The Artsy Aussie
The Artsy Aussie
Podcast - In Person Experience - Episode 3
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In Person Experience Podcast – Epidode 3

 

Pod Cast Transcript:

Hello, hello, and welcome to week 3 of the podcast with the Artsy Aussie me Cherryn Wight, and this is the In Person Experience, or the build-up for the In Person Experience.  So, what that basically means is that, over the summer I come to your city, and I bring my creations with me. My painting, so that you can see them in person.

I’d like to just do a quick blurb just to beginning with, of what’s coming up.  May 11th I’m scheduled to do the Fuel & Flow Festival. It’s a yoga conference here in Idaho Falls.  I’m also planning to attend Pride in Utah this year. Pride in Portland. A very high chance that I’ll be in San Diego again for their Pride.  And then I’ll also be attending different yoga studios in each of those cities and different businesses within those cities as well. If you’re not into going to Pride festivals.  Although, I don’t know why you wouldn’t because it’s the most fun ever.

So, um also for this week is, um March 1st through the 20th is what will be… here forthwith known as CheDays.  C H E D A Y S. CheDays, and during CheDays you can get 20% off my yoga pants, um by using the code CheDays. And this special promotion is just for Spring.   I’m so excited for Spring! When you live in, a place that gets four very distinct seasons like I do. When it comes time for Spring to finally hit, you are so ready.  So, typically during the Winter time it’s below zero here, so it stays at about 20 degrees Fahrenheit. So, anything after Winter has hit, anything over zero, it like, it feels like Spring.  But, looking out of my window here and seeing all of the white stuff still on the ground, I am ready to do some promotion for this Spring! Let’s bring on the Spring. So that is CheDays. That is now through March 20th you can take 20% off by using the code CheDays at checkout.

OK, so, this week I’m going to be talking to you about why art is relevant, and why it’s important for human development.  And I think the best way that I can describe that is that it connects us to the most vulnerable, and beautiful parts of who we are as people.  And, I think that there’s so much push to be perfect, and so much push to have all the right answers all of the time, and that we are afraid to speak out loud what our raw feelings are.  Or, afraid to express what our raw feelings are, but in embracing this part of ourselves. The most real and raw of who we are and really digging down into that vulnerable place, that’s when you get to the most beautiful, that’s where you get to creation and flow, and that’s where you get to see who you are as, all warts and all.

Um, I was talking with my brother when I went home, and I was visiting with him.  And we touched briefly on, the fact that it takes both dark and light to make a painting.  It takes rain and sunshine to make a rainbow. It takes Darkness and Light to make an experience.  You need both sides, it’s balance. Um, so, I, I have a, I’m a big supporter of balance it’s one of the things that really, um, excites me about my own work, and, it took me a long time to get to this place where, I fell in love with my creations.  And, um, that it would be okay for me to even, really love them and want them for myself even. So, I want to, help other people believe that they can overcome this, insecurity that they have inside, or that, um, stops you from actually completing or doing a project, or even letting anybody see the project that you’ve done.  So a lot of times with art, we get to that place where we create. Um, so for example, I am motivated by color, movement and texture. And, when I was in school those are not the things that are celebrated, when you’re showing your piece at the end of the production. Everybody’s done their piece. Everybody showing their piece.  And, for me color, movement, texture, those are the things that turn me on. And, when looking at all the pieces in high school, uh, you know the ones that would get talked about and get a lot of praise are obviously the ones that fell into really excellent form, the category of form. Which means that it looks realistic. So, when you’re looking at my pieces they’re truly about emotion and balance and, the color and movement also tell a part in the story, and the background, and the foreground are, equally as important to me.  So, I had to overcome that as a young woman. And truly embrace that, uh, as a maturing woman.

Um, OK so I was going through my things, before I get to talking about the piece I’m going to talk about this week.  Um, when I was a much, much younger woman I used to journal a lot and, I happened to be going through a box of things this weekend, and, um, I came across, um, this beautiful poem, this beautiful it’s a part of his speech actually.  It’s Nelson Mandela’s inaugural speech in 1994. And I’m going to recite it for you today, because it’s great! OK, here goes. “Our deepest fear, is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.  It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.  You were born to manifest. You were born to manifest the glory that is within you. It is not just some of us, it is everyone. And as we let our own light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” Man! That is powerful.  That is, it’s so powerful right? Because, it’s the truth. When you live authentically and you live truly in your gift, and you are lighting up that quirk inside of you. That thing that makes you, you, and you’re lighting that up. That is the best gift that you can give the world, so from me from my voice, my purpose is in doing this, is to help other people feel comfortable, that what you have inside of you is valuable, it’s worthwhile, it’s beautiful and it’s a gift to all of us.

OK, so this week I’m going to be talking about another one of my personal favorites.  Her name is Clarity. And, I painted her, 6 years ago. And it was one of those magical situations where, um, it was actually one of my friends.  I knew her, and she came to me with her husband, and they came to my gallery, and looked, well they came to my studio actually which was at my house.  And they looked at all of the pieces that I had. And, they purchased 5 pieces right there. And then they commissioned this piece which is called Clarity.  And, what they did was, they picked the size of canvas that they wanted, and then they just, let me paint whatever I wanted, and this is what came out, and her name is Clarity.  And, I’m sure you could see this on the cover of the podcast, so I know that you can see her. So, the most striking thing about Clarity that you’ll see first of all, is the ocean inside of her chest, and also in her crown chakra.  They’re the two things, crown and heart are both linked. And, that the ocean, the river of the water comes down over her hips, over the root chakra. This is so symbolic to me of, um, my own personal journey. So, first of all painting the dryads.  I’ve always felt, super connection to the trees and to the energy of trees. And, if you looked at trees, and in, and thought about the fact that they, maybe could walk around. Like, if you just thought, if trees could move. Like, think about some of these massive trees, and if they could walk around like, they’re the size of whales, you know.  There would be a different level of respect for these beautiful, living creatures on our planet, and the symbiotic relationship that we have with them is, uh, unparalleled, you know. We, we share this planet with these trees and I feel a deep connection and love to them. For them. With them. So I, uh, I live on a place that has trees everywhere, and, I always love to be in the trees.

So, I also love the ocean.  The ocean, is very very special to me.  It was my safe place when I was a child.  I would spend hours, playing, in the water and laying on the bottom of the ocean, and watching the waves.  Aw, it just was very special to grow up in Australian and have that experience as a child. So, back to Clarity.  So you can see in the background of Clarity the deep, deep blue and the yellow in this background. This deep, orange, yellow.  So that and the, and even the way that the city looks on the skyline is indicative of my childhood, growing up in Australia. The heat the way the heat makes things look.  Um, and the way the light actually reacts with the heat, and at sunset when, what you can see. When you’re looking at the city it’s very hazy, it looks very shadowed. Um, especially for me, growing up in the West, the sunset would, it would set over the ocean, and so the buildings would look, um very shadowed like that.

Um, then I also have her up on a hill, because I don’t actually like living in cities, I really like to be very secluded.  I live out, out of the city. We live on a lot of land with, um, not very many neighbors. We know our neighbors and we love our neighbors, but we don’t live close to our neighbors.  So, that’s also symbolic of me as a person. Um, the dryads, uh, this period of my when I was painting the dryads, had something to do with grounding for me. Um, because I was, raised, I spent so much of my life on the beach.  I felt such, I feel such deep connection and grounding in the water, and learning how to ground into the Earth, has been something, I’ve had to learn how to do. So, the dryads, and painting of the dryads is part of that process for me, of that grounding, and finding the grounding, and connection with the Earth.

So, uh she is, on her, right side, she has this tangle and bramble of branches.  And, on her left side reaching out over, it could be a sunset or sunrise. It doesn’t really matter.  It’s all up to you and your perspective obviously. So, she’s uh reaching out with her left arm, and the there’s not tangles in this direction, but also it falls in line with the, darkness and lightness to make the beautiful piece.  The tangle and the clarity to, you need the tangle to understand what the clarity feels like. Uh, the bramble and the messed up, emotions and feelings, give you the understanding of what being clear, and having understanding actually feels like.  And then all of the beautiful flowers at her feet, um, are symbolic of poppies. I love poppies, and puppies are also a symbol of, um the price of war actually. So on Anzacs in Australia, they have, we have a day, and the name of this day, or the, the title that goes along with this day is “Lest We Forget.”  And, it’s symbolized by these red poppies that, are planted in many battlefields, to symbolize the blood that was given, for war. The price that we pay for war, is blood. And the poppies, that I paint in my pieces are, they’re a symbol of that, of remembering blood, and family, and love, and you know the things that family actually means to us.  And our compliance with war, and our assistance with war and, what that actually means. Like, how all we complying? And, how do we not comply and still support our countries? And, how do we support each other as a world as well, you know? We, we live together on this planet, and we need to learn how to live in a symbiotic way, so that we’re supporting each other and nurturing each other and nurturing our planet, and Clarity is a symbol of all of that.  She’s a symbol of what we can have together, what, what can happen when, we are unified as a individual, when we are living our truth, and living our genius and gifting what we have to the world. And, that’s what she’s a symbol of. Anyway she is one of my personal favorites, and um, I hope you like getting to know her a little bit better. OK so that’s it for this week. And, I’m super grateful that you came along for the ride again to listen to what I have going on and I will see you next week.