mnartists.org: Catherine L. Johnson

Pine Tree: BODY & SOUL 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 23:48:05 GMT

[b]Pine Tree: [i]BODY & SOUL[/i][/b] 2011 [i][b]Breath, spine, waves, rhythm, cycle, frequency, counterpoint... [/b][/i] 10"H x 7.75"W mixed media on 100% rag board. Incised lines, layers of metallic silver and dark slate acrylic paint [b]Pine Tree: [i]BODY & SOUL[/i][/b] 2011 portfolio [i]16 original paintings with same dimensions[/i]

The experience of the art needs an actual encounter with the viewer.

The viewer participates in the unfolding of the work's brilliant luminosity and deep internal night.

[i][b]Please note:[/b][/i] My work is an experience, that needs an encounter for its truth. It is likened to viewing a photograph of a lover in contrast to reveling in the actual presence of the beloved-a real comm[b]U[/b]n[b]I[/b]cation. So it is with [b]ALL[/b] my work.

For further information: [url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url]

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CATHERINEfALL2011ARTist

Catherine L. Johnson — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 05:37:02 GMT

CATHERINEf[i][b]ALL[/b][/i]2011[b]ART[/b]ist

rOses 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 03:04:26 GMT

[b]rOses 2011[/b] A portfolio of over 20 works developed and created in the Summer 2011. Various formats and dimensions. Shown: 40" H x 23" W [i]...And this above all: that through these petals light must pass. From a thousand skies, each drop of darkness is filtered out and the glow at the core of each flower grows stronger and rises into life. And the movement of the roses[/i] [i] has a vibrancy none could discern, were it not for what it ignites in the universe entire... One could say they were self-contained[/i] [i] if self-contained meant to transform the world outside, patience of springtime, guilt and restlessness, the secrecy of fate and the darkness of Earth at evening- on out to the streaming and fleeing of clouds and, farther yet, the orders of the stars- take it all and turn it into a handful of inwardness. See how it lies at ease in these open roses.[/i] [i] [/i] excerpt: [b]A BOWL OF ROSES[/b] Rainer Maria Rilke Please note: [url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url]

BODY & SOUL / SOUL & BODY 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 23:12:31 GMT

[b]BODY & SOUL 2011[/b] 16″ H x 12″ W mixed media on board The [b]BODY & SOUL[/b] portfolio, a visual composition is unfolding. Sixteen pieces in this portfolio. They are experiences- impossible to photograph- quicksilver and continuous revelations. [b]Layers. [/b] [b]Echoes.[/b] [b]Centrifugal force.[/b] [b]Circles.[/b] [b]Lines.[/b] [b]Motion.[/b] [b]Frequency.[/b] [b]Rhythm.[/b] [b]Call.[/b] [b]Response.[/b] [b]Whispers.[/b] [b]Listening in darkness.[/b] Background color: slate/wrought iron Foreground color: luminous silver within the incised lines and skimming on surface areas The intensity of the light and its direction coupled with the position of the viewer ignites and initiates the experience. [i]Please note: click twice on image to enlarge and for details.[/i] [i][url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url] [/i]

image: BODY & SOUL / SOUL & BODY ST. PAUL/ART CRAWL/FALL 2011

JAPAN/MEDITATION 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Mon, 30 May 2011 00:40:55 GMT

[b][i]JAPAN/MEDITATION 2011[/i][/b] Mixed Media 2011 TWO PANELS Each panel: 35" H x 24" W [b][i]Please note:[/i][/b] there is a large four panel [b][i]JAPAN/MEDITATION 2011[/i][/b] [url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url]

Pine Tree: ROSE 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 03:00:31 GMT

[b]Pine Tree: ROSE[/b] Mixed Media 2011 36"H x 24" W x 2" D [b]PRIVATE COMMISSION[/b] Musictuningforkdiviningrod I listened to: [b]Charles Lloyd's [i]VOICE IN THE DARK[/i][/b] [b][i] [/i][/b] [i][b]The experience:[/b][/i] luminous rhythms constantly dancing, murmuring, breathing, changing slowly and suddenly a moving river a single and continuous fragile graphite line hand drawn from the top to the bottom that centers the rushes listening with open palms and a break open heart why not? [url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url]

image: Pine Tree: ROSE 2011 detail

HurricaneRAPTURElantern ART/SOUND INSTALLATION 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 03:57:40 GMT

Please visit my blog:[url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url] [b]HurricaneRAPTURElantern[/b] [i]ART/SOUND INSTALLATION[/i] [i]To enlarge the announcement, please click TWICE on the announcement.[/i] The installation was exhibited at the[b] ST. PAUL [i]A R T[/i] CRAWL[i] [/i][/b][i]SPRING [/i]2011- and kept on view by demand for two more weeks. [url=http://www.stpaulartcrawl.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/ArtCrawl-S11.pdf]http://www.stpaulartcrawl.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/ArtCrawl-S11.pdf[/url] Catherine L. Johnson [b]HurricaneRAPTURElantern[/b] [i]ART/SOUND INSTALLATION[/i] The visuals and the sonic was an interplay and a counterpoint. The sound was a recorded studio session. I mobilized my writings into spoken art performance with the attuned collaboration of Dan Choma, musician and sound engineer. The session was snaked. All of my work is improvisational. The installation became the buzz of the Art Crawl. Sensuous x provocative. Visceral. Energy. Flux. The space between the visual work and the phrasing of the spoken art all converged and created a performance. My voice and the pace and the percussion set the visuals into steam. The visuals called out to the sound and acted as fleeting touchstones. The writings were two of my poem/librettos recorded in a continuous loop. Both writings can be found on this website under the titles: [i][b]Pine Tree: Moon RAPTURE[/b][/i] 2010 (stand up bass) and [i][b]TABULA RASA: CHANGES[/b][/i] 2008 (percussive bells). This is a new venture- spoken art and collaborating with a jazz musician. In September 2010 at the Dakota Jazz Club, Rene Marie and her band improvised on my [i][b]SPARROW [/b][/i]2010 poem/libretto which was a signal to me. Please note: [url=http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/]http://catherineljohnson.wordpress.com/[/url]

image: Remix: The Chandelier Drawing 2006 x BLACKBIRD: YOUR TOUCH IS MY REVELATION 2011

image: HurricaneRAPTURElantern triptych #3

EGYPT 11 FEBRUARY 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 06:16:33 GMT

[b]EGYPT 11 FEBRUARY 2011[/b] [b]FREEDOM BEAUTY AUTHENTICITY: [/b][i]EGYPT'S REVOLUTION! AND ESPERANZA SPALDING-THE [b]FIRST[/b] [b]JAZZ ARTIST [/b]TO RECEIVE GRAMMYS BEST NEW ARTIST!* VISION AND THE HEART REIGNS OVER TYRANNY![/i][b] [/b][i]POLITICS AND ART STRIVINGCREATINGAPPLAUDING AUTHENTICITY.[/i][b] [/b][i]JAZZ IS DEMOCRACY AS A METAPHOR AND A PRACTICE.[/i][b] EVOLVING, ALWAYS EVOLVING/REVOLVING.[/b] [b] [u]*Please note:[/u][/b] Esperanza won "Best [b][i]New[/i][/b] Artist", however, her albums from 2006 and 2008 both performed incredibly well on jazz charts. Yes, the experience of the artist...you prevail because your genius is a vehicle of the Divine. A gift that an artist upholds in esteem, sacrifice and with responsibility. A gift, a disciplined genius, not a contrived gimmick for a target market. [b]EGYPT 11 FEBRUARY 2011[/b][i] Calm and chaotic the hallmarks of revolution and now the importance of letting it ride in ambiguity until a True North is found. Patience and staying in the roils of the unknown with faith.[/i] [i] It is my hope for anyone- individual to nations- to be able to withstand ambiguity and turbulence with calm perseverance and faith- keep moving through the transition and staying calm through the uncertainty and uphold the vision. So many times, one returns to familiarity (even if it is a known failure) because being unable to[u][b] not [/b][/u]know what the future holds can overwhelm- and fear encroaches, stalks, engulfs and can swallow the map of a new life. C[/i][i]hoice and discipline. Breathing. Let it ride to light. Meet the pitches of chaos with a counterbalance and counterpoint of calm stillness. Moving energy. Releasing the past. [/i][i]Breakng open and through. [/i][i]The story of our lives becomes our life.[/i] [i]Believing in the sanctity and mystery of grace and summon all one's courage so as to break open to new fields of wonder and possibilities. Endless improvisations moving, unfolding and with stillness becomes a practice of truth and beauty[/i]. [i]The artist is a role model/template of following the sound of the silver horn within. The artists' patrons and inner circle are the protective shield, the egg shell, as the artist and their art develops and evolves/revolves. [b]Belief. I BELIEVE IN YOU.[/b][/i] [i]"Only mediocrities progress. An artist revolves in a cycle of masterpieces, the first of which is no less perfect than the last." Oscar Wilde [b] [/b][/i] [b]EGYPT 11 FEBRUARY 2011 is a triptych- a dialectic[/b] Mixed Media on Board Measurements: 11"H x 18"W Note the hue and shade of the blue. Blue and white paint. Layers upon sheer layers of paint with incised lines. The [b]I WISH I KNEW[/b] 2011 cycle of paintings was the preface, the divining rod and the prelude. I had/have been riveted to the events in Egypt since the uprising began its seismic force on 25 January through 11 February the profound pivot of Mubarak's resignation signifying Egypt's revoltion...and continue to be entranced with the dismantling of old patterns of thinking, sensing and behaving and the creation of new compositions of and for living. Transcendence and overcoming suppression, oppressive systems that deny humanity has been a constant theme throughout my creative work. Transforming sustained suffering and teeth marks of fear into creative possibilities of dance: elegant and raw. Persevering in truth...and integrity. I speak from experience from an infancy through childhood spent bound in bed and in terror, hair shorn, and silenced....and living in the deep blue sea of my imagination. I could fly as a child. Yes, I could. I am drawn to open fields of possibility in the soul of another. I am drawn to those who have the capacity to continually incite and complete an internal revolution so as to live in the present with presence. This takes great internal strength and sensitivity of knowing and living one's truth: a tuning fork and a divining rod. All my friends all have amazing moral courage- never standing by and being complicit out of fear of disrupting the status quo and binding conventions. Strong, clear and open hearts. They all [b]step up[/b], and that is why they are my trusted and my beloved friends: courageous, generous, compassionate, creative, independent thinking individuals... with saberlike, hilarious wit! Below is an excerpt from the email I sent my artist friends that followed my Euphoria in Egypt with an image from one of the [b]I WISH I KNEW [/b]works: 11 February 2011 _______dear______: [b]WOW! To be able to witness a tidal wave... a privilege![/b] [b] So BEAUTIFUL:[/b] As Obama stated in response:[b] [i]There is something in the soul that cries out for Freedom[/i][/b] Martin Luther King, Jr. I had to send this forward to [b]you[/b] because of OUR eloquence of beauty, passion and poetic intelligence...and OUR faith in artists as creative/challenging revolutionaries. Inside and out. What is so amazing and humbling for me: my art has [i]AGAIN [/i]been channeled from a Divine spirit. A prescient, pre- event (the art) of what was coming..[i][b].[/b][/i] [b][i]I WISH I KNEW[/i][/b] series first painting was created on New Year's Day 2011. [b]Artists as oracles.[/b] [i][b]RE[/b][/i]velations of [i][b]RE[/b][/i]vealing Truth: [i][b]RE[/b][/i]volution xx Catherine [i][b] [u]Please note:[/u][/b][/i] Henry Zaidan is an Egyptian with a dual citizenship in Canada. He lived in St. Paul- a real estate developer, for over two decades. He now lives permanently in Montreal with his family. Henry was one of my first avid private collectors upon my arriving from NYC. ( I was a recipient of the P.S. 1 Artist Studio Residency- 41 artists selected worldwide. I lived in Little Italy for years.) The first year back in my native Minnesota, I received the Bush Artist Fellowship. I took a studio in one of his warehouses in downtown St. Paul- reminding me of Manhattan's lowertown. Henry [b][i]watched over me[/i][/b] with his passion for art and the artist's soul. Henry later provided me a studio - a barter of art and space: [i]" artists need safe harbors! Catherine, you need a safe harbor"..[/i] He taught me about the color of blue found in the Middle East: it symbolizes protection. Our care and concern for one another continues. During and throughout the uprising, we had an on-going email conversation. [b]We never know how our lives weave together and inspire one another...and create thresholds to new worlds due to the abiding love of an other.[/b]

I WISH I KNEW 2011

Catherine L. Johnson — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 04:49:26 GMT

[b]I WISH I KNEW[/b] 2011 A cycle of six original paintings based on Dr. Billy Taylor's lyric: [i][b]"I WISH I KNEW HOW IT WOULD FEEL TO BE FREE"[/b][/i]. [b]REvelations of REvealing Truth: REvolution[/b] [b]EGYPT! and every and any one who experiences an internal uprising and revolution incited by the soul's need for freedom, love and dignity. Humanity.[/b] [b][i]THERE'S SO MUCH ENERGY IN US[/i][/b] Cloud Cult [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlE3VE2mTzY&NR=1]www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlE3VE2mTzY&NR=1[/url] Watch Al Jazeera English live feed: [url=http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/]http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/[/url]

[b]Asmaa Mahfouz,[/b] the instrumental young Egyptian woman who called out! She is a true leader- and a heroine. [b]Amazing.[/b] 1. [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgjIgMdsEuk]www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgjIgMdsEuk[/url] 2. [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndb5RPUPCs4]www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndb5RPUPCs4[/url] [b][i]What's Going On[/i][/b] Marvin Gaye and the Funk Brothers [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9KC7uhMY9s&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9KC7uhMY9s&feature=related[/url] [b][i]YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE[/i][/b] Mahalia Jackson [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx4vME0d1w8]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx4vME0d1w8[/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7O7ZgRrMkI]www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7O7ZgRrMkI[/url] early recording Patti LaBelle [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh4A0OATN9g]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh4A0OATN9g[/url] Sonny Rollins' [i][b]The[/b][/i] [b][i]Freedom Suite[/i][/b] : [url=http://www.npr.org/2011/02/02/4182012/sonny-rollins-freedom-suite]www.npr.org/2011/02/02/4182012/sonny-rollins-freedom-suite[/url] In 1958 Rollins recorded another landmark piece for saxophone, bass and drums trio: [b][i]The Freedom Suite[/i][/b]. His original sleeve notes said, [i]"How ironic that the Negro, who more than any other people can claim America's culture as his own, is being persecuted and repressed; that the Negro, who has exemplified the humanities in his very existence, is being rewarded with inhumanity."[/i] [i] [/i] [b]Mumford and Sons[/b] [i]Awake my Soul[/i]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHWsKTSdS74]www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHWsKTSdS74[/url] [i]Hold on to What You Believe[/i]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3aaTaDIvOo&NR=1]www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3aaTaDIvOo&NR=1[/url] [i]Little Lion Man[/i]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLJf9qJHR3E&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLJf9qJHR3E&feature=related[/url] [i]The Cave[/i]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6rYPHmSzcE&NR=1]www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6rYPHmSzcE&NR=1[/url] [b][i]WE SHALL OVERCOME[/i][/b] Mahalia Jackson [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVSvF_85zUY&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVSvF_85zUY&feature=related[/url] [b]I WISH I KNEW[/b] paintings: Layers of blue color and incised line with white paint passed onto the surface with a squeegee and then washed off and repeat and swept once again and again- until the surface becomes like looking deeply into an atmospheric night sky- or a deep blue blackboard that had years of writing that was wiped away after each story, fact, equation, etc, was told - like layers of experience written on a heart- almost imperceptible yet still sounds if you listen with wonder. [b] A cycle of six original paintings. The first painting was created on New Year's Day 2011 and the last on 4 February 2011.[/b] Mixed Media on board 14" x 10" [b]I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free [/b]Dr. Billy Taylor and Dick Dallas Nina Simone : [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TarrSrx4v0]www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TarrSrx4v0[/url] Billy Taylor: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brBtTluod_w]www.youtube.com/watch?v=brBtTluod_w[/url] Dionne Farris: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTdeLTYzVHw]www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTdeLTYzVHw[/url] [i]I wish I knew how[/i] [i]It would feel to be free I wish I could break All the chains holdin' me I wish I could say all the things That I should say Say 'em loud Say 'em clear For the whole wide world to hear[/i]... [b] Music making love/love making Music[/b]: the private rhythm of breathing.[b] [/b]Primal pas de deux[b].[/b] Instinct, no posing. Call and response, rhythmic, swinging, deeper: inhale and exhale. Heightened sensibility, subtlety and sensitivity. Lovemaking is creating an intimate gospel song in unison. Present moments of call and response slowly, and suddenly opening up the vault of bliss. Passion and love is not black or white. Passion, an authentic life force, is a sacred energy not a color. Strength in honest vulnerability. No shiny shoes. No outside soundtrack. Pure and simple. Beautiful. Balanced. Belief. The very is of is. Presence, you touch me and I touch you, breath to breath. [b]Freedom.[/b] Honest. Open heart. Open field. No possesion. A revolution from fear's tyranny. Welcoming the stillness and wonder of love. Expansive. Catherine L. Johnson Maria Callas: [b][i]Vissi d'Arte[/i][/b] aria from Tosca [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYG5wtRWT0E]www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYG5wtRWT0E[/url]

image: I WISH I KNEW #2 2011

Pine Tree: Moon RAPTURES 2010

Catherine L. Johnson — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 03:40:59 GMT

[b]Pine Tree: Moon RAPTURES[/b] 2010[i][b][/b][/i] [i]The paintings are beautiful, wild poems within a winter day, promising snow and pure light.[/i] [b]Rene Marie with Jeremy Pelt:[/b][b][b] SHENANDOAH[/b][/b] [b][b]Part 1 [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmogv8jes00&NR=1]www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmogv8jes00&NR=1[/url] [/b][b]Part 2: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PpzeJJiTXk&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PpzeJJiTXk&feature=related[/url][/b][/b] [b][b][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PpzeJJiTXk&feature=related][/url] [b][b][b]Rene Marie with Jeremy Pelt:[/b] JUST MY IMAGINATION[/b][/b] [b][b]Part 1: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10WyOp7r8W4&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=10WyOp7r8W4&feature=related[/url] [/b][/b][b][b]Part 2: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5jKZaGDm8w&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5jKZaGDm8w&feature=related[/url][/b][/b][/b][/b] [b][b][b][b][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5jKZaGDm8w&feature=related][/url][/b][/b] [/b][/b][b]Esperanza Spalding with Chamber Society[/b]: [url=http://www.usatoday.com/video/index.htm?bctid=759185745001&csp=ipmpv#/Esperanza+Spalding/759185745001]http://www.usatoday.com/video/index.htm?bctid=759185745001&csp=ipmpv#/Esperanza+Spalding/759185745001[/url] [u][i][b]Body and Soul[/b][/i][/u] [b] Freddie Hubbard (be(yond)autiful):[/b] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IicJ-WY7V90]www.youtube.com/watch?v=IicJ-WY7V90[/url] [b] Chet Baker[/b]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MY1215povM]www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MY1215povM[/url] C[b]hu Berry and Roy Eldridge:[/b] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lor80WUVbtw]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lor80WUVbtw[/url] [b] Keith Jarrett and Charlie Haden: [/b][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHm35v1akLI]www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHm35v1akLI[/url] [b] Esperanza Spalding:[/b] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15M62OtLrBQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15M62OtLrBQ[/url] [b]Thelonious Monk[/b]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29J0Qsp3yns&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=29J0Qsp3yns&feature=related[/url]

[b]Billie Holiday: [/b][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHcppf61OoM]www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHcppf61OoM[/url]

[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS5tmdKjMRU]www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS5tmdKjMRU[/url]

After[b][i] five[/i][/b] years, after Pine Tree: HOPE 2005, I have created Pine Tree: Moon RAPTURES 2010. Original paintings on board: 7.5"H x 5.5"W A collection of 16 separate works. Each painting is its own experience and song, [i][b] They are beautiful, wild poems within a winter day, promising snow and pure light,[/b][/i] They are my re-writing, re-titling, and my re-life from re-cent re-velations...

The poem below accompanies the visual lyrics: [b]HurricaneRAPTURElantern [/b] I am centrifugal force- a wild poem, a day break, a pine tree deep in a delicate forest, a blue wave, always coming to shore, a graceful luminosity. My body needs a feast of your touch. Gentle. [b]Hurricane[/b] I am a spiral of breath, of fiercely whirling roses- of unfolding red fire of kissed whispers. My body needs a wash of your sound. Quietly. [b]Hurricane.[/b] I am a swinging rhythm- a dance, without a band, a gospel, without a church, an intimate song singing your name without regret. My body needs a bath of your scent. Caressing. [b]Hurricane.[/b] You are my hurricane lamp, my love, you keep my light, my rose, my desire, my heart, my sweet, my love, my soul, my touch, my sight, my sound, my taste, my integrity, my naked, my grace within your kind, pure, clear sphere of strong love. This is beauty. This is vulnerable. [b]Hurricane[/b] You are my full moon, my torch, my swoon, my lilt, always my lullaby. In the night, with your breath, you shape the sound of my name searching for my open touch, my kiss, my wild poem on your side. Always. This is truth. This is sheer. My love is a lantern, a hurricane lamp. My love is a lantern, a hurricane lamp. Catherine L. Johnson 6 December 2010

SPARROW FLY HAPPY FLY 20TEN Pinocchio's story

Catherine L. Johnson — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 02:35:24 GMT

SPARROW [i][b]FLY[/b][/i] HAPPY[i][b] FLY[/b][/i] Pinocchio's story 20TEN [i][b]"What does it feel like to live real life, to be real?" [/b][/i] ..to be real... ...as wise men say, someday, you'll find your way. [b]Pinocchio's Story[/b] Freestyle Live from Singapore Kanye West: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLY_NsMi5ZE]www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLY_NsMi5ZE[/url] 808s & Heartbreaks [b]WHEN YOU WISH UPON A STAR[/b] Louis Armstrong: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cHsPCAZlP4]www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cHsPCAZlP4[/url] When you wish upon a star Makes no difference who you are Anything your heart desires Will come to you If your heart is in your dream No request is too extreme When you wish upon a star As dreamers do Fate is kind She brings to those to love The sweet fulfillment of Their secret longing Like a bolt out of the blue Fate steps in and sees you through When you wish upon a star Your dreams come true [b]A DREAM IS A WISH YOUR HEART MAKES[/b]- Cinderella Ilene Woods: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Rd1g6k2CdM]www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Rd1g6k2CdM[/url] [b] SPARROW: Pinocchio's Story[/b] series 20TEN Six works 17" H x 13" W Mixed media on board

RISING I BELIEVE IN YOU YOU ARE NOT FALLING YOU ARE RISING YOU ARE RISING RISING RISING 20TEN

Catherine L. Johnson — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 05:20:31 GMT

[b]I BELIEVE IN YOU[/b] 20TEN [b] [i]RISING I BELIEVE IN YOU YOU ARE NOT FALLING YOU ARE RISING YOU ARE RISING RISING[/i] [i]RISING[/i][/b] [b] [/b][i][b]RISING I BELIEVE IN YOU YOU ARE NOT FALLING YOU ARE RISING YOU ARE RISING RISING RISING[/b] is a permanent installation at Fairview Southdale Hospital,Minneapolis. Placed outside the entrance of the hospital's Meditation Sanctuary and within the Intensive Care Unit's Family Waiting Room. For NAP and his beloved the late WP.[/i] [i][/i] [i]My work is an encounter, an experience. The camera's eye cannot document the sensitivity and subtleties of my art. Electronic media cannot transmit love's energy, touch, scent, courage, a kiss, patience, faith, soul...[/i] [i]"As my sufferings mounted I soon realized that there were two ways in which I could respond to my situation -- either to react with bitterness or seek to transform the suffering into a creative force. I decided to follow the latter course."[/i] [b] Martin Luther King, Jr.[/b] The[b] I BELIEVE IN YOU [/b]series are proclamations, gospels, spirituals which emerged as complete poems and prayers. I was weaving the news of yet another possible surgical intervention. My life has been deeply steeped in the hospital since infancy, sustaining extensive reconstructive surgeries and experiencing access to the Divine - the sacred energy residing within every heart. The [b]I BELIEVE IN YOU[/b] series are whispers, invocations of faith. Calling out to the most deep, sacred and hidden secrets of the heart: quietly, softly, tenderly when the heart is vulnerable, open and strong. The original paintings are hand drawn lines of graphite and ultramarine blue, fragile and, at times, imperceptible, skating on clear fields and floating within veils of soft white with collaged elements. [i] [/i] The statement,[b] I BELIEVE IN YOU[/b], is a profound statement of faith. The [b]I BELIEVE IN YOU [/b]series is a transfiguration of fear's detached and disconnected staccato into the rhythm and soul of courage.[i] [/i] [b]I BELIEVE[/b] Mahalia Jackson [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in9dBuA_sIk]www.youtube.com/watch?v=in9dBuA_sIk[/url] [i]I believe for every drop of rain that falls A [url=http://www.lyriczz.com/lyrics/mahalia-jackson/26586-i-believe/]flower[/url] grows I believe that somewhere in the darkest night A candle glows I believe for everyone who goes astray, someone will come To show the way I believe, I believe [/i] [i] I believe above a storm the smallest prayer Can still be heard I believe that someone in the great somewhere Hears every word [/i] [i] Everytime I hear a new born [url=http://www.lyriczz.com/lyrics/mahalia-jackson/26586-i-believe/]baby[/url] cry, Or touch a leaf or see the sky Then I know why, I believe [/i] [i] Everytime I hear a new born baby cry, Or touch a leaf or see the sky Then I know why, I believe [/i] [b]Beethoven's String Quartet No. 15, Opus 132[/b], [b]Movement III [/b]Molto Adagio, Quartetto Italiano: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6vSUCI-alI]www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6vSUCI-alI[/url] My heart goes to this place which Beethoven creates. Hear/t. Listening wih my heart. [i](The music's flowing transcendent energy cannot be captured/tethered into the visual 2-dimensional animation. This music is the heart, infinite. The animation is the thinking, finite.)[/i] Beethoven wrote this piece after recovering from a serious illness which he had feared was fatal. He thus headed the movement with the words, "Heiliger Dankgesang eines Genesenen an die Gottheit, in der lydischen Tonart" (A Convalescent's Holy Song of Thanksgiving to the Divinity, in the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lydian_Mode]Lydian Mode[/url]). [b]BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATERS[/b] Aretha Franklin: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DBl5gAs6WI&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DBl5gAs6WI&feature=related[/url] Anita Baker: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTUib52yguU&feature=more_related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTUib52yguU&feature=more_related[/url] Eva Cassidy: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYyQcQSqpbI]www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYyQcQSqpbI[/url] Whitney Houston and Cece Winans: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGL099t8i2s&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGL099t8i2s&feature=related[/url] [b]CELLO SUITE #1[/b](PRELUDE) Bach [i](I love this pure call to beauty)[/i] Rostropovich: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU_QR_FTt3E]www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU_QR_FTt3E[/url] Pablo Casals: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhcjeZ3o5us]www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhcjeZ3o5us[/url] [b][u]Titles:[/u][/b] [b] [/b][i][b]RISING I BELIEVE IN YOU YOU ARE NOT FALLING YOU ARE RISING YOU ARE RISING RISING RISING[/b] (shown- permanent installation at Fairview Southdale Hospital, Minneapolis. Placed outside the entrance of the hospital's Meditation Sanctuary and within the Intensive Care Unit's Family Waiting Room) For NAP and his beloved the late WP.[/i] [i] [/i][b] [i]THE LIGHT OF YOU I BELIEVE IN YOUR BEAUTY I BELIEVE IN YOU THE LIGHT OF YOU THE LIGHT OF YOU[/i][/b] [b] [i]SWEEP I BELIEVE IN YOU I BELIEVE IN YOUR SWEEPING BREATH[/i][/b] [b] [i]TURNING I BELIEVE IN YOU I BELIEVE IN YOUR TURNING INTO TRUTH TURNING INTO YOU I BELIEVE[/i][/b] [i] [/i] [b]Measurements:[/b] 35" H x 23" W [b]Media: [/b]mixed media on paper [b]BY YOUR SIDE[/b] Sade: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBT3_EX6Q2o&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBT3_EX6Q2o&feature=related[/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-_iT6IZ5PQ&feature=related][/url] [i][/i] [i] [/i] [i][b]I BELIEVE IN YOU[/b][/i] written by Bob Dylan[url=http://www.pandora.com/music/song/bob+dylan/i+believe+in+you][/url] [url=http://www.pandora.com/music/song/bob+dylan/i+believe+in+you]http://www.pandora.com/music/song/bob+dylan/i+believe+in+you[/url] Sinead O'Connor: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=318ZDSy3zn4&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=318ZDSy3zn4&feature=related[/url] [b]COME BY HERE [/b] Dwayne Whitehead [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWwIATtRv7E]www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWwIATtRv7E[/url] [i]Nate Levine, photographer [/i] [i] [/i] [i] [/i]

AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS MAJESTY BLACKBIRD: WING 20TEN

Catherine L. Johnson — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 05:33:08 GMT

[b]Eros:[/b] [b]I am the blackbird[/b] [b]You are the full moon.[/b] [b]I[/b] Night falls deep into the waxing moon, yearning for touch, for tenderness, of you, and of me. No one sleeps. No one sleeps. You call to me. In silence, from faraway and in darkness. I open to your steady, deeply lit sound. [b]II[/b] My night wings shimmer gently into your moon, once crescent, and as you widen, I flow. [b]III[/b] No one sleeps. No one sleeps. Quietly, You notice my wings whispering softly: You, incandescence, bold sound breaking the silence of the night sky. Listen: I am the blackbird. You are the full moon. [b]IV[/b] Listen: Caress my soft shimmer with your gaze- wishing for the dawn of your hand and mouth. Touch me. You, the full moon. You, the master of the night who calls out my blackbird's flight in this room of candlelight. Open the morning sky for me. Open the vault of heaven for you. [b]V[/b] Vanish, o night. Drop the shroud concealing long deep wounds. O, vanish the night of your fortress. You are the full moon of shining light. Place any smolder outside the door. No scars will be left to mark and shred my sweetly, flying wings. Place any smolder outside the door. No beasts will enter eclipsing the beauty and bliss of this present moment. You, the master of the night who calls out my blackbird's flight in this room of candlelight. Open the morning sky for me. Open the vault of heaven for you. [b]VI[/b] This very night, you cannot touch my locked secrets held inside my wings- glistening, and waiting for you, the faraway, faraway crescent now full moon. Within this night, this moment you see my teal eyes blink as my blackbird's wings lift, arouse and begin flight inside the waning darkness of this night. This moment: No one sleeps. No one sleeps. [b]VII[/b] Suddenly, my wings breathe your name -a stunned secret profoundly set as a distant star within my circle of darkness and mystery of my wing. You answer as the full moon- shining in the candlelit night of me. Intense and unwavering, Full, full moon, once a crescent now you. Vanish, o night! I am the blackbird. You are the full moon. Listen. [b]VIII[/b] I listen to your breath: you draw open the dawn. My wings' rising dilates your rhythm. My wings draw out the depth of you waiting. I call you in. I call you in. Suddenly, my wings breathe your name, the resounding clarion of the night sky.You, the full, full, moon lay down the path I glide upon- a resplendent river. The depth of you waiting for me. You the grace of the night, protecting my naked unfurling wings. [b]IX[/b] Slowly. You place unfolding bliss into me. Slowly, gradually a constellation ignites, streams of secret galaxies quicken and flow from the beginning to the end of me. My dark room holding the lit candle waxes and pours. Slowly, I am white as the blackbird. You watch, then gaze. You are black as the full moon. You begin to trace, master with your rhythm and with your breath, releasing my every trembling morning star. [b]X[/b] You find your name: the stunning star in the mystery of me. Yes you do From faraway. From faraway you do. Yes, you do. From faraway. You, the waxing and gradual full moon. Yes, you do. You find your name: the stunning star in the mystery of me. From faraway you do. [b]XI[/b] From faraway, you arouse, shatter and wash away the mantle of night with a gospel rhythm, and then a glissando of bliss breaks open the vault of heaven. And the blackbird calls out the dawn. You are the emboldened beautiful blackbird- with unfurled, strong and magnificent wings soaring dignity. I am the demure, glowing full moon sweetly singing the powerful song of amazing grace: lost and now found. [b]XII[/b] It is 3 am. The blackbird calls out the dawn. The full moon rests. [b]Catherine L. Johnson [/b][b]23 October 2010[/b]

[u] [/u]

[u][b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS MAJESTY[/b][/u]

40"H X 26"W MIXED MEDIA 2010

Dave Matthews Band: [b]Blackbird[/b] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0yr2hnJ8DQ]www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0yr2hnJ8DQ[/url]

[b]SAY YES[/b] Floetry: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCCGIXME164&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCCGIXME164&feature=related[/url]

[b]RUNAWAY[/b] ( partial of video- loove the piano as the center) Kanye West: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bm5iA4Zupek&feature=channel]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bm5iA4Zupek&feature=channel[/url]

Nate Levine, photographer

BLACKBIRD: WING 20TEN

Catherine L. Johnson — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 05:14:08 GMT

[b]BLACKBIRD: WING 20TEN[i] NINE WORKS[/i][/b] My work encompasses and coalescing spirituality, sexuality and vulnerability. [i]..[/i]an image/sound emerges from the sea of my imagination. Music is my siren's song, calls it up. I search/listen for the seductive, the sensuous and the sweet song that has the most resonance with the nascent image/sound. Communication is good music- difficult to compose and play- and lovely to hear. Intimate communication is beautiful, mysterious music guided by the courage of revealing one's heart and unveiling one's soul to another. Back and forth rhytmn. Balance and breaking open. Listen and listening... [i]I always find music as my compass and oyster pearl in the studio...then I dive into the prayer as I listen.[/i] [b][i]Nessun Dorma, [/i][/b]the aria from the final act of Puccini's Turandot Aretha Franklin: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DwZ-GMHyho]www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DwZ-GMHyho[/url] Jeff Beck: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZQ3NxD5Bu0]www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZQ3NxD5Bu0[/url] Manowar:[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SclJmnRMLnQ] www.youtube.com/watch?v=SclJmnRMLnQ[/url] and, of course, Luciano Pavarotti: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOfC9LfR3PI&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOfC9LfR3PI&feature=related[/url] [i] [b]SONGBIRD[/b][/i] Eva Cassidy: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqogwneJRSA&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqogwneJRSA&feature=related[/url] Marvin Gaye [i][b]LET'S GET IT ON[/b][/i] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKPoHgKcqag&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKPoHgKcqag&feature=related[/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7eTOnNBwYU&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7eTOnNBwYU&feature=related[/url] [b]IF I WAS A BIRD [/b]Floetry: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QZEB1lY2dw&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QZEB1lY2dw&feature=related[/url] [b]SAY YES[/b] Floetry: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCCGIXME164&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCCGIXME164&feature=related[/url] [b]FANTASIZE [/b]Floetry: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDwA7dyGkHo&feature=related]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDwA7dyGkHo&feature=related[/url]

[b]I'LL FLY AWAY [/b]written by Albert E. Brumley Etta James: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8OiwWIrLP8]www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8OiwWIrLP8[/url] Blind Boys of Alabama with Hot 8 Brass Band: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-qPV2NNGyY]www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-qPV2NNGyY[/url] Johnny Cash: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uA4JyAONd_I]www.youtube.com/watch?v=uA4JyAONd_I[/url] [i]I look to Charles Lloyd often for sacred abandon.[/i] Charles Lloyd and Billy Higgins [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AcwnScNM9M]www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AcwnScNM9M[/url] Charles Lloyd New Quartet [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fn0xsx7r108&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fn0xsx7r108&feature=related[/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_lopijOwMw&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_lopijOwMw&feature=related[/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9FT9S7XDUw&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9FT9S7XDUw&feature=related[/url] with Jason Moran, Eric Harland and Reuben Rogers Dave Matthews Band: Blackbird [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0yr2hnJ8DQ]www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0yr2hnJ8DQ[/url] Paul McCartney: Blackbird early version in the studio-I looove this. [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uqGCqMYaHQ]www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uqGCqMYaHQ[/url] Miles Davis: Bye Bye Blackbird[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzpSIJpq11c] [/url][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzpSIJpq11c]www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzpSIJpq11c[/url] Miles Davis Sextet: Bye Bye Blackbird [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sinAulsMa_o]www.youtube.com/watch?v=sinAulsMa_o[/url] Christian Mc Bride and Niels Pederson: Bye Bye Blackbird [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHu7ow9Kepw]www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHu7ow9Kepw[/url] Keith Jarrett: Bye Bye Blackbird [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJJ4xzCuXSk]www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJJ4xzCuXSk[/url] Diana Krall: Bye Bye Blackbird [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqnwdQUh5-Q]www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqnwdQUh5-Q[/url] Chet Baker: Bye Bye Blackbird [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FgT_8vcbSQ]www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FgT_8vcbSQ[/url] Blackbird singing: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV0401jOkWg&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV0401jOkWg&feature=related[/url] [u][b]BLACKBIRD: WING[/b][b] 20TEN[/b][/u] 40" H X 24" W graphite and white candle white on paper: [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS FLY[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS BREATHE[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS CRY[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS SPREAD[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS DISSOLVE INTO STARS[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS AROUSE [/b](shown) [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS MAGNIFICENT WINGS VANQUISH TRAGEDY[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS BREAK OPEN HEAVEN[/b] [b]AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS MAJESTY [/b] [b] [/b] 11" H X 9" W graphite and white candle white on paper: [b]IN THE NIGHT YOUR TOUCH IS MY REVELATION[/b] [b]IN THE NIGHT YOUR TOUCH IS MY BODY + SOUL + NEST[/b] [b]IN THE NIGHT YOUR TOUCH IS MY VOICE + TRUTH[/b] [b]IN THE NIGHT YOUR TOUCH IS MY SOARING[/b] [b]BLACKBIRDS[/b]: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTc1ZuKHcs4&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTc1ZuKHcs4&feature=related[/url] [b]Blackbird[/b] Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these broken wings and learn to fly All your life You were only waiting for this moment to arise Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these sunken eyes and learn to see All your life You were only waiting for this moment to be free Blackbird fly, blackbird fly Into the light of the dark black night Blackbird fly, blackbird fly Into the light of the dark black night Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these broken wings and learn to fly All your life You were only waiting for this moment to arise You were only waiting for this moment to arise You were only waiting for this moment to arise Lyrics: Paul Mc Cartney [b]THIRTEEN WAYS TO LOOK AT A BLACKBIRD[/b] Wallace Stevens [url=http://www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=174503]www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=174503[/url] [b]I[/b] Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye of the blackbird. [b]II[/b] I was of three minds, Like a tree In which there are three blackbirds. [b]III[/b] The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds. It was a small part of the pantomime. [b]IV[/b] A man and a woman Are one. A man and a woman and a blackbird Are one. [b]V[/b] I do not know which to prefer, The beauty of inflections Or the beauty of innuendoes, The blackbird whistling Or just after. [b]VI[/b] Icicles filled the long window With barbaric glass. The shadow of the blackbird Crossed it, to and fro. The mood Traced in the shadow An indecipherable cause. [b]VII[/b] O thin men of Haddam, Why do you imagine golden birds? Do you not see how the blackbird Walks around the feet Of the women about you? [b]VIII[/b] I know noble accents And lucid, inescapable rhythms; But I know, too, That the blackbird is involved In what I know. [b]IX[/b] When the blackbird flew out of sight, It marked the edge Of one of many circles. [b]X[/b] At the sight of blackbirds Flying in a green light, Even the bawds of euphony Would cry out sharply. [b]XI[/b] He rode over Connecticut In a glass coach. Once, a fear pierced him, In that he mistook The shadow of his equipage For blackbirds. [b]XII[/b] The river is moving. The blackbird must be flying. [b]XIII[/b] It was evening all afternoon. It was snowing And it was going to snow. The blackbird sat In the cedar-limbs. [b]BLACKBIRD[/b] [b][i]The blackbird's song a poem The sun's first slender ray[/i][/b] Unknown Irish 9th Century The blackbird's iridescent black plumage holds the energies of mysticism: [i]Enchantment, the Gateway, the Forge and the Inner Call.[/i] When a blackbird flies into your life pay attention and listen carefully. The blackbird represents the otherworldly smith - the master of fire who calls to us with his healing song - telling us that we can work with the air of our minds, the water of our hearts, the earth of our instincts and the fire of our spiritual passion to forge a new life for ourselves based on beauty, dignity and purpose. The blackbird is a songbird known for its flute like hypnotic song-unlike the crow or raven, and is the bringer of the dawn, the one that sings us back to us from the darkness. The blackbird has mystical arts and can sing one into a trancelike state. Blackbird calls to us from the gateway between two worlds, urging us to follow a spiritual path and to become more self-aware. The blackbird teaches you how to use your voice for healing purposes.[b] [/b]In heeding blackbird's song, you will discover healing and new depths in your soul. There are times in life when it is important to concentrate on the outer world and your responsibilities in that world, but there are also times when you must attend to the haunting song of your soul which calls you to a study of spiritual truths, and to an exploration of the inner world through dreams and myths. The blackbird is the smith's bird, and its song may be calling you to work in the forge of your own heart to create a life of passion and purpose. All four elements are used in metal-working, and to create a healthy and balanced life we must work with the power of the four elements, integrating and developing our minds and hearts, our instinct and our intuition. Standing at the gateway between two worlds, without truly working in either, is a denial of our own power and responsibility. A blackbird flies into your life and your connection with nature and the forces of creation increases stirring psychic abilities and brings to consciousness latent gifts and creativity. Awareness is heightened and change on a cellular level begins. Blackbird awakens the mind with awareness as changes of perceptions are unfolding. Blackbird shows how to move with determination, focus and tenacity and how to use your power to its fullest potential: balancing your energy and grounded within the earth as you walk your spiritual path. Blackbird will guide in this new awakening and teaches use of intuition that will aid in understanding Mother Nature and the connection to all things by listening carefully to the seen and unseen worlds. Blackbird will teach much and bring new surprises when you least expect it.

Nate Levine, photographer

image: BLACKBIRD: WING 20TEN

image: BLACK BIRD: WING 20TEN YOUR TOUCH IS MY REVELATION

image: AT NIGHT I FEEL YOUR WINGS AROUSE (studio shot)

UNVEIL truth/TRUTH unveil

Catherine L. Johnson — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 22:47:37 GMT

[b]UNVEIL[/b] truth / [b]TRUTH [/b]unveil Autumn Twentyten [i][b]Consider your actions toward another like a prayer. A damaged heart will be healed as it opens slowly and steeps in the whispers of kindness and love of another. A damaged heart can also choose destruction and hone its wounds like knives and spears to impale another. Choice. Your story is your intent, your action, your capacity to transform lightning bolts into creative waters. You become what you breathe, give and take, see and vision, hear and listen to, touch and touched by, taste and swallow and what you choose, risk and name as awe, beautiful and true North. You are what you love and forgive. ImprovisationAlive. You can become a forever revolution.[/b][/i] Catherine L. Johnson [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l49N8U3d0Bw&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=l49N8U3d0Bw&feature=related[/url] Mahalia Jackson: [b]How I Got Over[/b] [b]Rhythm and balance- is a beautiful work of art and love. [/b] There is a difference between an entertainer and an artist. The entertainer performs for the audience and, in turn, the audience shapes the entertainer. The artist is a crucible of humanity and, in turn, the artist shapes humanity. There is a difference in the sound of the applause. [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz4v6lNwRsU&feature=related]www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz4v6lNwRsU&feature=related[/url] Nicholas Payton J Dilla [url=http://pitchfork.com/features/articles/7830-got-til-its-gone-the-legacy-of-j-dilla/]http://pitchfork.com/features/articles/7830-got-til-its-gone-the-legacy-of-j-dilla/[/url] [url=http://benzandabackpack.com/?p=4152]http://benzandabackpack.com/?p=4152[/url] [i][b]?uestlove:[/b]You know, there are a group of people who are inspirational to 'common people.' And I use the term 'common people' like, I know it sounds really condescending when I say it, but I wouldn't hesitate to say that J Dilla is the leader of the leader's leader. That's almost one step beyond being a musician's musician. There is the common music lover, and then there is the hero that the music lover likes. And then there's that figure that the hero likes. And then there's the person that that figure likes. It's just three stages in. I mean, the only way I can put it is: Jay-Z respects the work that I do, and for some reason I always have his ear when I have an idea. But you know, my hero is J Dilla. He was just...he...he was...just not from this earth. And when I say that, I mean it in the most non-pretentious way possible. He wasn't like [url=http://innercirclecorona.com/Blogs/Inner-Circle/November-2009/Corona,-Turn-Back-the-Clock---On-Your-Landscape-Ti/Doc-Brown.aspx]Doc Brown[/url] in Back to the Future, not this eccentric figure that was real mythical, you know... in the laboratory, and had some crazy method about him. He was regular guy, but he had this almost Rain Man, genius quality when it came to music. You know, it's funny you say this, I saw him about four days before he passed away. I went over to his house and I snuck over to the turntable to see what record he was using for what I didn't know then was his last beat. I happened to notice that he had a copy of Funkadelic's [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_Eats_Its_Young][i]America Eats Its Young[/i][/url] on the turntable. And the needle was actually, even though it wasn't rotating, the needle was actually on [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKiBdZnXKyA]the title track[/url]. And in my head I was like, 'Hmm?' that's the most boring song on the record. If anything, I thought he'd have it on a funkier cut, like [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI7x0bTOHd8]Loose Booty[/url]. So, cut to two years later, I see J Rocc over in [/i][i]Europe[/i][i], and he says: "I have the last track that Dilla worked on, and it was based on [/i][i]America Eats Its Young[/i][i]." And I was telling him, I'm like: "Yo, that's the most boring song on that album. I don't know if I want to hear it, I mean I can't see him making a miracle out of it." And I heard it and...my God. I was really just flustered because I don't know how he had the patience to sit through seven minutes of the most monotonous chords ever, [b]but he made a miracle out of it.[/b] That's the only way I can describe it. It's like having a hundred thousand-piece puzzle and watching a three year old put it together in about two minutes flat.[/i] The past two years has yielded a commentary on humanity, the depths of love and the resonance between external and internal seismic events. My solo exhibition,[b] PRIVATE[/b][b] RHYTHM[/b], (January-February 2010) was orchestrated and presented as a re-mix of a decade's work. The fragile economy; the earthquakes; the Gulf Coast tragedy and the unfolding stories of avarice, deceit and betrayal and the incendiary, specious and polarized public polemic of the location of a Muslim community center in the vicinity of Ground Zero entered my studio. My work became emblematic, upholding a child like sing-song simplicity, the provocation of a Zen koan-the meaning of which cannot be understood by [url=http://66.103.254.71/msab/apply/200912-new-apps/prod-2011-ai/%5C]rational[/url] thinking but may be accessible through [url=http://66.103.254.71/msab/apply/200912-new-apps/prod-2011-ai/%5C]intuition[/url] and driven by pure life force: the is of is. I wanted time to stand still in my art to counterbalance the speed and viral dissemination of the Internet, the impulse fear/flight reactivity of the limbic brain and the absence of intimacy in electronic communications. The cycle of two series, [b]SPARROW[/b] 2010 (two separate suites) and [b]NEST[/b] 2010 (two separate suites), were created in sequence during the winter and spring. The [b]LOTUS 20TEN[/b], a cycle of 16 works, were created during the summer months of 2010. Touch, taste, sight and scent- the senses of being a/live, keen receptors of one's truth and tuning fork of authenticity and integrity of self and other. [b][i]Touch to touch. Face to face. Breath to breath. Laugh to laugh. Cry to cry. Hand to hand. Kiss to kiss. Trust to trust. Truth to truth.[/i][/b] I offer A CASE OF MENTAL COURAGE by David Brooks [url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/opinion/24brooks.html]http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/opinion/24brooks.html[/url] [b] [i]...Burney's struggle reminds one that character is not only moral, it is also mental. Heroism exists not only on the battlefield or in public but also inside the head, in the ability to face unpleasant thoughts...[/i] [/b] [b][i]...We have confirmation bias; we pick out evidence that supports our views. We are cognitive misers; we try to think as little as possible. We are herd thinkers and conform our perceptions to fit in with the group...[/i][/b] [b][i][/i] [/b] [b]I offer my beloved Beethoven String Quartet 15, Op.132[/b] [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8L7ENJeR_s]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8L7ENJeR_s[/url] [b][i]Beauty is not caused. It is. [/i][/b]Emily Dickinson My art pursues the beauty of realization rather than perfect beauty. All of my life I have known an inviolable place of inner freedom containing: earth; pieces of washed clear blue skies; brilliant unfolding blooms; wings of flight; the color and arcs of rainbows; the hallelujah chorus of wind, rain and rivers; and the white glistened silence of ice. [b][i]This was my chrysalis: [/i][/b]My life was baptized in hospitals, a place where time and space was defined as waiting, compassion and hope. No flag of creed, race, religion, gender, or social rank was raised. We were horizontal breathing beds. I lived in a body cast with a shaven head. Visitors were allowed once a week for two hours and touching was forbidden- like an art museum with limited hours. I was a broken Ming vase re-created with expert hands and my heartspine vision. My life began in the environs and culture of hospitals, places where the human theater and universal realities of life and death are played out moment to moment, and where time and space is suspended and are redefined as waiting, compassion and meditative. I have tasted the first inhalation - the breath of new life; caressed the full sweeping, soaring, sweet breath of love and joy; impaled by the bone shattering, choking breath of grief; and touched the final exhalation - the final breath of life. My art bears the viewer to the transcendent moment of an epiphany. The moment when one's heart is suddenly set open and rapt, when all the senses are heralded and keen, and then, in the theatre of the heart, a cloak slowly and gradually rises and, at once, all the world is seen in gleaming light, simple and innocent clarity, and all becomes whole. A forever eternal moment is imprinted. [b][i]My art is a spiritual, a gospel song. [/i][/b]My work is awake to the invisible, visceral, and universal- the very life of life. An actual encounter of my art is the authentic experience for it is an interacting conversation and dialogue of revelation between the art and the viewer. My work is a dynamic experience. My work denies the camera's eye. It is not a picture of the beloved, it is the beloved. My work is aware of the viewer's body and natural light. The viewer is a participant in the experience of the art. My work reveals itself slowly and suddenly.

[u][b]The call:[/b][/u] [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward darkness [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward ugly [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward betrayal [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward shame [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward light [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward truth [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward release [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward forgiveness [u][b]The response:[/b][/u] [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward faith [b][i][/i][/b] [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward courage [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward compassion [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward trust [b][i]slowly [/i][/b]toward integrity [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward rebirth [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward heal/thy love [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward joy [i][b]JOY[/b][/i] joy [b][i]Breathe [/i][/b]deep[b][i][/i][/b] [b][i]Deep [/i][/b]breathe: [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward RELEASE [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward TRUTH [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward MYSTERY [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward LOVE [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] toward YOU [b][i]slowly[/i][/b] ENTER ENTER [i][b]slowly[/b][/i] [i][b] [/b][/i] OPEN A/LIVE works [b][i]to be announced[/i][/b] as they arrive as a whisper, a song a/live on the stage [b]Shown:[/b] my right hand, my instrument, exhales my/a story faithfully

image: TRUTH unveil / UNVEIL truth

image: my stery me