it will freeze and it will stay frozen. It's happened before to this earth of ours, and it can happen again.

So we do what we must. We recycle, we eat less, we waste less. or at least we try. Will it be enough?

This vast wilderness is our home, and looking out at the mountains of snow I feel a soft calm. I don't know how, I don't know why, but I know without a doubt that everything will be fine. We may have our long dark night, but out of the dawn we'll see the distance, the puff of breath in the cold air, and at last the sunrise.

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They Will Return

2011-01-14T13:17:00.002-07:00

Sleeping Buffalo (Tunnel Mountain)
12" x 16"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

This mountain can be found in Banff National Park - Alberta, Canada.

It's mostly known by another name: Tunnel Mountain

The story goes that when the buffalo where decimated by the newcomers, Mother Earth had compassion on the once great herds and took the remaining free buffalo and led them to the mountains. There she opened a way for them, allowing them to pass through into safety, and there they sleep, waiting for the day when they can roam free once again.

The mountain itself looks like a buffalo at rest and legend has it that when the mountain starts to move, the mighty herds will return to spread their thunder once again.

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Moon Shadows and Stuff

2011-01-11T15:14:00.004-07:00

Solstice in the New World
18" x 24"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

This past December saw the Winter Solstice arrive with a bang: a full lunar eclipse. Here in Western Canada, it began before midnight and ended in the early morning hours. I stayed up to watch the event unfold, as did many others. We are far removed from the days when such phenomena were frightening and unexplained and that can lead us into a sense that such events are unimportant.

Just because we can explain a thing scientifically, however, does not mean that we understand it or that it is simply another event of slight interest only because it is remarked on by a few people on either side of the scientific or spiritual fringe.

In other words: just because you are not aware of the importance of an event doesn't mean it won't affect your life!

We live in a time where an astounding number of people are awakening to their own existence and seeing that there is a curable madness inherent in it. The sheer waste we produce, both physically and emotionally is changing the face of the planet. This solstice marks that awareness and even better, the will to do something about it.

Some people still believe that forcing others to their viewpoint will make for a better world for our children's children. Some people despair that nothing can be done anyway, so why get worked up about it? But some change themselves.

That's it. Some people change themselves.

It's really that simple. Behind all the fears, illusions, and defeats is one simple truth: to change the world, change yourself.

Speak more gently, speak your truth more clearly. Act in ways that are in keeping with your values. Like it or not, we are all responsible for the fate of our planet and for each other. We are all one tribe, one people, and turning our eyes away from the suffering our privileged lifestyles cause to our family in poorer countries only harms ourselves.

Be aware. That's how you change. Changing isn't a process of fighting yourself, of straining and stressing, it's simply awareness. Be aware and the change will come as naturally as breathing.

Be honest. Be aware.

As the Sun, Earth and moon aligned, so too can our thoughts, words and actions.

As the Solstice marked the end of the darkness, and as it was broken with the moon slipping out from shadow into light, so too can our lives be illuminated by the gift of awareness.

Solstice in the New World.

Pretty cool, huh?

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Come See Some Art!

2010-12-04T09:38:00.006-07:00

Insightful Mind
11" x 13"
Mixed Media on Paper
2010

We are so used to looking outward, outward. As if the world existed somewhere beyond us, at arms length. This isn't a failing, it's a quirk of our physical inheritance and a necessary one. Part of growing is to know that the world outside ourselves is just one part of the whole. When we turn the inward eye, in meditation, creation, and silence, we see that not only do we contain the whole world, but stars, galaxies - an entire universe!- inside of us.

And so does every person alive. So do the plants and animals that surround us. So does this loving planet and the giving sun.

We are all part of a fractal existence, the part being the whole, the whole playing a part. How can we not honour everyone and everything that crosses the path of our awareness when we know this? Turn that inward eye, access that quiet place, learn your connection to others.

Allow the In Sight Full mind.

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If you are in Edmonton today and looking for something to do, come by the Bearclaw Gallery this afternoon. We'll chat a bit and you can see some great art. It's a group show, so there will be a lot to see and explore!

Bearclaw Gallery
10403-124 Street
(780) 482-1204

New Work to Share

2010-12-02T23:36:00.004-07:00

Spider Grandmother Connects Us All
24" x 36"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2010

Spider Woman, or Spider Grandmother is most well known and seems to find her origin among the Pueblo or Dine (Navajo) Indians of the Southwestern United States. She can also be found among the Hopi, the Choctaw, and various other Tribes.

In many stories, she instructed the people how to weave. She is also said to be responsible for placing dew drops that had formed along the skeins of her web into the sky, giving us the stars. She formed the Sun and all the Cosmos. Her web flows through all things, connecting us and tying us to the earth, the sky, the water, the animals, and of course, to each other. She is a teacher and giver of wisdom, knowledge and spiritual teachings

It is said that one day, she will gather her webs together and draw all things back to the centre of the universe, creating a complete and perfect tapestry.

Here is one story:

In the beginning there were only two: Tawa, the Sun God, and Spider Woman, the Earth Goddess. All the mysteries and power in the Above belonged to Tawa, while Spider Woman controlled the magic of the Below. In the Underworld, abode of the Gods, they dwelt and they were All. There was neither man nor woman, bird nor beast, no living thing until these Two willed it to be.

In time it came to them that there should be other Gods to share their labors. So Tawa divided himself and there came Muiyinwuh, God of All Life Germs; Spider Woman also divide herself so that there was Huzruiwuhti, Woman of the Hard Substances, the Goddess of all hard ornaments of wealth such as coral, turquoise, silver and shell. Huzruiwuhti became the always-bride of Tawa. They were the First Lovers and of their union there came into being those marvelous ones the Magic Twins -- Puukonhoya, the Youth, and Palunhoya, the Echo. As time unrolled there followed Hicanavaiya, Ancient of Six (the Four World Quarters, the Above and Below), Man-Eagle, the Great Plumed Serpent and many others. But Masauwhu, the Death God, did not come of these Two but was bad magic, who appeared only after the making of creatures.

And then it came about that these Two had one Thought and it was a might Thought -- that they would make the Earth to be between the Above and the Below where now lay shimmering only the Endless Waters. So they sat them side by side, swaying their beautiful bronze bodies to the pulsing music of their own great voices, making the First Magic Song, a song of rushing winds and flowing waters, a song of light and sound and life.

"I am Tawa," sang the Sun God. "I am Light. I am Life. I am Father of all that shall ever come."

"I am Kokyanwuhti," the Spider Woman crooned. "I receive Light and nourish Life. I am Mother of all that shall ever come."

"Many strange thoughts are forming in my mind -- beautiful forms of birds to float in the Above, of beasts to move upon the Earth and fish to swim in the Waters," intoned Tawa.

"Now let these things that move in the Though of Tawa appear," chanted Spider Woman, while with her slender fingers she caught up clay from beside her and made the Thoughts of Tawa take form. One by one she shaped them and laid them aside -- but they breathed not nor moved.

"We must do something about this," said Tawa. "It is not good that they lie thus still and quiet. Each thing that has a form must also have a spirit. So now, my beloved, we must make a mighty Magic."

They laid a white blanket over the many figures, a cunningly woven woolen blanket, fleecy as a cloud, and made a mighty incantation over it, and soon the figures stirred and breathed.

"Now, let us make ones like unto you and me, so that they may rule over and enjoy these lesser creatures," sang Tawa, and Spider Woman shaped the Thoughts into woman and man figures like unto their own. But after the blanket magic had been made, the figures remained inert. So Spider Woman gathered them all in her arms and cradled them, while Tawa bent his glowing eyes upon them. The two now sang the magic Song of Life over them, and at last each human figure breathed and lived.

"Now that was a good thing and a mighty thing," said Tawa. "So now all this is finished, and there shall be no new things made by us. Those things we have made shall multiply. I will make a journey across the Above each day to shed my light upon them and return each night to Huzruiwuhti. And now I shall go to turn my blazing shield upon the Endless Waters, so that the Dry Land may appear. And this day will be the first day upon Earth."

"Now I shall lead all these created beings to the land that you shall cause to appear above the waters," said Spider Woman. Then Tawa took down his burnished shield from the turquoise wall of the kiva and swiftly mounted his glorious was to the Above. After Spider Woman had bent her wise, all-seeing eyes upon the thronging creatures about her, she wound her way among them, separating them into groups.

"Thus and thus shall you be and thus shall you remain, each one in her own tribe forever. You are Zunis, you are Kohoninos, you are Pah-Utes..." The Hopis, all, all people were named by Kokyanwuhti then.

Placing her Magic Twins beside her, Spider Woman called all the people to follow where she led. Through all the Four Great Caverns of the Underworld she led them until they finally came to an opening, a sipapu, which led above. This came out at the lowest depth of the Pisisbaiya (the Colorado River) and was the place where the people were to come to gather salt. So lately had the Endless Waters gone down that the Turkey, Koyona, pushing early ahead, dragged its tail feathers in the black mud where the dark bands were to remain forever.

Mourning Dove flew overhead, calling to some to follow, and those who followed where his sharp eyes had spied out springs and built beside them were called "Huwinyamu" after him. So Spider Woman chose a creature to lead each clan to a place to build their house. The Puma, the Snake, the Antelope, the Deer, and other Horn creatures, each led a clan to a place to build their house. Each clan henceforth bore the name of the creature who had led them.

The Spider Woman spoke to them thus: "The woman of the clan shall build the house, and the family name shall descend through her. She shall be house builder and homemaker. She shall mold the jars for the storing of food and water. She shall grind the grain for food and tenderly rear and teach the young. The man of the clan shall build kivas of stone under the ground. In these kivas the man shall make sand pictures as altars. Of colored sand shall he make them, and they shall be called ' ponya.' The man too shall weave the clan blankets with their proper symbols. The man shall fashion himself weapons and furnish his family with game."

Stooping down, she gathered some sand in her hand, letting it run out in a thin, continuous stream. "See the movement of the sand? That is the life that will cause all things therein to grow. The Great Plumed Serpent, Lightning, will rear and strike the earth to fertilize it; Rain Cloud will pour down waters, and Tawa will smile upon it so that green things will spring up to feed my children."

Her eyes now sought the Above where Tawa was descending toward his western kiva in all the glory of red and gold. "I go now, but have no fear, for we Two will be watching over you. Look upon me now, my children, ere I leave. Obey the words I have given you, and all will be well. If you are in need of help, call upon me, and I will send my sons to your aid."

The people gazed wide-eyed upon her shining beauty. Her woven upper garment of soft white wool hung tunic-wise over a blue skirt. On its left side was woven a band bearing the Butterfly and Squash Blossom, in designs of red and yellow and green with bands of black appearing in between. Her neck was hung with heavy necklaces of turquoise, shell and coral, and pendants of the same hung from her ears. Her face was fair, with warm eyes and tender lips, and her form most graceful. Upon her feet were skin boots of gleaming white, and they now turned toward where the sand spun about in whirlpool fashion. She held up her right hand and smiled upon them, then stepped upon the whirling sand. Wonder of wonders, before their eyes the sands seemed to suck her swiftly down until she disappeared entirely from their sight

Notes for my Children - Responsibility

2010-11-24T17:24:00.004-07:00

It’s time to take responsibility, and that’s a Big Deal.

Most people will spend their entire lives trying to do the exact opposite, to avoid responsibility at all costs.

“It’s not my fault.”

There are truly very few times in your life where you will be in a position to utter those words truthfully. My advice, choose those moments wisely.

This gives you the power to do something about it.

In organizations, governments and lives, until there is honesty there will be no positive change.

The person who takes responsibility is the person who is the captain of their own destiny. You have three choices facing you: to be a follower, to be a leader, or to be something completely different, transcending both. Step outside the expectations of the world and be your own person. Be responsible for your actions, your health, your choices, your gratitude.

Wake up in the morning giving thanks. Exercise every day, even if it’s just a little. Eat good food and sparingly. Drink water. Smile with everyone who crosses your path, they may never come your way again. This includes strangers, those who would be your enemies, your great friends and even your family. Each moment may be your last so treat it as your first.

To be a grown, mature adult means to rediscover the wonder of this world. Become a child again, aided your current experience and wisdom, to see how lovely, generous and beautiful this planet is.

Pay your bills. Ahead of time. Tell the people in your life you love them. Show them through your actions. Be on time, every time. In fact, try to arrive early. This shows respect for other people, acknowledging that of the hours we are all given, you appreciate they are giving some to you and that time can never be bought back.

Be responsible for the words that come out of your mouth. Harsh words wound forever and will ring in the ears for an entire lifetime. Soft, gentle, uplifting words will plant seeds of love, trust and respect and will bind the listener to you far stronger than force ever could. Be a friend and companion that is honest and reliable. This is your responsibility to others.

You are responsible for your every action. No one makes you do anything, none of your actions are beyond your control. Even your feelings. If your heart is broken, will you submerge yourself, wrap yourself in your grief? Or will you allow that grief to pass through you, over you, and finally fade into its proper place?

You are responsible for your feelings. Will you scowl through the world, or will you face it with a joyful, giving - even mischievous - eye?

You are responsible for your thoughts. Will you allow darkness, fear and anger to overtake you, or will you choose clear, crystal clean places within you to shine outward, lighting the way ahead of you?

Lay no blame unless it is at your own feet. Rise above disagreements. Rise above setbacks. Recognize every trouble for what it is: a chance to grow. If we never have to do any heavy lifting, how will our strength increase?

Learn patience, learn love, learn that the universe laughs, so why not laugh along with it?

You will face many dark valleys, so bring responsibility with you. It will be your firm resolve in times of testing. It will be your strength to make choices. It will fill you will self worth and wisdom.

Wisdom, because by taking responsibility for what happens in your life you will have to embrace humility. You’re going to make a lot mistakes, you’re going to make choices that have unexpected consequences. Sometimes you’re going to be just plain wrong.

And you will have the strength to accept the blame. The only way to do this gracefully is to make humility your companion. And what a great companion it is! It will knock you down a peg or two when you need it, but it will also whisper confidently of your true strength and your true value, which is limitless. Make humility your friend and you will have confidence no ruler on earth ever dreamed of.

You are responsible for your life. Take that responsibility.

Not once, not twice, but every chance you get. Take responsibility in every interaction, every job, every moment and every choice and you will be strong.

Never weasel out.

Always stand up. Take it on the chin, if you must, but stand up.

Stand up. Be counted. Be strong. Be humble.

Be responsible.

Notes for my Children - Acceptance

2010-11-23T12:29:00.002-07:00

This is the first and sometimes most difficult step to maturity, but I know you can do it:

Before anything else can happen you must first accept everything in your life.

Only you can choose your thoughts, and only you can choose your reactions. No one else can do it for you. Even giving up that control to someone else is a choice. If your life sucks, it's your choice to see it that way. If your life is great, that is also a choice. Accept this. The only way we can ever change anything is to first be honest with ourselves.

Allow yourself to see your imperfections. Accept the fact that you're not always right. Accept that you don't always live up to your own ideals. Accept that your health could be terrible, your finances a wreck, and your relationships a pending disaster or an ongoing battle. Be honest with yourself. Don't suck that gut in. Don't pay credit with credit. Don't blame your partner or child or friend for poor communication.

Look in the mirror, let it all hang out and see it for what it is.

Accept that you are human.

Once you can be totally honest about what your life is and about who you are, then we can move on to the next concept.

But before that, let me assure you, I know this isn't easy. I know there will be an almost automatic and unconscious desire to smooth out the rough edges and whitewash reality. It is never easy the first time. It's not easy the thousandth time! But without the ability to do this, your life will just happen to you. You will be living without purpose or vision and will never have any true control over yourself.

Everything will be someone else's fault, or worse, when something good happens you'll take all the credit. You'll be living a lie all the days of your life and never understand why you feel angry, insecure, lost, or sad.

You'll be weak, easily offended, easily discouraged. You'll look at the world and see only obstacles. You'll be too timid to try anything. You deserve a full, happy, strong, confident, adventurous life. You deserve to make great contributions to the world and raise the spirits of everyone you come into contact with.

You deserve every good thing.

Accept all the warts that exist. Accept everything you see in the mirror. Don't hide.

Don't run for false security. Nothing outside of yourself will ever be enough, so why bother seeking? It will waste your limited days and hours of life.

Don't flinch, don't turn away.

Look in the mirror, turn your eye inward on yourself. Be humble, be honest.

Accept.

Logos

2010-11-09T19:02:00.005-07:00

I was honoured to design the new logo for the Simon Fraser First Nations Students' Association (FNSA). Here's the link. If you click on "Our Logo", it will explain the details.

http://www.sfu-fnsa.com/

An excerpt from something I'm writing...

2010-10-13T11:32:00.002-06:00

The radio was static. The headlights barely picking out the blurred asphalt. The road through Jasper National Park was long, silent and empty. There was no moon and in the complete shadow that had descended on the nighttime world I had long since lost the ability to see the mountains rising on either side of me, but I could feel them, the density, the weight of them. I could feel the sheer cliff drops on one side or another of the vehicle, empty mouths waiting to swallow me up.

I glanced up into the sky and was sucked in. The stars! I lived in the city and true starlight was something I rarely saw, save for a camping trip here or there. But in this place, humming along at 100 kilometers an hour, the full, unbelievable expanse was revealed.

I almost drove off the road.

My heart started pounding, considering the enormity of the eternal space that opened up above me. I suddenly couldn’t separate earth from sky and I was floating. I was speeding through the cosmos, embraced by an unending blackness, uncountable suns and vast clouds of pale light. My sense of direction was lost, vertigo threatened to overtake me, and still I drove, heedless of physical danger as my whole spirit seemed threatened to become lost in that profound, airless vacuum. I was about to panic when something switched off inside of me. I gave up my fear and allowed myself to let go, to embrace this enormity as it embraced me. My breathing slowed and time lost any meaning.

As I rounded a bend in the road the radio spotted and sputtered to life with the voice of Stan Rogers.

...through a land so wild and savage...

Listening to the plaintive cry of the song, I slowly came back to earth, to the solid land and the road swiftly passing.

I was back from a journey that lasted only moments but returned me seemingly eons later. I pulled over at the next rest stop, crawled into the back seat and slept.

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Painting at the Royal Alberta Museum

2010-09-22T10:37:00.007-06:00

Teachings of the Sweat Lodge
24" x 36"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2010

A few days ago I was at the Royal Alberta Museum. I was asked to paint in their Aboriginal Exhibit, to gather inspiration there and put it onto canvas. I found the exhibit to be amazingly well done, but what was missing, what would be difficult to reproduce as a static display, was the living energy of the spirit of the people. The ceremony, the gravitas, the joy of the deep Spiritual Life imbedded in the culture. This painting was my response.

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This is a painting of a very powerful ceremony, and because of that might invite some controversy. It is my intent to have this painting be used primarily as a teaching tool for youth. If we don't share, we lose.

Going to Sweat a couple weeks ago saw my wife and I driving past a lake surrounded by autumn colours, a chill in the air. She noticed it first: a bald eagle sitting on an old dead tree at the side of the road. We stopped and moments later my sister in law and her husband came back on the road, having turned around and deciding to stop and look as well.

The eagle stayed and allowed us to snap some photos, to gaze at it in wonder.

Then it gave three cries and flew away.

We continued our trek.

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There is more wonder I could share about those days but instead I will talk a little about the sweat lodge in general terms.

It is constructed of a wood frame and hide is spread over top, creating a pitch black interior. In the middle of the circular lodge a hole is dug into which are placed red hot stones collected from the land and placed in a roaring fire until they are ready to be brought into the lodge. There is one entrance.

When the door is shut, water is poured over the rocks creating a cleansing, steamy heat, and you sweat out your impurities, cleansing your body. You also let go of any thoughts that are keeping you down, any sickness that is robbing you of strength. You pray for family and friends, you focus on what you are grateful for. In this way, your spirit is cleansed.

Of the ceremony I will say only this: there are four sessions in which there is song and prayer, presided over by the elders.

Afterward there is a small, shared feast of tea, salmon and blueberries or saskatoon berries.

My sister in law made the best berries that weekend.

We drove home relaxed and happy, a sense of well-being in our hearts and bodies.

I slept well!

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I wrote you a letter

2010-09-20T13:04:00.002-06:00

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This is your time.

I have seen the faces of the people. I have probably seen your face. If I haven’t I can imagine it. I can see how deep you run, how far you see, how strong you are.

I can see that you are the child of warriors, of healers, of the ancient and wise.

I can see that sometimes you are lost. The path clouded by the mists of pain.

You are a child of this time, and of the timeless, and you have too much to give to ever give up.

The heartbeat of the earth rumbles in your veins, the song of the sky lifts your heart. You dream.

They say, “Dream Big”

I say: Dream Bigger

Be smart, be confident, be someone seven generations can admire.

For they are the ones who need you. All the unborn, yet to be born who will inherit this earth. For too long they’ve been given scraps from the table. It’s time to offer them a feast.

A feast of words, a feast of music. A feast of good action taken.

This is the generation that makes it happen, this is the generation that stands up after too long under the pain of the past. This is the transformational generation.

This is you.

I have seen your faces.

I have seen your wings.

You can fly.

No one ever told you, but you can soar above it all, and I know you already have. I know you’ve already been there in your dreams, seeing it all from high above, rising, rising, rising.

Keep Rising. Keep Dreaming.

Our songs have always come true. Sing the song of your strong, warrior, healing heart. Be wise and the people will heal.

Be wise and our hearts will heal

Be wise and heal this earth.

Your songs will become your children’s songs and they will sing about you and the mighty life you lived.

But for now...for now.

This is your time.

So fly.

Aaron Paquette
aaronpaquette.blogspot.com

We Are Wild

2010-08-12T22:49:00.001-06:00

We are alive, we breathe,
we are made of earth's water
earth's soil, air and of fire.

We are wild, never doubt it.
The earth itself is made
of stardust and emptiness
of endless possibility made physical.

We are part of the whole spinning magnificence of creation.
We are wise, but we are children.
We are fools, aged and steeped in experience.
We become what we think, what we hold dear.

I come from people whose children have forgotten how to dream.
They will awaken, we all will awaken
and laugh, dance, sing with wild abandon.

We are wild, never doubt it.
We are all half breeds whether in flesh or spirit.
This is our future, this is our culture:
what we make of it.

We are wild never doubt it.

Aaron Paquette
April 2010

Absence Makes the Heart

2010-07-09T23:44:00.006-06:00

Just to give you a quick update.

1. The Shifting Patterns show went really well. Lots of amazing press, fantastic feedback, and the artists were just pretty much adored. People seemed to understand the deeper themes and meanings, which was nice to see. What an honour to work with the artists and the staff at Profiles Gallery in St. Albert.

2. Summer seems to have finally arrived.

3. I got married to a smart, sexy, funny woman who adores me and who I adore. She is telling me at this exact moment that we need to start doing sit ups. Umm...what? It's beginning people. It's beginning. Next thing you know we'll be picking out matching sweaters!

4, Weddings cost a lot! Buy some t-shirts (see the sidebar) or give yourself the gift of art, because wow, it would help! (For all you reading who feel pressured, embrace that pressure! heh heh heh) Or just send me your good, happy thoughts: something that is always gratefully accepted.

So, off we go to unexplored realms (by us, anyway). See you later, alligators.

First stop: Contemporary Art Exhibit in mysterious locale.

I'll take pictures.

Shifting Patterns Starts Thursday 6pm!

2010-06-02T00:17:00.007-06:00

A tiny window into Profiles Gallery on Tuesday as we set up the show...

Shifting Patterns
June 3 - July 3
2010

Profiles Gallery

19 Perron Street

St. Albert, AB

T: 780.460.4310

No Cover, No Charge, all are welcome. Tea and bannock will be served (and why wouldn't it?)

Here's a handy dandy maparino:

View Larger Map
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Shifting Patterns in St.Albert and a New Podcast

2010-05-27T23:15:00.010-06:00

I've been working with the really amazing women at St. Albert's Profiles Gallery to curate a new show. Here's the info:

From artifact to craft to contemporary artwork, Canada's First Nations have been breaking the molds history has placed on them and are claiming their right to their past and their future. World-renowned artist Alex Janvier set the stage for generations of new artists, pioneering a stunning new direction in Canadian painting. George Littlechild's poignant explorations of family and identity take us forward into this new world. His paintings give voice and pride to a more open view of Euro-Indigenous relations. Bert Crowfoot - publisher, writer and photographer - captures the world through his lens in his stunning photographic work. Dianne Meili engages in an exploration of clay work and sculpture, putting a modern twist on an ancient artform. Paul Smith, painter and curator, challenges our notions of communication and personal meanings. Finally, Heather Shillinglaw takes us back to her roots with mixed media paintings that bring to mind the patterns on a kokum's dress, the medicines from the land, and the flowering of a new era.

From past to present and looking to our shared future, these artists are part of a growing voice that embraces our history and reclaims our purpose, strength and unity. Shifting attitudes, shifting perceptions and shifting thoughts. They reflect the changing pattern of our society and light the way as we go forward together. ~Aaron Paquette, Guest Curator

Please join us for the Opening Reception and Art Exhibition on Thursday, June 3rd from 6 to 9pm. Musical entertainment provided by Visionary Entertainment Inc. Opening Reception takes place with the 8th Annual St.Albert Artwalk.

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If you're feeling too lazy too read all that, or you just want to hear the soothing sound of my voice, hit up the podcast:

Coffee time: relaxing a bit with Aaron Paquette

or just subscribe: iTunes

2010-05-27T12:28:00.004-06:00

Moondance

32" x 24"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

A few months ago I happened to look up at the sky and I almost fell down at the vision. What would normally be a waxing moon seemed to me suddenly like a pregnant belly, the rest of the woman submerged under the evening sky. I knew I had to share that image. This painting is dark, but so full of light everywhere! The teepees are a row of warm invitation, the roaring fire a beacon to home and safety. I like to imagine someone is out there, tending to the living fire, watching the sparks rise against the stars as they form a seamless union between heaven and earth. The mystery of the Northern Lights hovers up above, muted as it goes to rest with the rest of the world, and there she is. Dancing in the spinning cosmos, giving life in the same breath as she bequeaths death. We are all on a one way ticket from the moment we board this physical plane, and it is this balance of light and dark, birth and death, joy and melancholy - these things give meaning to it all.

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Fluid & Flux

2010-05-26T16:26:00.002-06:00

Gold Dance
40" x 10"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

Sun, sky and water. All fluid, all in flux. Alive with light, this painting dances and moves in an enduring place of calm. This piece developed over a span of three years, I was in no rush with it and it wasn’t in a rush with me. It grew as I grew. It waited patiently for hands that could give it the life it wanted, for hands that understood. I respond to this piece in such a joyful way, it touches something deep inside me for which I have no words. When I’m away from it, it seems enormous to me, a large, almost overpowering piece, but then I see it again and marvel at the slightness of it, the unassuming proportions. It has captured some essence of illumination and shares it again.

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Crows Feet and other Parts

2010-05-26T12:29:00.004-06:00

This body is aging.

There's no denying. No point in trying.

I'm still young, no doubt, but I feel the years slowly building. There's no cry, no lament, no ashes. Instead there is a very welcome, and very happy celebration.

This body is aging!

I am leaving behind the sickness of youth. That young man's folly of hard effort, over reaching, over striving, over carving reality to try to make it fit my own ideas and goals. As the supple skin and round glow of youth passes, I find this slowly drying body is paradoxically turning into water.

The Me this body encases seems to be liquefying, flowing, following new courses. Instead of attacking situations, I slowly dissolve them.

I have given up fighting. Fighting against things, fighting for things, fighting sickness...all of it.

I find myself in co-operation. I find myself proving my point less, listening more. I have less answers, but far more surety.

I have found that gratitude and acceptance have changed my life for the better, slowly carving out a place in me to contain silence.

I am alive.

I may have pain, but I choose not to suffer.

I may have setbacks, but I choose not to fail.

I am alive.

I am filled with awe for this. I am alive on a living earth, surrounded by the living and the dead.

The dead.

The living.

And the rising sun.

.

And Warms Our Skin Like Soft Exhalations

2010-05-25T08:50:00.007-06:00

Lay Down Your Burdens

36" x 28"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

This is one of a group of paintings that flashed across my inner eye and I quickly sketched it out. The painting took me 9 months of labour to complete, growing at its own pace. I couldn't have rushed it if I tried, and sometimes I did try. As it came closer and closer to completion I realized how much of my life was hidden in this piece like small bits of secret code, almost indecipherable. I look at it with a sense of satisfaction at being finished, and a sense of longing for the work to always continue.

There is a simplicity and a complexity to this piece. Some will see the hand as comforting, others will see it as threatening. What does it mean? I honestly don’t know. All I did was transcribe the already formed image onto canvas. Sometimes I feel like the Raven, defeated, hungry, hurt and weary. I just need to rest. And sometimes I feel like the Woman. Is my heart open, or has it been ripped out? Am I an angel, a mother, or a destroyer?

In the end it doesn’t matter. And that’s the way it works for life, too. All that matters is that there is a connection and a truth.

In the end, what else can we ask for?

.

Sunshine Breaks Through

2010-05-24T14:23:00.000-06:00

Cree Teachings

24"x 26"

Mixed Media on Canvas

2010

Sohkahcahkwewin ᓱᐦᑲᐦᒐᐦᑫᐧᐃᐧᐣ

It means having strength of soul.

I called this Cree Teachings because of the wisdom I have been honoured to receive from many teachers throughout my life. Some of the teachers hurt me, some of them loved me, and sometimes it was both. Here I have made the equivalent of birch bark, and inscribed upon it, painted on it, filled it with all the mysteries I know and then let it go. The four colours can be found on some Medicine Wheels, or not, and it doesn’t matter. I used the colours because they were healing for me, they were true for me. They are also the colours of the Hudson’s Bay Company, which would never have thrived were it not for the assistance they received from the many Indigenous people of Canada who shared their knowledge of how to survive in this country. The Company listened to how to survive, but they didn’t listen to how to live.

My main pursuit in this life is is to learn to live. To learn to set aside pain, to set aside fear. To instead embrace love, to be accepting and remove judgment as much as possible. I can only learn this through my interactions with others. We are each others constant teachers and students. The wisdom of the sky and the wisdom of a tree are no more or less significant than the wisdom of an ant or even the deep knowledge of an electron. By listening, always listening, we learn. Sohkahcahkwewin.

.

Clouds Clearing

2010-05-23T13:36:00.004-06:00

The Face of Abundance
22" x 28"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2010

I made a little painting a couple years ago called Abundance. I loved painting it and wanted to return to the theme and explore the idea again. This time, instead of a sun it’s a golden being. Many people have commented on it, asking, “Is it the wind?”, or “I think it’s a soul about to be born.” The golden visage represents everything. Some would call it God, some Possibility, some Tao. I just know that it is. I feel it when I’m painting. We all feel it at some point or other. We feel it when we’re mindful. We feel it when we transcend the need to be patient and are just accepting. We feel it when we sit quietly, allowing our connection to nature flow through us and fill our senses, fill our souls.

I turn my face to the sun
The heat like gentle lips

Placed upon my skin
In benediction

There's more than I can take
There's abundance

...Rain or Shine...

2010-05-21T13:20:00.000-06:00

Buffalo I

5" x 7"

Mixed Media on Canvas

2010

Have you ever gotten close to a buffalo? Have you ever looked into one of those deep, limpid, liquid eyes? Has that buffalo spoken to you? What did she say? Did she tell you about her dreams? Did she talk about her calf, the day it was born, how it ran! Did she talk about circling the children when danger approached, forming a wall of flesh, fur and love? Of the dust rising in the heat of the day - parched and dry - to let them know it was time to move on? Did she describe the exhilarating pace as hooves struck the ground in a deep, satisfying, earth shaking rumble? Did she tell you about the day her baby fell down, never to get up again, as the iron horse rumbled past with a clanging mockery of their own thunder? Did she tell you how they all disappeared, the people starved and fences rose to carve apart the land? Did she tell you those dreams?

Did you listen?

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The Show Continues...

2010-05-19T15:34:00.002-06:00

Wolf Vison
Mixed Media on Canvas
16" x 20"
2010

Sometimes words won’t come, or if they do they are insufficient. Threads that won’t weave, images that won’t stop and coalesce into form. Sometimes a painting goes so deep into dream it becomes difficult to tease out the simple meanings with which to clothe the chaos. This is such a work for me. I could say that Wolf is our clan, that I feel tied to animal life, that I am wild, contained only by strength of will, that at any moment I will turn from the city, from civilization, from the world of man and walk into the forest, never to return. I can talk about the vision fragments, of fire, of water rushing like sublime madness in my ears. Hearts beating, blood rushing, bodies racing, and then sky, endless sky and cool rain and the whispering winds. I can say all that and more and never have even begun. A howl wants to escape my lips just thinking on it.

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Summer Begins...now!

2010-05-17T16:00:00.007-06:00

Wow!

It's hot today.

So I'm outside. Answering backed up emails (story of my life), drinking a coffee and getting a little sunburned. The show went really well and I was so happy to see all the people who came out. My only regret is that I don't always have time to talk to everyone that I would like. If all we had a chance to do was say a quick hello, well, at least we had that.

:)

For those of you who couldn't make it, the show continues until the 27th of May. If you're in Edmonton, use it as an excuse to get outside. It's 28C today and will be 31C tomorrow! Sooo good.

My Birthday was over the weekend and I went golfing (badly) with my soon to be Brothers In Law and we had family over for a really nice get together. It also gave me an opportunity to slow down and enjoy my time with loved ones and Loved One. Life just keepings rolling along, tickety tick in that all too real illusion of time. As I sit here in the sun watching the summer dresses float by I am reminded just how GOOD life is. An afternoon in the sun. Breathing. Old couples strolling along, young couples laughing nervously, bored couples looking at everything but each other...all faces of each other, of you, of me...dramas, played out as if we actually care about them, or as if they're actually important.

I laugh in delight at Us. We human, thinking beings sure know how to expect things, and become disappointed if what unfolds doesn't meet our expectations - which is almost always. The greatest moment in my life occurred when I realized that to stop getting nuts all I had to do was stop expecting. I just had to be. Be, observe, and refrain from reacting. I'm not perfect at it, but even a 10% improvement has made an enormous difference.

As you can see, spending an afternoon in the sun with me would have you frantically looking for your Blackberry or iPod just so you could escape and actually enjoy yourself!

:D

Thoughts in the sun. Maybe I'm getting heat stroke.

---

Here are two paintings from the show, and the thoughts that went along with them:

Trade Offs
Mixed Media on Canvas
9" x 12"
2010

Without the Hudson’s Bay Company there wouldn’t be this show, Half Breed Culture. Without opening up trade routes and exploiting the land, without the Voyageurs, the Metis, immigration and so on, none of us would be here. While we sometimes revile our past because of injustices done the fact remains that without all those events our world would be unrecognizable. Some say for the worse, others for the best. In the end, it’s a trade off. Because of my personal genetic background, I can’t be angry at anyone. I can only accept the past. And since I can’t change it, what else can I do? What can any of us do but accept that along with the benefits came atrocity? All we can do is decide what to do now. Not we will do in the future, but right now in this living moment. What trade offs do we make? Are we aware of them?

This piece can be seen in many ways. On one level, it is my personal story, the items in it representing different concepts and events, but it can also be a discussion about exploitation of cultures, small pox, and ongoing social issues. Or it can be just a funny old crow who loves shiny beads and is sitting there with his beak full, satisfied.

All these possible meanings, all right on the money. And on it goes. This piece is exactly why I am so passionate about creating art: the conversation you have with the work all depends on what you bring to the table, and the conversations we have with each other open the doors to new ideas, new ways of thinking that had never been there before. We trade off one another and by doing so weave our thoughts, our hearts, together.

A Good Trade
Mixed Media on Paper
14" x 11"
2010

Somewhat of a companion piece to Trade Offs, this work continues the visual exploration of the concepts I was exploring. Here our hero sits wrapped in his blanket, warm and content, and maybe just a little bit proud! He earned this fine blanket. Perhaps he gave his furs for it, getting back an interesting, soft, beautiful covering. Maybe he has more and will gift them to those in need. Lightweight, portable, weather resistant. It’s a good trade.

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A Show!

2010-05-13T16:09:00.005-06:00

The Bearclaw Gallery Presents:
Half Breed Culture
New Works by Aaron Paquette

Opening: May 15, 2010
Closing: May 27, 2010

Artist in attendance May 15, 1-4pm

Abundant Treasures of the Spirit
Acrylic, Gold Leaf on Canvas
30" x 40"
2010

This was a labour of love. It took an incredible amount of time to paint, the fish undergoing so many slight revisions until we were all satisfied. The perspective felt a little tricky at first, but resolved itself as the plant life was added at the end. What is happening here? What has been discovered? What is this orb doing, what will it do? As with much of my work, this is not a moment of truth, a fait accompli, but the moment before everything changes. There is a hush and an anticipation. A curiosity! The wealth of this life is about to pour forth in unexpected ways.

------

So yes, it's true. My first solo show in Edmonton City in a couple years is about to begin. I would be so happy and so honoured to see you come out and take a look at what I've been working on for the past while. I'll be there from 1-4pm and look forward to it!

A.

-----

Bearclaw Gallery
10403-124 Street
Edmonton, AB

Email: info@bearclawgallery.com

TEL: 1+(780) 482-1204
FAX: 1+(780) 488-0928

Gallery Hours:
Monday - Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:30 PM

Store Open!

2010-03-14T18:27:00.002-06:00

It's been a bumpy ride, but everyone out of the car!

The site is open for business!

Here's the store:

http://www.redbubble.com/people/halfbreed/t-shirts

Here's the news feed:

http://www.halfbreedculture.com

So don't wait around, go get your shirt today! On the news feed we'll be featuring a "Halfbreed of the Month" so stay tuned for that.

We've also got a contest going to design a Tee!

So off you go, all you ridiculously awesome people. RedBubble is powering the site, so when you order, your shirt will be Automatically ordered and shipped and in your hot hands in days.

Days?

That's right. It's the future.

And the future is Halfbreed.

Til Next Time,
Aaron

New Podcast - Episode 9! Also: Deep Question

2010-03-05T13:39:00.006-07:00

Continuing on with this ridiculous theme in my life of being somewhat productive and active, here is my Ninth Podcast. It's all about NOT finishing things, of which I give one example out of literally dozens of grand projects I've never gotten around to!

In other news not related to the podcast...and because you're on the edge of your seats about it...I've continued my experiment with Hot Yoga.

Results: I'm a couple inches more flexible. My stomach is getting all "abs"-y (and one day those remarkable muscles won't be hidden behind my little flesh quilt), and I feel a lot more healthy, energetic and awake.

So I'd rate it as just all right.

Before I sign off, in my podcast I do talk about a how-to book I never ever finished. If this sounds like something you'd be interested in taking a look at when it's done (that's my polite way of saying, "buying a dozen copies to give to everyone you know"), drop me an email or a comment so I know there is a demand and I'll get it done just that much sooner!

Subscribe to podcast in iTunes

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From the Art Gallery of Alberta's Travelling Exhibit: Halfbreed Mythology

2010-03-01T11:25:00.010-07:00

The History of My People (Grandfathers)
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2009

This is another of the works currently traveling throughout Alberta. The show has been going for a bit more than a year and will continue for the next couple.

The works in this show tend to be a little more introspective and this is no exception. I tried to tackle a couple aspects of Canadian history here. The landscape is the coast of Newfoundland as it glides by the Nordic explorers who were searching ever further beyond Iceland, beyond Greenland, braving the oceans and the unknown.

Although L'Anse aux Meadows was a colossal failure as a diplomatic mission, it also marks what we can say is the first Euro settlement on First Nations land and the first contact with the Skrælings who inhabited the place. The birth of a new conflict, or the slow beginning of an eventual cooperation?

This is the reason for the iconic image of the prow of a longship stretching up beyond the upper edge of the canvas. A vessel containing Pandora's mysteries.

Below is a mythic Raven. One large all-seeing eye and two faces, representing both the worship and stories of Odin, the All-Father, and of the Trickster Raven. That there are so many similarities in these very disparate cultures has always been a source of fascination for me.

And below it all, a giant golden orb. The centre of the earth? A rising sun or moon in a starscape also serving as the water's depths, an indication that we are adrift, sailing through an endless ocean of time and space, held safe on a tiny, spinning planet? Or a portal through our limited awareness and understanding of each other?

The sidebars display the decorative, goldworked images of dragons or serpents, physical incarnations of unknown fears and dangers. The myth was that there were monsters beyond our ken, beyond our knowledge, beyond our borders. On ancient maps you find the phrase, "here be dragons". A statement serving as a warning to those who would dare journey out and further than our fears allow.

These dragons seem to stretch down, curling into a rising future: a Metis sash. A symbol of joining and blending together. The interlocking fibers and colours indicating an ability to set aside differences and work for the common good. A sash is awarded these days to people in the community who have offered outstanding service or have achieved something great. A mark of honour and representative of the best in all of us.

Through time and conflict and blood, we stand today together on this land, a vast array of personal and family and cultural histories leading us to this moment, our moment, our children's moments. Who we decide to be, what we decide to honour, what fears we choose to conquer - all these things will determine the world to come. We have inherited our world from our grandfathers with its many opportunities and challenges. How will we honour this?

And what will we leave for our grandchildren?

.

New Galleries

2010-02-26T11:17:00.007-07:00

I'll be adding a couple new galleries to the side links in the near future. One I've been remiss on is the Eagle Feather Gallery in Victoria. Fixed! Here is what they have in their gallery right now:

She's in the Wind
Mixed Media and Gold Leaf
on Canvas

(click image to see listing)

Hawai'i pics

2010-02-25T22:19:00.004-07:00

As per the post below, here are a few of the photos from Hawai'i:

(click on the photos to enlarge)

body surfing

Waikiki Beach - Day

Sunset at Waikiki

More to come in...THE FUTURE!

Hawai'i

2010-02-25T14:27:00.004-07:00

Once Waikiki
Mixed Media on paper
2010

I had an incredible opportunity to go to Hawai'i last month and I jumped on the chance. I went to the island of Oahu, home to the mythical Waikiki Beach, Hanauma Bay, Pearl Harbour, North Shore, The Dole Pineapple Plantation, and on and on.

It was amazing place with remarkable contrasts. High tech, high end wealth and very low-tech, simple living. From unending riches to aching poverty, it was easy to get overwhelmed by the non stop overload. The cure: The Ocean.

Warm, inviting, violent, gentle, white with wrath, clear, pristine blue with quiet calm. It took all these strange extremes and washed them together, mixed them up, made them one.

Waikiki is now a tourist haven. Gorgeous vistas, magical history...I fell in love. Once upon a time, the whole basin stretching between the volcanic mountains to the smooth beaches was a wetland. A swamp. A place that naturally lent itself to crops of all kinds. It was a bountiful harvestland for the native Hawai'ians. Now it has a different sort of riches and I couldn't help but daydream while the sun set and the stars came out.

I imagine the land without buildings, as it might have looked hundreds of years ago when surfing was the sport of Kings, a spiritual pursuit, and the people sang and danced for the pure joy of it, edifying and teaching each other, the Ha -the inspiration of the gods- living in and permeating everything...

-----

A bit o' history:

When Capt. Cook landed on the Hawaiian islands, no matter which island he was on, when he asked the natives what island he was on, he got the same answer: " I live in Hawaii". What the overly educated fellow didn't realize was that the natives were sharing a profound spiritual insight with him. An insight that has completely escaped western culture to this day. The indigenous Hawaiians were actually trying to convey that they didn't just live on a clump of real estate like western man does.

The Hawaiians were saying that their life force dwells within the one Supreme Force of the Universe and rides upon the breath which causes our own heartbeat. That divine breath is called "Ha". The medium which nurtures life, is water or "wai". Epitomized as the supreme causation, known as "I".

They were saying that they live, dwell, and find their being within the true meaning of paradise, sustained by the supreme force of the water and the divine breath of life, which is everyone's connection to paradise who would understand this...Ha wai i".

From the book entitled: "Secrets & Mysteries of Hawaii" by Pila of Hawaii

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Sprinkling Little Podcasts

2010-02-22T15:11:00.003-07:00

That's right, a new podcast has been seeded! Now with a cheeseball surprise!

Taking Risks

What are we afraid of when it comes to taking artistic or personal risks? Are we afraid of failure? Success? In this episode we take a look at a few of these questions and look for better answers and ways to approach taking risks in our lives.

Link:
This is the blog

Subscribe:
Here's the iTunes feed

2010-02-19T10:53:00.007-07:00

Infinite Worlds
Mixed Media
On Canvas
2008

"Infinite worlds appear and disappear in the vast expanse of my consciousness, like motes of dust dancing in a beam of light" - Vedanta

I was reminded of the painting above this week. When I painted it, I was almost in a trance. It happened spontaneously, immediately and quickly. It was as effortless as breathing.

I have just finished three days in a row of Bikram (hot) Yoga and having never really done Yoga before I was really surprised at how strenuous it was, how great I felt afterward, and how my thinking became more clear as I mixed the physical work with meditation.

Granted, I'm not flexible enough to do all the poses, and I don't really have the balance to look graceful but just making the effort is hard enough in a hot, humid room. You walk in and start sweating immediately!

One thing I discovered that surprised me was how I approached the experience as a job. In fact, it took someone else to point it out to me. Although I tend toward the easy going, I guess I still have that competitive spirit in me, even if it's just turned in toward myself. Maybe when you're born in Alberta, that "git 'er done" attitude is inserted at the hospital. I'm going to do another three or four days in a row and I'm curious to see how that bit of insight will change what they call my "practice".

On the really plus side, I'm already seeing and feeling the benefits, so I recommend it to everyone! Fair warning though: the flab that you think is okay seems to really soften and melt by the end of the 90 minutes. I had to laugh when I saw myself!

Or was it cry?

;)

At any rate, I know for me it opened up new worlds and possibilities and I've been waking up every morning with avalanches of ideas, images, concepts...my creative cup is literally overflowing.

So give it a shot. You'll either love it or hate it, but it's definitely an experience worth having.

.

Here You Go!

2010-02-19T09:29:00.007-07:00

Everyone Is Invited To The Feast
Acrylic, Gold Leaf
On Canvas
2009
(click on image to enlarge)

I wanted to paint something that made me very happy. Although it took a very long time to complete, for me it was well worth the effort and the seemingly endless days!

As you can see, everyone is coming to the feast, guests are still arriving, and there will be something for everyone on the table. The celebration will last as long as there is something to celebrate. In other words, it just won't stop!

Some people might not come to the feast. They doubt there will be enough left over for them. Others will grab as much as they can and run away, thinking that the pie might run out so they better get theirs while the getting's good! And then there are those who will take a bite of this or that, never stopping, never savouring, just trying to fill a hole that they think is one kind of hunger, but is really another. Sadly, what will be left behind is a bit of a mess!

Some might show up empty handed, feeling out of place and awkward, feeling that they really don't have much to offer. But they do! Once they sit down at the table, their company will be another type of nourishment for their companions.

Still others will be happily serving, clearing up, filling plates and glasses, making sure as many as have want or need are getting their fill.

In the end, what you bring to the feast is what you will get. Hopefully, hopefully, when you sit down at that warm, heavy laden table that just groans with all the good things it has to share, you'll bring a happy heart. Or at least, a heart that is willing to be happy! Sometimes just being open is all we'll need. Even if it's just a tiny, teensy, microscopic crack. Yes, even just the hope of a crack will be sufficient.

Welcome to the feast, everyone!

There is enough and more.

Dig in!

Enjoy.

.

Another

2010-02-13T00:49:00.001-07:00

Autumnal
Acrylic, Oil, Fabric and
Gold Leaf on Canvas
2009

As much as I identify with the raven, I have to acknowledge the power the rabbit has played in my life. Anytime I have made an important decision I have immediately seen a rabbit to let me know I chose correctly. In this painting the rabbit is ahead of its time. The landscape is still that drying rust of change. Plants have yet to sleep and here is the rabbit clothed in white, camouflaged from nothing. A prescient understanding of what is to come? A careful nudge in the right direction?

All I know is that whatever the message, there is an innate and quiet understanding here. One full of breath and open spaces.

More Art

2010-02-11T21:22:00.007-07:00

Home
Acrylic, Gold Leaf and Fabric
on Canvas
2009

Painted in the late Fall of 2009, this painting symbolizes the snuggling in we Northerners love to do when the air is crisp and snow is on the edge of the senses. Like a premonition. A rumour.

Here the cub nestles in with mama wolf. In the distance an encampment of tipi's is gathered near the river, personal hearths billowing a soft smoke into the night sky. The moon watches from overhead, serene and cool.

I love Autumn colours, the richness, the warmth, the slight faded feeling. The calm before the long cold night.

Art!

2010-02-11T19:50:00.006-07:00

Transformation
Acrylic, Gold Leaf on Canvas
2009

The wind blows through a golden forest frozen in eternal sunset, bringing with it the scent of flowers. Bright colours begin to spread and grow, bringing the warmth and promise of springtime.

Sometimes we can get stuck in old paths, reacting to the same situations in the same way we always have. This can be for the good, but more often it can likely be more positive. Instead of allowing our pride or hurt feelings to get in the way, sometimes it can be best to let that whispering wind speak living, changing words to our hearts. Sometimes we can let it alter a course we have been holding on to for far too long. It can be scary, it can feel like a risk, but the new direction, the new air, the clean new breezes can invigorate our senses and little by little the stars change and we are transformed.

.

iPad could definitely be better (the artist gets techy)

2010-02-11T09:52:00.008-07:00

As an artist I use whatever tools I can get my hands on to make the process of creating my work as intuitive and simple as possible. The less I have to worry about the better as far as getting thought to reality is concerned.

That's why I was really looking forward to the new Apple iPad.

I was imagining a device that would cut down on the clutter I would carry with me on regular day to day excursions. While it might be able to do that in some small ways, i suppose I was guilty of imagining something more.

Primarily what I'm talking about is drawing.

I was hoping for an included stylus and a nicely developed draw/paint program (app, as the kids say) that would allow me to have an eternally ready sketch pad that would never run out of paper and a pencil that would never run out of lead. A font of creative possibility!

The other imagined benefit would be that I could work out the colour schemes for my paintings on the iPad as well, moving things around intuitively, quickly and easily until I found just the right composition. Then it's off to the painting!

The other thing I would have hoped for was a built in camera that would allow me to capture a fabric, a leaf, the way light was hitting a face - whatever I saw that could inspire me - right on the fly, to examine and study later when I had the time.

And lastly, a simple, easy way for me to record my process so that I could share it with others digitally online, or give to schools after a workshop.

I know that with a big bundle of electronics and old fashioned tools I could accomplish something close to all this, so it's not like I am stuck on an island with only sand and coconuts to work with, but it would have been nice.

The technology is there and I really thought Apple would've put it all together.

Second Gen iPad, maybe?

Maybe.

In the meantime, I will still lovingly use my trusty pencil and paper sketchpad.

--------

On to other news:

I saw AVATAR!

Pretty astounded with the 3D. I kind of felt like I was in a living dream the entire time, the actors were right there, almost s real as flesh and blood (or a least as real as they'll ever get without meeting them). I took my parents who never go out to the movies and was really delighted by their response during the film. It was like seeing them as they were when they were kids. While I really enjoyed the movies, I think watching my Mom and Dad was the best part.

-----

I've been pretty busy making school visits, speaking at conferences, and just generally sharing what I've gleaned after twenty years of art making. It's extremely fulfilling and gets me out into the world and out of the studio, which let me tell you is pretty nice.

Next up is the Spirit Seekers Youth Conference in Grande Prairie and I have to say the team that puts that together is amazing. They're professional, warm and really care about what they're doing. I'm honored to be a part of their efforts. Thanks Delaine!

Keynote speakers will be Linsay Willier and James Jones of Canada's Next Top Model and So You Think You Can Dance: Canada fame respectively. They've teamed up to create a Motivational Speaking enterprise so I'm really looking forward to hearing what they have to say.

-----

My good friend Ian Walker is currently developing my new website which will be aaronpaquette.com and that will be up sometime before spring. It will have everything I do in one place and when it goes up I'll have a lot of neat things to share. Really excited about it.

And if you like the site when it goes up, let me know! I'll forward you to Ian and he can customize something for you.

-----

Just a quick heads up: I have a show scheduled to start May 15, 2010 at the Bearclaw Gallery that I think many of you will really enjoy. Many, many new works are coming up!

I'll have some information about a couple other galleries I'm talking with soon, and in the meantime, visit the Bearclaw and the Willock and Sax Gallery. There is always amazing art from a variety of diverse artists at both places. I'm always impressed when I take a visit.

Of Slight Interest

2009-11-28T22:07:00.006-07:00

A concept sketch I made in August 2003 and posted online in 2005:

A shot from the new movie Avatar 2009:

Remembering Every Day

2009-11-12T09:43:00.007-07:00

This is Tosh Anderson. Born in 1969, the Summer of Love. He's a husband, father, son. Pictured here with one of his boys at a Blue Jays game, he's also a hero. Not just for who he is on a day to day basis, but because he has dedicated his career to serving his nation and has gone on Peace Keeping missions and to War too many times for comfort.

He is also my older brother by five years.

We grew up in a rough neighbourhood. I have many memories from these times, but there's one that stands out when I think of my brother.

I loved to dig in the sand and the dirt when I was a kid. I loved to feel the grains between my fingers and to build. Towers, bridges, little towns. One summer day, I think I was around 7 years old, I spent the whole morning digging and building and driving my Hot Wheels through the little metropolis. I was so absorbed in this little world that I didn't notice the real danger approaching. In every rough neighbourhood you're going to have your bullies.

One of mine was a kid named Tiger. He was a few years older than me and lived half a block away and was pretty much the scourge of all the small kids in the area. Tough, unnaturally strong for a child, he had a rolling swagger and an anger in him I didn't understand until I got older and saw what poverty and abuse can do to a family, and to a child. But understanding was years away at that moment.

He came ambling up, saw my game and my tiny city and started stamping on it, crushing the streets and stores, crystals of sand flying up into my face, the toy cars bent and the tires snapped off. I tried to stop him, but he kicked me in the chest and down I went. As I fell, my frustration surged and I stood up again and shoved him, trying to push him away. One punch was all it took and I was down and out for the count.

The rest has been told to me many times over the years.

I guess my sister saw what was happening and ran over to stop it, but got a punch in the face. Tosh had been just coming outside the house too when he saw all this begin and by the time I got knocked out he was already running into the fray. There was a bit of a tussle, but my brother put Tiger down and by this time half the neighbours had come outside to see what was going on.

Amid all the noise, my brother picked me up and gently carried me to the house, my face caked with sand and blood, my sister's sobs hanging in the air as she ran to get towels.

Over the years, my brother carried me many times. I was always knocking myself out trying to perform impossible feats of daring on my bike, but he never had to fight for me again. A couple years after Tiger I recall finally standing up to another bully and as things started, I glanced toward the house. Tosh was standing at the door and I knew he was there not to save me, but to make sure I stood up on my own, that I picked my battles wisely. But that's a story for another day.

Yesterday as I watched the honour given to our soldiers here in Canada, I thought a lot about my big brother. We haven't been in touch in a few years, life being what it is, and I couldn't help the surge of love and pride and gratitude that came and washed over me. Nor would I have wanted to.

From war to war, battle to battle, to death in the field or in training, injuries stacked upon injuries, comrades fallen and families without loved ones, they sacrifice all for our benefit, so that we, as Canadians, have the blessing of living in an amazing country in an even more amazing time in history. Our luxuries and dramas, our opportunities and triumphs, all rest on the backs of those who fight to make it possible. We have our personal struggles, to be sure, and it's not all paradise, but at least we have the chance to make a life for ourselves in this peaceful land.

I am willing to bet that one of our soldiers this very day is facing the hot Afghanistan sun, the acrid smell of gunpowder lingering in the dry air as they pick up a child whose face is caked with blood and sand. They hold that child close to their chest, uniform dusty and dirtied, and they carry that light, limp body to safety.

All politics aside, the desire to do good, to be strong for others when other strength fails, the will to see a job done and done right, and the discipline to work as a team - these are the attributes of those who wouldn't call themselves heroes, but to me, these men and women are exactly that.

Our Heroes.

And we will always remember them.

Thanks, Tosh.

I love you.

HBC - Half Breed Clothing

2009-09-11T11:06:00.003-06:00

Hey Everybody!

Today is the day we roll out the very first Half Breed Clothing t-shirt!

What is this all about?

Well, the smaller this world gets, the more couples from different backgrounds are hooking up. The result is a growing population of people like me and probably you! Kids with mixed heritage. Whether Metis, Heinz 57, Mulatto, Eurasian, half Irish-half Scots...whatever! We're all in this crazy experiment together.

And here's the t-shirt to show your pride in your roots. Stand up and be proud!

And please, be so good as to spread the word!!

-----

These shirts are artist designed (the first couple will be my own work) and hand pulled.

We're offering shirts in Fruit of the Loom (looser fit) and American Apparel (a little more form fitting). Pretty much any colour is available within reason!

:)

Included in this note are the first two designs we're releasing and there are more to come as more of our artists finalize their images.

To order, click on the link:

Awesome Half Breed Shirts

Now share this note!

;)

Still more...

2009-08-02T00:56:00.002-06:00

Opening a Dream
Mixed Media on Canvas
2009

More...

2009-08-01T00:46:00.002-06:00

Equilibrium
24" x 36"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2009

Where do we find our balance? Is it in spirit, in the land, in fantasy, or in our experiences of work, play, joy and sorrow?

Is the goal to feast on life and welcome our experiences both happy and painful, or to reject these extremes and find that Middle Way? To eschew all desire and exist on a plane of meditation, contemplation and compassion?

Where is the best life and how do we find it?

To cease with doubts, but never with examination. To enjoy the show but to realize it is all shadow play. To find the passionate equilibrium.

A quick sketch...

2009-07-31T12:01:00.001-06:00

2009-07-31T01:15:00.001-06:00

Strength
18" x 24"
Mixed Media on Canvas
2009

From the Halfbreed Travelling Exhibit

2009-05-09T13:00:00.001-06:00

White Raven Woman
2008

I actually finished a new painting...

2009-05-06T11:24:00.005-06:00

I'm not going to lie to you, it's been a rough little while. But the fact that I was able to finish a painting tells me that the arrows are beginning to point in the right direction again. Which is a huge relief. I have a couple deadlines that have passed and I've had nothing to show for it. Trust me, that's bad. So, with a fresh breath of air, and the ability to smile really big again, I give you the beginning of my own fresh start:

A New Season
2009

The snows are retreating, the icy wind blows a last time across the land, hair is whipped by the last gasp of winter's chill. The flowers begin to bloom and the long night has been replaced by the eternal day. Mother Earth watches it unfold in serenity and patience, knowing the flow of time is like a river that carves deep into our souls, digging deep channels of habit and forgetfulness if we are not aware of it. But the Old Crow, the Irascible Raven, that black bird who takes many forms, reminds us. He watches with an eye that he hopes seems disinterested but I see right through him. He watches me, you, all of us. Always curious, always wondering, what will these bright shiny things do next? As soon as we fall asleep he is there, beating wings of wind and fury.

"Wake Up!"

"Wake Up!" he cries, throat broken and urgent.

And we do, realizing that as we slept we lost something in the river. For a while we are dazed by our sleep, but when the fog clears we realize that we were dreaming in the wrong place. To dream while aware, that's the true power. Old Bird settles back down to watch again with his fierce eye. And Mother Earth watches softly.

.

Love and Fear - a quick thought

2009-04-29T04:47:00.004-06:00

I'm an artist. I usually clarify that by saying I'm a painter...mostly. The truth is, I have an avid interest in all forms of art creation to the extent that I believe everything we do can be an art.

When it comes to life, every day is a chance at the new, at adding something inspiring and exciting to our existence. The choice we have is will we add that thing or not? Will we even recognize it?

Or will we tune it out like so many other things?

I'll be honest, there are the rare times I let my emotions run high and there are still things that can give me insecurity. I don't turn away. I face it and try to acknowledge it. I can't change by trying to change, I can only allow the change to come over me as I continue to acknowledge and process. Sounds like a boring practice, I know, but now there are very few things left that can affect my positive and confident outlook. And those things are disappearing.

Pretty neat stuff, hey?

Like everyone else I've experienced loss.

Like everyone else I pick myself back up again.

But it sure can suck sometimes, can't it?

:)

I believe that the inner self is always there. Who we really are is there from the start. We just lose ourselves in the stuff of this world. In fear, insecurity, clothing, drama, selfishness, greed, lack, ingratitude, abuse, jealousy, rage, depression, and on and on. All these negatives are of course interrelated and of course stem from one basic and profound source: intense, never ending, screaming fear.

How do we overcome that?

That's what people have been grappling with for ages. That's what causes people to ask in despair: who am I?

Well, you are you, aren't you?

And who is that?

Never ending, infinite, flowing Love. You are a face of love and that means you realize there is nothing to fear. That fear is an illusion, it actually doesn't really exist except when we bring it into being through our thoughts of loss. But nothing is ever lost or destroyed, only changed.

And we ourselves are unchanging. We only refine and refine in the forge of gratitude and abundance. Our small earth has everything we'll ever need and it is not even a mote in this spinning universe.

Therefore as examples of love we fear no loss. Our light shines ever brighter and stronger the more we give. Money is not the root of all evil. That's like saying the Sun is the cause of all our problems because it can give us a burn. Money without love or wisdom is just another tool of lack and emptiness.

Money with understanding is a river that feeds multitudes.

When we expect the worst, when we expect something bad to happen, we are never surprised when it finally occurs. "I knew this would happen" we say.

And we were right.

But when we expect something good to happen, we are always surprised when it does. "I can't believe it actually happened!" we say.

Something to think about...

Getting Back Into It

2009-04-22T00:53:00.002-06:00

I've been slow to update, I know. I've been kept pretty busy working with schools in Edmonton, and building connections and relationships with educators, artists, etc in Fort McMurray and Yellowknife.

I was interviewed last month and here it is: Dante's Heart

Here's the opening excerpt:

Resident in Alberta, Aaron Paquette has carved and shaped his own unique niche in Canadian art, as well as building a lively network of artists and artisans through his blog. One of our editors, Meghan O'Dea, set out to interview him.

Dante's Heart: Aaron, I see from your blog that you enjoy interviewing other artists. What gave you the idea to set up that kind of dialogue? What excites you about interviewing and what have you learned from the artists you interview?

Aaron Paquette: I think a lot of people want to be artists, or already are and need some encouragement. I know I certainly feel that way sometimes! What I like about the interviewing process is that every now and then a nugget of gold will be found in the words, and it can be different for everybody. There's a chance for everyone to walk away with something valuable they can use in their own lives.

In other news, I finished the cover for a Book coming out this fall called "Dreamcatcher" published by Theytus Books in Penticton. As the date approaches I'll post more information.

I'm also done the paintings for my collaboration with poet Andy Michaelson. That book should be ready for next Spring.

Painting has been slow going over the past six months, but I've found my groove again and that's a relief as I'll be having a mini show at Mandolin Books in May (the works will be posted and for sale through the Bearclaw Gallery).

And last but not least, I have a show coming up in June at the Willock and Sax Gallery.

That should be enough updates for now. Here's a painting!

A Decade's Worth

2009-03-06T09:40:00.004-07:00

.

Press Release
(please distribute)

The Grande Prairie Friendship Centre, UMAYC Program is pleased to present the
10th Annual Spirit Seekers Youth Conference My Spirit From All Directions: Then,
Now & 4EVER. This conference is open to youth 12 – 29 years of age.

This year, special guests include: Travis Dugas, Aaron Paquette, Shauna and
Shannon Baker, Rocky Morin and the Thundering Spirit singers. Conference Elders
include: Miriam Youngchief, National Association of Friendship Centres’ Senator,
and Louise English, Piikani Elder. Once again the conference will offer a Career and
Education Fair.

An added feature to this year’s event will be the first Round Dance and Feast, where
we will honor our Aboriginal Youth Role Models.

“Spirit Seekers is a conference planned by our youth, for the youth”, said Melodie
Wilton, Interim CEO. “Over the last 10 years, we have had participants from across
Western Canada, NWT and the Yukon. It’s a unique learning experience mixed with
a lot of fun,” she added. “This conference gives youth the opportunity to network
with peers, in a good way” said Delaine Lambert, UMAYC Coordinator. “We also
focus on bringing their mental, physical, emotional and spiritual components
together”.

This year’s event will be held at the Grande Prairie Regional College, March 20 &
21, 2009.

The registration fee is $110.00, which includes the feast and all the entertainment.
Deadline for registration is Friday, March 13, 2009.

For more information and registration packages, contact:

Delaine Lambert, UMAYC Coordinator
Grande Prairie Friendship Centre
Phone: 780 532 5617
Email: gpfc2@telusplanet.net

Interview with Sandi Greene

2009-02-23T17:26:00.006-07:00

Mystique
Sandi Greene

Well, I hope to have a text interview with Sandi in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, enjoy a few of her photos, and please check out my podcast where Sandi and I sit down for a quick chat about her stunning images:

Interview with Sandi Greene

And her book:

Seeing Evangline

Looking For Red
Sandi Greene

Remember! If you haven't already, please subscribe at iTunes (just type in Aaron Paquette in the iTunes search bar) and feel free to give me feedback to make these little audio productions better for you!

This Butternut Squash Be Trippin

2009-02-12T14:24:00.004-07:00

So last month was eventful.

I was a facilitator at the Banff Centre for a Royal Conservatory program called Learning Through The Arts (LTTA). It's a program where artists and teachers partner up to teach the curriculum to students through various art forms. For example, teaching numeracy with painting and symbols, or how electrical currents work through movement, etc.

The idea is that it incorporates all kinds of learning into the classroom to help all kids learn in as many ways as possible. Everyone is different and we all learn in different ways. The fancy words for this are Differentiated Instruction.

A week before that, I was in Toronto to receive my Mentor-Artist Educator Certificate from the Royal Conservatory in a very cool Convocation ceremony.

One of the major highlights? The butternut squash soup at the CN Tower. Honestly, it blew my mind.

_

Feeding the Insatiable Coldness

2009-01-19T16:19:00.003-07:00

Northern Gods
9"x 12"
Mixed Media on Paper
2008

I painted two versions of this subject, I'll post the other soon.

This painting was in response to the dreams, both sleeping and waking, that I'd been having as I worked on my latest show with the Art Gallery of Alberta. I was exploring the mythos and history of the coming together of the two sides of my heritage: First Nations and Norse. The similarities in culture are astounding, as are the differences and this image kept coming to my mind.

What does it mean? Who are the two figures and what happened in the hours previous to this moment? Who is this mysterious god(gess) looking upon the scene with such apparent serenity or humour, compassion or disdain?

Even to me, the so-called creator, it is a mystery.

Halfbreed Mythology - An Art Gallery of Alberta Travelling Exhibit

2009-01-19T15:42:00.004-07:00

Down and Out - City Living
9" x 12"
Acrylic on Paper
2008

From the "Halfbreed Mythology" show guide:

As stated by Paul Smith, Aaron Paquette's paintings "illustrate moments of connection and conflict, both individual and communal". Such moments are perfectly expressed in the painting, 'Down and Out - City Living'. In this work Paquette connects with both his cultural heritage and the places, both emotional and physical, he finds himself in.

Paquette's heritage is expressed through the elements of the raven, the Norse snake, and the First Nation's decorative pattern in the foreground of the work.

The 'places' the artist finds himself in are also expressed in this painting. Aaron Paquette is an urban-dweller, and in this work the city is symbolised by the light standard and the graffiti wall. How the artist might feel about this place, and the situation faced by many First Nations/Metis peoples in the city, is movingly portrayed by the raven. Slumped in the foreground of the work, the raven is physically distanced from the symbols representing the city. The use of the complementary colours of orange and blue to separate these elements reinforces this physical distance and may reflect emotional dislocation as well. At present there are approximately 3000 homeless people in Edmonton alone, many of whom are of First Nations heritage. The figure of the raven, normally a powerful First Nations symbol, here sitting bedraggled and smoking a cigarette, functions as an evocative statement on this disturbing situation.

-thanks to Shane Golby

Windspeaker Confidential

2009-01-15T12:19:00.009-07:00

A little interview from the summer.

Thanks to Dianne Meili, author of the much-loved book: Those Who Know - Profiles of Alberta's Native Elders

Windspeaker: What one quality do you most value in a friend?

Aaron Paquette: A tough one right off the bat! All the good answers are honesty, loyalty, that kind of thing, but if someone's your friend, hopefully they already have that in spades. I think I'd have to say the ability to sit with you in silence, neither one feeling forced to break the awkward moment because the moment isn't awkward at all! It's just you and an old friend sitting there. Well, now that I put it that way it sounds kind of boring...

W: What is it that really makes you mad?

A.P.: People throwing their trash out the window of their car. Who do they think is going to clean it up anyway? Me? They're probably right, but that's a little presumptuous on their part, don't you think? Seriously, though, it really bothers me. It speaks of a complete absence of gratitude for the earth we live on and share. I can't really blame anyone, because who do you blame? In the end everyone does the best they can with what they've got at the moment. If you don't have gratitude, it's because no one gave that gift to you, or if they did you didn't understand it. I guess it's why we have a whole lifetime to learn it.

W: When are you at your happiest?

A.P.: I should probably say that it's when I'm painting, but really it's when I'm with my family. There's just something special about being able to tell old stories and love them every time, and to be able to take tragedy and turn it into laughter. Even though your family can make you go crazy sometimes, getting through it is healing and it's when I learn the most.

W: What one word best describes you when you are at your worst?

A.P.: Hopeless

W: What one person do you most admire and why?

A.P.: Myself. My humility. Ha ha, just kidding. It's got to be my mom, for giving it her best every day of our lives. They don't give awards for that, but they sure as heck should.

W: What is the most difficult thing you've ever had to do?

A.P.: Getting to the point where I knew what it really meant to let go. Once I finally reached that, actually letting go was the easy part.

W: What is your greatest accomplishment?

For the rest of the article hit this link.

Podcast Broadcast

2009-01-02T15:41:00.006-07:00

Well, I've finally done it.

I've jumped into the podcast world.

I've recorded 3 episodes so far to see how they fly, and I have a long way to go, but I'm fairly happy with how they've turned out so far.

Here's the iTunes link:

Click on me!

Subscribe, listen in, please give me your feedback and I'll endeavour to make these little podcasts helpful, informative and worth the 15 minute listen every couple of weeks.

I hope everyone had a great Holiday and here's to all the best in 2009.

-Aaron

Grandmothers

2008-12-03T00:56:00.005-07:00

Grandmothers
Mixed Media on Canvas
2008

This is a painting of my grandmothers. Like the twisting of the braid, the winding road that lead our forebears to meet and mix and create has lead right down to us, caught in the plaiting of history and time. We are the way between, the observer of the past and the ones who continue to hope for the future. The present moment, our Now, is like the smoke from the smudge, drifting up on the air, cleansing, entreating. There are seven tendrils of smoke in this painting - of the burning sage - that speak of seven generations. Before us, after us, it's all the same.

Letters encircle the drum forms in the corner. Writing, that gift of Odin gleaned from the ether as he hung upon Yggdrasil as a sacrifice of himself to himself. nine days he hung and brought us a way to preserve our thoughts, our stories, our histories and legends.

These things that are passed down from generation to generation under the tutelage and watchful care of our grandmothers, if not in the flesh, then in their spirit.

---

Of interest to a few:

The smudge bowl in the painting was given me by Terrance Houle in Banff, December 2006

Wordle of the Day

2008-11-20T14:35:00.001-07:00

from wordle

Time slips like silk through the fingers

2008-11-15T21:39:00.006-07:00

Detail of "Koi"
Mixed Media on Canvas
24" x 36"
2007

Well, now.

It's been a long while since I've posted here and much has happened. Too much to put it all down in the short time I have available to me right now.

So instead of looking back, let's look forward to the future, all the way to the end of the month and then....beyond!

First, there's a Christmas show coming up at the Bearclaw Gallery on November 29th. I'll have some work there, and so will such great and wonderful painters as Jane Ash Poitras, Alex Janvier and John Roumbough.

I'm quite excited to see what they have on offer. I know John painted a lot of pieces for this, and Jane and Alex are both prolific. I'm the only one who spends a lifetime on every painting, I think. The others use the experience of their lifetimes to create their beautiful work.

Next up is the Art Gallery of Alberta's Travelling Exhibit Program. They send shows up and all over Northern, Central and down to Southern Alberta. I'll have a solo show that begins its run in January and goes for at least one year. When I'm more clear on the opening dates I'll give a buzz.

----------

On another note, seeing as how Christmas has snuck up on me unprepared, I'm putting out the word:

I'm open for a few private commissions.

Not a lot, just a couple to get some grease under the wheels and get the train moving again. I'll be honest, I've recently had some devastating news and being able to pour my thought, heart and positive energy into your painting will really be a help to me.

So, if you've always wanted to get a portrait done, a landscape, or just something cool or meaningful, get in touch.

This applies as gifts or corporate art to bring a little spirit to the offices as well. And of course, the spots will fill up, so get in touch as soon as you can if it's important to you.

See you around!

Aaron

-------------------

And now for an update.

In the space of just a few hours, I have gone from feeling empty, devastated, but determined...to something completely different.

I was writing this down:

I am grateful
I am grateful for gratitude!
Gratitude allows me to choose to live out of love instead of fear
When I choose to live out of love, it is like a weight is lifted from my shoulders, just lifted right up, and the clouds part and sunlight comes streaming in to fill my body.

And you know what? As I wrote it, I felt it happen, and as I felt it happen I felt something wonderful. My true self, who this week had been peeking his head out from behind my fear to test the waters and make a stand, well...my true self lost all hesitancy.

My true self that loves, and has no fear, has finally arrived. There is a timeless, free feeling to it, an opening of my heart like a flower. And the wind and the roughness of this life can't touch it, delicate as it is, because it's the strongest thing in the universe.

Oh, the body that holds it, my body, can return to the dust of this sweet earth, but the love that this flower represents, this fearless thing, I think that it's eternal. At least timeless, and isn't that the same thing?

At this moment, and perhaps it is a fleeting thing, but it doesn't feel fleeting, I am filled with a wonderful altruistic love for all people, all creatures, all life, and even the stone. Gratitude.

I remembered to remember. I have supreme but gentle confidence and see the unfolding petals of love. The petals are numberless and constantly unfolding, unfolding, and unfolding again, always revealing a new and varied beauty.

Pretty cool, huh?

If this passes, it passes, but at this moment I am the centre of supreme patience, compassion, and understanding. There is no such thing as someone or something being against me, only against love. All enemies fear and fear and fear, and lose themselves in an endless spiral of ever shrinking thoughts until there isn't even an awareness of fear, only hate, spite, and anger. All lovers love in the opposite spiral...the true love that neither takes nor demands, and neither does it give, not in the sense we're used to.

The true love just is. I can't explain it better. It just is and is pure joy, and the joy radiates joy and accepts joy. There's no fear because fear is the great lie and love is the great truth.

I know this sounds a little nuts, but honestly, I don't have better words at the moment. I hope these are doing the trick!

I'll make a confession, because I have no shame to worry about. I have been holding onto a piece of my heart, holding it back in reserve because even though I was in a loving relationship, I was scared that it might crash, and if I had put all my heart into it, I'd have nothing left to myself, nothing to survive on.

ha! There's an infinite supply of strength, I just had to let go of what I thought was important: me. I had to let go and allow...that's it. Simply allow love to fill me without fighting it or fearing it.

Many reading this may know what I mean. Maybe some reading this are holding onto their own little pocket of fear.

If you're not, then you know what I mean when I say that the moment I began to leave my fear behind is the moment I allowed my heart to begin to open and I found that I have a supremely more powerful friend than my little fear pocket.

I have the unfolding flower.

Every petal sends out a wave of love and I choose to accept it, to leave my "important concerns" behind and instead be my true self.

We all have a true self.

Hey me, you rock!

And so do you!

Just a Quick Update

2008-07-31T12:31:00.003-06:00

One!

I had the great pleasure to write a quick article for Mosaic Magazine about, well, myself that will be included in their upcoming and imminent issue (hit's stands starting this weekend).

Great thanks go out to publisher Connie Brisson for contacting me about it!

As a bonus: I agreed to offer a painting as a prize, so that might interest a few people out there.

:)

Two!

Patricia Myers of Legacy Magazine wrote up a great interview in the Autumn issue and you can pick up a copy starting this weekend as well!

Three!

Dianne Meilli, author, journalist, and radio show host had me on air a few weeks ago and also sent me a list of question to answer (which I did!) and the answers can be found in the latest issue of WindSpeaker Magazine.

Four!

I'll be interviewed live on Acimowan on radio station CJSR (FM88) Friday morning at about 10 or 10:30am.

I think that's about it for now. Back to painting.

fish!

2008-07-16T12:43:00.003-06:00

Swish and Swirl
24" x 30"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2008

Bears!

2008-07-10T14:51:00.002-06:00

Come Little Ones
6" x 9.5"
Mixed Media
on Paper
2008

There's so much to see on a beautiful day! Summer in the Rocky Mountains and a good mother tries to corral her playful cubs. Berries aren't going to eat themselves, you know!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Too Tired
Mixed Media
on Paper
6" x 9.5"
2008

Just imagining what it must be like sometimes for a mother bear when that cub's little legs just can't take him any further. Might as well enjoy the view!

Show, Cards, and hey, it's almost Summer!

2008-06-19T16:22:00.005-06:00

A Fearless Heart
24" x 36"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2008

Thanks to everyone who came out to the show, it was a fantastic success! I really enjoyed talking with everyone and all the laughter and just wish there was more time for everyone.

For the first time ever I've decided to release Greeting Cards of my work, so all of you pestering pesterers, there you go! Now I expect you to go ahead and get a set for yourself and extra sets for everyone you know...

;)

Send me an email if you want to know more, and I'm sure I'll be talking about it in the next week or two.

ALSO!!! I'm happy to announce that an actual website is being developed and the address is:

http://www.aaronpaquette.net

It's still in progress, but check it out anyway if you want to see a quick snapshot of the Art Cards.

An Impromptu Show

2008-06-11T10:41:00.006-06:00

Raven

9 1/2" x 12 1/2"
Acrylic and
Gold Leaf on Paper

The Bearclaw Gallery will be hosting a show on Saturday June 14th

I'll be there from about 1-4pm.

The show will run for about a week after the opening so come by, get out of the gloom and check out some colour!

---
Just a few quick thoughts on this painting:

This is one of a series of 5 paintings. I'll post the rest in the next week as I find the time.

This piece is talking about Residential Schools and the symbols we use. At first glance it may look like the young woman is praying, with some sort of religious head gear on. Upon closer inspection, we find that what we might have taken for hands pressed together in benediction is instead a rabbit, and the hat is instead a raven.

So, while we may assume one thing, the spiritual reality is much different.

I've heard a lot of stories of the people who had to undergo the pain of being forced to learn an alien form of spirituality and worship. Some were clever enough to go through the motions, but instead of praying to a saint, in their hearts they instead communed with nature and their traditional symbols, remembering the teachings of their tribe or community.

At some point if I find the time, I'll come back and talk more about this, but as it is...well, here it is.

The Beast

2008-06-03T09:16:00.005-06:00

I have a beast inside me.

For a long time, I didn't know this.

I thought that the way I felt about things, my words and my actions...they were all normal. I thought the way I saw life was just reality and there was nothing I could do about it.

I thought darkness, misery and pain were the usual - and happiness, love and light were rare things, and not necessarily to be trusted. The betrayal was coming.

I thought that people who seemed to always be happy, or relaxed, or generous, or kind were fakes. Phoneys. What did they want, anyway?

Was I born with those attitudes? No. I was a really happy child, I remember that. Every day was special and exciting! No, I grew into those bleak thoughts. I had someone in my life who believed those thoughts, so for a while, I started to believe them, too. After all, there was a lot of evidence to back up my pessimism wasn't there?

This world can be a bleak place, and it can feel like there's no hope. Oh, people talk about it, but when you're in a place where you're scared, or poor, or addicted, or alone...what does hope mean?

And so the beast would lash out. The beast would use people, the beast would hurt people, the beast would pull a black veil over my eyes and wrap me in the comfort of misery, because there is a comfort in it: it's predictable. You know it'll be there.

And that's the world I lived in. And I was in despair.

They say that change is easy, that the hard part is coming to that decision to change.

I knew something was wrong, and I knew that I didn't want to be there - in darkness - anymore. I also knew that there were two ways out. Death was one of them, but by the grace of all that is good, I chose the other way.

I chose Life.

And at the moment I made that decision, the shadow over my soul lifted a bit and for a while I was happy, I was light. But the beast didn't want happiness, the beast wanted it's dark cave, it wanted to feed on misery. Any and all misery. It wanted the darkness of dark music, it wanted the violence of death played in front of my eyes with movies and tv, it wanted to rage and be strong and be forceful! The beast wanted my damned life!

And I regret to say, I gave it back to him. But a part of me refused, a part of me kept trying to fight it, and so, like hiking out of the mountains, I would climb out of one shaded valley into the blue, far-seeing sky, open and free - only to find myself descending again. Oh, how many times was it repeated?

How could I get out of the valley for good?

How could I live in the clean blue air?

My problem, you see, was that I didn't know I had a beast in me. Like I said, I thought the beast was my very own soul. I didn't yet understand that the beast was devouring me like a parasite.

I started getting hints.

I came to a point one day where I was yelling at someone I loved dearly, and I realized I didn't even care about what I was arguing so fiercely. It didn't really matter and it was a small thing anyway. It was a really strange feeling, knowing that I was watching this beast roar and stare and eat the sadness it was making, while at the same time I was watching it all happen, completely aware of what I was doing.

I started noticing this more and more.

And then, one day, I just told the beast to stop, and it did. I calmed right down, immediately, and said words that I truly meant, and weren't just to get me out of trouble.

I said, "I'm sorry."

And my life changed. Just like that, in an instant.

Don't get me wrong, I still got angry, depressed, lonely, mean - but it was easier and easier to say to myself, "Hey, that's not me. That's the beast. Me? I'm really good. I love people. I love life, and I love this whole universe!"

I'll tell you a secret. Once you start loving like I started loving, the shadow falls from your eyes. The darkness leaves your spirit and your thoughts. The light gets in and the entire universe is free to love you right back, just like it did when you were a child. You stop pushing everything away.

The other secret, though, is that it isn't always easy. I still wrestle with that beast from time to time. When things get tough, I still hear the beast whisper in my ear trying to get me to do something that will hurt me, or someone else. Once in a while, that beast wins. I lose my temper, or I feel like someone insulted me, or that someone stole from me, or whatever. I get all attached to things or my feelings of wanting to be respected, or at least noticed. I want my own way and fight to get it, even if it's stupid.

Yes, that old beast slips out from time to time.

What I'm learning is that the reason he can escape is because I've been keeping him locked up, in chains. I'm trying to give myself a chance to change, but I haven't been giving the beast a chance.

Instead of soothing the beast, I've been sidestepping him. Why? Because the beast isn't me!!

It's not, is it?

Well, actually, I think it is. The beast, I think, was actually only trying to protect me all this time, it just got confused as to what was worthy of protection. When I look at it, the beast just wanted to protect me from other people's ability to hurt me. It wanted me to fight! To dull my senses, to escape, to be in charge.

The beast wanted me to be the fucking number one gangster, because then no one would fuck with me.

--------

Oh my beast...you formed when I was a child and only know the fear of a child. You only understand the simplest things a child would know.

"Stronger people can hurt me."
"Pain is bad."
"I'm not protected."

And so:

"I need to be the strongest."
"I need to cause the pain instead, and dull my own pain completely"
"I will protect myself."

It's time, beast, for you to change, too. I'll teach you what I've learned while I was away from you, and I'll protect you from now on, and give you a rest. I'll soothe you with clean water and clean thoughts. I'll wash away your fear by being fearless - you don't need to jump in, anymore. You wanted me to be strong, I'll show you the strength I've come to understand: that to fight is to make the thing you fight stronger. Real strength is finding out how to love the thing you fear, how to make friends with your enemies.

I'll show you that you can see the greatness in everyone without feeling diminished - without needing to assert your own greatness. It's there and if people don't see it, it's because their own beast has shaded their eyes and covered their heart.

Beast, you did your best to help me, but now let me help you. Let me change you from a monster into a friend.

After all, you are me, I'm you, and the time for nightmares has passed. Oh, there's still darkness in the world, and a lot of it, but really, it's just all these scared beasts fighting for their people, isn't it?

When you look at it that way, the terror lifts a little, because my beast, if we can change, then that means other people have changed, too.

And that means that one day, everyone can.

Until then, we can only work to make ourselves free, but it's a journey we're all in together.

You know, I think I saw a bit of red on up ahead, it just might be our road. What do you say, old friend?

Let's go take a look.

Here's the Presser

2008-05-28T16:12:00.002-06:00

***PRESS RELEASE***

Showing Thursday, May 29th

From The Spirit: Aaron Paquette
Bravo Canada

7pm EST
6pm Central
5pm Mountain
4pm Pacific

Runtime: 30 minutes

Bravo presents a half hour interview/documentary with one of Canada's rising First Nations artists, Aaron Paquette. In his own words, Paquette describes both his inspiration and the history that informs and shapes his art. Filmed in October 2007 in his Edmonton studio, From The Spirit documents a personal, human, and spiritual journey into the world of an artist.

Documented by Earth Magic Media.

---

Aaron Paquette has quickly become one of Canada's leading First Nations artists. Featured on radio, television, in magazines and newspapers across the country, this young man of Cree, Cherokee and Norwegian descent is blending his cultural backgrounds to create visual and spiritual bridges between the centuries long rifts of Europeans and First Nations peoples.

In addition to his acrylic and oil works, Paquette apprenticed in both Stained Glass and Goldsmithing.

Coming projects include a January 2009 solo show with the Art Gallery of Alberta's Travelling Exhibition program, as well as curating a regional show with St.Albert's Profiles Gallery. June 2008 will mark his 6th solo show with the renowned Bearclaw Gallery in Edmonton, Alberta.

"In my paintings, I seek to nurture a relationship with the viewer. I try to use colors that are calming, but also fresh and exciting...In each painting I try to include a story that is meaningful to me and encourages discussion. I hope that my works can act as part of a catalyst toward greater understanding. My work almost always features an animal, totem, or aspect of nature in order to show our relationships with the physical and spiritual worlds that surround us."

Thanks to Carol, Raymond and Bill at Earth Magic Media

May at Last

2008-05-02T12:49:00.004-06:00

My Golden Joy
Acrylic, Oil
Gold Leaf on Canvas
2008

Fun Package!

2008-04-08T11:16:00.003-06:00

I got a nice surprise in the mail yesterday.

There's a great folk music collective out of the UK called The Crow Club and they just released their new CD using one of my paintings for the cover. They also included the Press Release and a few reviews of the disk (great reviews!).

I highly recommend buying twenty copies each.

A few links:

The Crow Club
People Tree Records
Katy Carr

Teenage Suicide - Don't Do It

2008-04-05T12:55:00.005-06:00

-Heathers (1989)

***PRESS RELEASE***

Sharon Ryan, adjunct professor of management sciences at Concordia University College of Alberta, and freelance columnist (Workplace Ethics on Wednesdays) with the Edmonton Journal is releasing her first book on young adult suicide.

Live Your Life: How to Abandon Your Miserable Existence Without Killing Yourself and Others Along the Way contains twelve true stories as told by the young adults who lived through difficult experiences and how they overcame major setbacks to carry on with their lives. Following each story, Sharon reflects on the wisdom of the young adults by dovetailing their message with passages from the Bible. The intent is to show other young adults that they can find their way out of misery by using scripture.

The stories come from Edmontonians and students Sharon has met over the past 10 years. Three stories come from the Aboriginal community. The topics include date rape, teenage pregnancy, child abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, imprisonment, serious illnesses, general boredom with life, depression, and the trial of having someone close to you commit suicide.

Aaron Paquette, highly acclaimed Edmonton artist, has graciously allowed Sharon to reprint four of his prints in the book. The prints have a healing effect and are intended to offer psychological relief between chapters. As well, a short biography of Aaron's’ life is included in the book.

Sharon and Aaron will be present at Concordia University College of Alberta, Tegler Centre, on Wednesday April 9th from noon – 1:00 p.m. for a book signing and sale. The book costs $15 including GST.

For more information, please contact Sharon Ryan at sharonryan2@gmail.com.

----------end-----------

My Thoughts:

The publication comes from a decidedly Christian perspective and I considered this before allowing my images to be used. There are two perspectives of Christianity in the Native Community: one with very negative connotations due to a history of abuse and attempted cultural genocide, and one that embraces the theology and spirituality of the beliefs, choosing to overlook the messenger for the message.

I decided to remain neutral on the subject as I feel that anything that encourages youth to take a larger look at life and decide it's worth living can only be a positive thing. I lost someone I loved to suicide when we were both in our teens and I've seen and felt first hand how destructive it can be. I've experienced the waste it is and the waste it leaves behind.

The suicide rates in First Nations communities are disturbingly higher than in the rest of Canadian society and if this book can help even a little, then I'm proud to stand behind it.

Some Traditionalists will disapprove but as someone who faced his own difficult choices as a young man, help from all sources was good to have.

So, if you have the lunch hour free, I'll be glad to see you there. Also, if you can't make it but still want the book signed - assuming everyone is obviously going to want ten copies :) - just give me a shout and we'll work something out.

Coming Soon

2008-03-28T02:09:00.001-06:00

Happy Easter

2008-03-22T12:30:00.004-06:00

Renew

24" x 30"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2008

According to the calendar, it's spring again, and I'll take it. So what if it's still cold and snow keeps falling? People are in shorts, riding bikes, sitting outside with their coffee...it's all good. The weather says no, the cooped up spirit says yes.

Earlier in the month the show at the Willock and Sax Gallery in Banff opened on a fantastic sunny day and I got to meet a lot of really great people with interesting stories to share. One such person was the fellow who had a show alongside mine. His name is Darren Peterson and he's a truly skilled glassblower.

The trip was slow and easy. Taking the side roads and meandering through the countryside and scenery rejuvenated me and lent me an inner calm I'd been missing. What really started it all was the few days before that, when I had the honour of sitting in with a group of Elders, Artists, Educators, and Just Plain Good People up at Blue Quills First Nations College just outside of St.Paul, Alberta. They're in the opening stages of planning an accredited Art Program and they really want it to be effective for students coming from a First Nations traditional background, and for anyone who wants an alternative to the standard post-secondary process. Thanks again to Sherri Chisan for including me in something so wonderful.

So, it's spring, it's Easter, and up here in the Northern Hemisphere it's a time for rebirth and renewal. Today seems as good as any to stretch out the old dusty wings and go for a glide. So see you soon and take care!

Some of Life's Great Blessings...

2008-03-19T02:00:00.013-06:00

I wish someone told me these things when I was a young man:

1. It's going to be okay. That passion you feel, that isolation you feel, that sureness and confusion, and above all that intensity! It's great and it's terrible, yes, but it's normal. And it gets better.

2. You're worth something. You're the reason this universe was created. You're the reason everything that has ever happened...happened! You are unique and no one like you has ever walked this earth before. Now that you know that, remember: what I just told you is true for every other person who ever lived and is alive today. Before you feel down about that, or think that maybe you're not so special after all, think about how incredible this world is that it can create so many amazing souls, and that you are one of them!

3. You are beautiful. Anyone who makes you feel otherwise is just trapped in an idea that they're not beautiful themselves. That kind of sadness passes from person to person, from generation to generation more easily than a virus. It may be abuse, expectations, or simply fear, but really it's a lie. An illusion. Behind it all the fact remains: You are beautiful. You really are.

4. Pay your bills! If you can't, then phone the gas company, the credit card company, or wherever your debt is coming from and make arrangements. This will give you more peace of mind than you can imagine and you'll sleep better at night.

5. If you need help, ask. Humbly

6. If someone else needs help give it. Humbly. But don't give so much that you can't help anyone else ever again. Like the Buddhist said, "all in moderation."

7. When it comes to matters of the heart, be true. Don't stay with someone simply because they need you, and don't need so much that you force someone to stay. Be what you want in a partner and you'll find what you want in a partner. If your goal is to be happy in a relationship, don't expect perfection. Don't even expect half that. Just give and love as much as you can, and if you find that you stumbled into something that hurts more than it helps, call your momma and she'll lead you home. If your momma can't do it, then call on the power that you might call God. If you can do that without anger or pride, then you'll be just fine.

8. Keep going. It's going to be tough. You're going to be kicked down, hurt, betrayed. You, my child, are going to fail. It's true. And it's going to feel terrible. In fact, one day you're going to have your heart ripped right out of your chest and no one can prepare you for how incredibly painful that will be. You'll feel like you're going to physically die from the pain. I'm so sorry. Lie down and rest if you must, but not for too long or you'll be trapped! As hard as it may be, stand up, shake it off, know the pain is there but continue on anyway. Keep going. Keep going. The only ones who ever got anywhere were those who kept going, step by step, day by day. And didn't those days just get better and better? They did. They do. They will for you.

9. Keep your word. It can be hard sometimes, and for most of us it's something we practice, just like playing sports or learning a language. It can be challenging, tricky, and you'll mess up a lot before you get really good at it. Keeping your word is about the only currency you can count on when everything else is used up. If you consistently keep your word, it will shine out from your face like the light of the sun. Your life will be a good one. Avoid taking the easy way out with a quick lie. Believe me, it always comes back to you. If not through discovery, then through the dishonest seed it planted in your soul. It will be a tough road sometimes, but keep your word. It's your "true" treasure.

10. Be forgiving. If you're a completely perfect person who never causes any harm or makes any mistakes then judge as much as you want. The hitch there is that if you are such a rare being, the last thing you'll ever do is judge someone else. If you expect perfection in yourself or in someone else, you'll never, ever be satisfied. It's simply unrealistic. Instead, expect the unexpected!

11. Be grateful. Begin every day thinking about everything in your life that you can give thanks for. Some days, it might simply be the very fact you woke up. Be grateful for that! In fact, don't just think about it, feel it. Feel the gratitude you have for everything in your life that builds you, strengthens you, challenges you and supports you. Before you go to bed, feel that wealth of gratitude again. Do this every day of your life, it will make a profound difference.

12. You are a creator. There's a reason most human beings worship one form of Creator or another: we are a reflection of Creation. As a result, we are inherently creators ourselves. I recently heard the architect Douglas Cardinal mention this verse from the Bible, John Chapter 1, verse 1: "In the beginning was the Word". It got me thinking about the whole thing:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Let's put it this way:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the Creator, and the Word was the Creator."

As an artist, I see an image in my head. The image has never existed before, and now it exists in my mind's eye. Then I use my hands and some paint and the image exists physically, it's real. I can share it with others. I have CREATED! Something came from nothing but through the sheer act of my will (my word), and then my action.

What a concept!

And it works for everything. As a creator, you can have anything you want in life. Absolutely anything. The catch is that it works for the good and the bad. If I'm focusing my will, and my words, on something negative, it happens. I have the traffic tickets to prove it. if I'm focusing on something positive, it happens too. Hey, I'm still alive after all. It's the magic of the universe alive in us, the children of the universe. This is how you get what you really want in life:

a) Think about it. Make it crystal clear. Feel it. Feel having it. Live it.
b) Write it down. You've just taken it one step further into reality.
c) Say it out loud. The Word. The Word is powerful. It's a special gift from the Creator to the people...a gift we sometimes take for granted.
d) Believe it. Faith. And I mean really believe it.

What you'll find is that events and circumstances will start to happen that bring you closer and closer to the thing you want to create. For me, it's art. As time has gone by, more and more opportunities to keep making art have come into my life. Of course, I've had to be open to it, watching for it, aware of it. I've taken action. I didn't just sit back and expect the universe to come to me, I knew I had to meet it halfway. I'm just a small example. Ghandi, Martin Luther King Jr., Albert Einstein, Richard Branson and so on. All these people made a huge change in their own life and in the life of others by embracing the knowledge that they could have whatever they thought of.

You can have whatever you think of. The world is yours, it really is. What do you want to do with it?

Opening Day - March 8 2008

2008-02-12T15:39:00.001-07:00

The Willock and Sax Gallery in Banff is presenting a show next month with myself and artist Daren Petersen. We'll both be in attendance from 2pm - 6pm and travel time permitting, I'll try to be there for at least an hour beforehand as well to meet and answer questions.

The show runs from March 5-9 2008.

Aniti Anemos

Mixed Media
on Canvas
2008

Aniti is a Sanskrit word meaning "he breathes". Anemos in Greek is "wind".

They are the root for the word Animus, that primitive and natural part of the human mind that works behind our awareness, under our masks of reality and experience. It is a place of magic, the wellspring of images and symbols whose meanings lie deep within us, the definitions of which we can never truly grasp, but must be content to feel - to learn of perhaps - only in that place between wakefulness and dreams.

What ancient memories are held in each of us? As droplets of water that exist for a brief span like the spray of water on the sea before it falls again to rejoin the whole, we carry a pearl of the entirety in that deep place in our hearts. To me, this is expressed as a feeling of connection to the soil, as a kinship with the beasts, and as a believer in visions and personal spiritual knowledge. It is why I paint. As each of us follows our own path it will teach us, day by day, how to breath the wind.

2008-01-13T13:07:00.000-07:00

Divine Nurture
40" x 48"
Mixed Media
on Canvas

When my bones feel brittle and my body is empty, and weary; when my patience is long drawn out and each breath is a fight against tears; when I wonder how we will survive our own selves, it is then that I abandon concrete and steel and take to the field, the wood and the rocky shore.

I lay my head down on the yielding soil, looking sideways at the closeness of the earth just an eyelash away. The damp musk of fertility speaks on an elemental level of life that the bird's song overhead confirms. I spread my hands through the grass and the dry fallen leaves, feeling the slow murmuring heartbeat Gaia - of the mother who gave us life and will accept us back when our travels are over. We have such a brief space of time! and an eternity.

As the throb and dance of the earth sings it's way back into my blood, I am refreshed and can recall the easy steps of the circle dance. Round and round it all revolves, worries fall away like the shedding of a skin that had become old and restricting. My heart is soft again and my eyes are bright. I am young, forever, clear. Unshed tears fall, not of pain anymore, but gratitude. The nurturing love of this divine earth - and of the unseen universe all around us - has made me new.

2008 and I'm already late

2008-01-11T15:33:00.000-07:00

Raven Storm
24" x 36"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2007

When I was 20, I drove into the mountains to stay for a while. On my way, I stopped off just outside of Hinton, finding an isolated place to sleep and fish. I just finished setting up camp when a strange sound started to spread through the shallow valley, getting louder and more confused by the moment. I walked out to shore and from around a bend came what seemed like hundreds of black ravens silhoutted against the glowing sky, screaming their crackling urgent song. It went on forever and like a cloud they passed by, rushing downriver. I always wondered what they were singing, and I wanted to take flight and find the mysterious end to their sunset journey.

2007-12-22T14:30:00.000-07:00

Merry Christmas

2007-12-03T17:25:00.000-07:00

New World Isis
24" x 36"
Mixed Media
on Canvas
2007

In Egyptian Mythology, Isis was supposed to marry the god Set, but instead wed his brother Osiris. In jealousy, Set killed Osiris and hid his body in the Nile. Isis recovered Osiris' corpse and prepared him properly for burial but at the funeral, Set stole the body, hacked it into pieces and scattered the pieces across the earth. Her devotion being so strong, Isis recovered the pieces of the body and reconstructed the fallen god Osiris.

In her grief, Isis transformed into a bird and circled in the air, crying out her sorrow and deep lament. The wind she made with her wings wafted over her husband and new life came into him and he was reborn.

To me, this story talks about the way we can become fragmented - our lives are cut up and compartmentalized- and we become role players, filling various parts but never feeling whole. We need to breathe. We need to allow our souls to return to our bodies, and -in prayer or meditation, or in simply being still and quiet- we can rejoin our fragmented selves and become entire once again.