awakening II

in a private collection

sold through Edgewater’s new venue, Edgewater Gallery on the Green 

The Gerdon Farm in Rutland, Vermont has a haunting,
spare beauty that pulls me back time after time. At
every encounter I see something new. As I glazed and
scumbled on Awakening II, I happened to listen to a
discussion of the bundled sum of individuality described
as the Five Aggregates in Buddhist teachings – body,
feelings, perceptions, mental formations and consciousness.
It tickled me to think the wisdom of attached detachment
was in that big old barn, observing the first four aggregates
with the quiet awareness of an awakened mind.

To capture the colors I observed on site, I studied
photographs of iridescent beetles and tried to build up
layers of jewel tones. I hoped to capture the clarity of
soft morning light on cool grass and the resonating colors
that occur with reflective light and cast shadows.