Category Archives: beauty
Unveiling “The Seeker”
“The Seeker.” 24×24″ 2024. Acrylic & jewels on canvas. ©Amy Livingstone
Dear Karen G.
When we spoke, you said you wanted to feel: “Gratitude. Acceptance. Presence” when you viewed your mandala. I kept this in mind while working on the piece. Also your ability to be “grateful to see beauty. Lucky to have richness, depth of curiosity—and that which is spiritual.”
The color palette is drawn from your love of Naples yellow, terra cotta, olive green, turquoise and teal. The colors of the desert. And bright like the sun and summer, your favorite season.
The inner circle represents your search for the Transcendent. The desert where you feel closest to God. The canyons with light and shadows that you love. Here, is the Court of the Patriarchs from Zion in Utah representing three patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I chose this as you explore your relationship to your Catholic faith through the lens of the Mystics and the Desert Fathers and Mothers. The Seeker, the veiled figure—you—standing in the arched threshold symbolizes the light you see around others and the healing pranic energy you offer to others.
Coleus, one of your favorite plants, has a lot of symbolism in different faith traditions around spiritual evolution and healing and are associated with enlightenment and spiritual growth. They are also said to possess healing properties. Your beloved bees called serve as a symbol of rejuvenation and divinity.
The outer ring symbolizes Immanence. The mystic in you that sees the beauty of the natural world. I chose one of your favorite flowers, the day lily, for it’s “unique structure” and sits in the four directions. Also the canaries you love and birds for your mother who sang to them.
The outer pattern symbolizes your love and appreciation of Islamic architecture and culture, and your recent journey to Andalusia.
May this mandala guide you on your journey of FAITH…
New Painting (Commission)
“You have the freedom to be yourself, your true self, here and now, and nothing can stand in your way”.” -Richard Bach from Jonathan Livingston Seagull
“Pam’s Beach”, 36×24”, Acrylic, 2023. (Commission) ©Amy Livingstone
I love this quote from Jonathan Livingston Seagull, the 1970 text that helped shape a generation of free spirits pushing the social and cultural boundaries of that era. My eldest sister, Pam, is of that generation and am grateful to all the women like her who broke through established norms so those of us coming up behind them could have the freedoms our mothers never had, and to choose how we wanted to live our lives (though our reproductive rights are being stripped across this country which is outrageous to say the least).
Pam recently commissioned me to paint a beachscape (seen above) for her new home in SW Florida as she begins life anew. Her only requests were lots of blue and to feel peace and calm. It was a joy and a lot trickier to paint water lapping up on the sand than I had imagined! Of course, she also loved the sanderlings so ubiquitous to the beaches and her own Livingstone Seagull.
Happy Solstice + Heartspace Anthology Now Available
“I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, ‘Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again’.” -Lewis Carroll
Frosty mornings here on the land. ©Amy Livingstone
Very chilly mornings have arrived here in North Carolina! Warm thoughts to those who are experiencing the deep polar vortex and pray for those vulnerable to the cold—human and more-than-human. I’m grateful for shelter and embrace the interiority of the season and the darkness as a time of reflection, inspiration, and creative visioning. May the beauty of the season be yours and inspire your own creativity in the spirit of joy, peace, and healing.
Snowy Night
-Mary Oliver
Last night, an owl
in the blue dark
tossed an indeterminate number
of carefully shaped sounds into
the world, in which,
a quarter of a mile away, I happened
to be standing.
I couldn’t tell
which one it was –
the barred or the great-horned
ship of the air –
it was that distant. But, anyway,
aren’t there moments
that are better than knowing something,
and sweeter? Snow was falling,
so much like stars
filling the dark trees
that one could easily imagine
its reason for being was nothing more
than prettiness. I suppose
if this were someone else’s story
they would have insisted on knowing
whatever is knowable – would have hurried
over the fields
to name it – the owl, I mean.
But it’s mine, this poem of the night,
and I just stood there, listening and holding out
my hands to the soft glitter
falling through the air. I love this world,
but not for its answers.
And I wish good luck to the owl,
whatever its name –
and I wish great welcome to the snow,
whatever its severe and comfortless
and beautiful meaning.
I feel blessed to be included in this anthology of essays around grief, healing, and transformation. It’s published by Heart2Heart, a local non-profit here in North Carolina that supports individuals, families and communities who are in the sacred passage of the dying time, and also those that are navigating grief through movement, massage therapy, and sacred music.
My contribution in this collection is titled: “The Healing Power of Art and Holy Listening” about my transformative journey through grief after the deaths of my brother and mother thirty years ago that led me to this path. There are many other inspirational stories that I look forward to reading as well. If you are looking for support or inspiration on your journey, it’s available on Kindle or in paperback here.
Conference of the Birds
From my September newsletter:
“I want to feel both the beauty and the pain of the age we are living in. I want to survive my life without becoming numb. I want to speak and comprehend words of wounding without having these words becoming the landscape where I dwell. I want to possess a light touch that can elevate darkness to the realm of stars.” -Terry Tempest Williams, When Women Were Birds
I’ve been at a loss for words given everything happening in our world right now. I’m feeling “the pain of the age we are living in” to quote Williams. And I am also looking to the beauty of what remains around me daily. Some would argue a luxury as a person of privilege. Perhaps it is, but I also believe we each have access to the beauty of the living earth at any given moment. We can take moments to stop. Listen. Breathe. Turn off the phone and look at the trees. Listen to the birds. This and art and books, especially poetry, are keeping me sane. What are the ways you are navigating these times?
The “Conference of the Birds” (above) was originally inspired by a Sufi text of the same name by Farid Ud-Din Attar that I discovered through another author, Belden Lane, though none of the birds in this epic poem are included in this painting. Instead, there is Cardinal, Goldfinch, Red-winged Black Bird, and Arctic Tern.
I’m drawing once again from the wisdom of Chief Arvol Looking Horse during the Parliament of the World’s Religions in 2015 that inspired the “All Nations Tree of Life” below. With so much divisiveness in our country right now, this message could not be more urgent. He said: “Red, yellow, black, and white, we must join together as a spiritual community to heal Mother Earth.” Read previous post here.
What I found interesting while working on the “All Nations” painting was the connection to the Judeo-Christian tradition. The raven (in the tree) appears in many indigenous origin stories and also in the Hebrew bible. Noah releases a raven before the dove. (Gen 8) The same four colors of the medicine wheel appear in the Shamanic Judaism (according Rabbi Gershon Winkler). And in the New Testament: “On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” (Rev 22).
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There are so many ways we are interdependent and pray that we come together as a nation to heal the wounds of racial and economic inequality, divisiveness, and the climate crisis. Sending prayers to all being impacted by the fires on the West coast of the US and hurricanes along the Gulf Coast, and to those around the World facing the challenges of our times.
With gratitude and love, Amy
Nature as Muse. New prints!
I woke very early one morning recently to see this sweet fawn nestled against this large grass. With my 35mm and zoom lens, I was able to capture this precious moment. I am also now watching over three turtle nests, or clutches, here on the land. The turtles wandered up from the pond nearby and deposited their eggs within view of the kitchen where I now await their emergence next month. I pray over each one on my way to the studio and hope the little ones make it back to the pond. I feel blessed to have many of these magical moments with creatures of all kinds here.
As lonely as it can feel during this pandemic, I am grateful for the kinship and beauty with “the peace of wild things” to borrow from poet Wendell Berry. My beloved former home of Portland is under siege right now and sending my love and support to my community there who are involved in standing up for racial justice.
Is art a luxury during such a challenging and uncertain time? Some days you might wonder, but imagine this pandemic without the arts? Our creativity. No paintings, books, music, poetry, movies, videos, etc. And the amazing murals giving expresson to our time. I’m heartened by the way people, having been forced to slow down, are also now hearing the birdsong out their window and are being present to all the wonders of the natural world. That is hopeful in spite of the darkness right now. To quote Thoreau, “In wildness is the preservation of the world.” And the soul, I would add.
What wonders are you seeing around you. Right now in this moment?
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DOODLE OR DRAW YOUR EXPERIENCE OF THE WORLD AROUND YOU.
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From an early age, Nature was my muse. Though I’m working on several larger paintings pencil drawing which was my first medium is fun for me and a meditation. Here, the Luna Moth, a recent visitor to the studio. I invite you to join me for this practice in seeing, being present, and giving expression!
NEW PRINTS AND FREE SHIPPING
During this quarantine time, I have updated my website, YouTube channel (see a virtual tour of my studio here in NC) and my online shop with free shipping on giclee prints! There are so many new prints available now including canvas prints. Watch the video below to learn more.
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| Introducing “Reciprocity Mandala” canvas prints |
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SUPPORT THE MORE BEAUTIFUL WORLD OUR HEARTS KNOW IS POSSIBLE.
For love of the Earth!
Alchemy of Change
but the silence of our friends.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.
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| Alchemy of Change, 12×12″ 2020, ©Amy Livingstone |
From my June Newsletter
Greetings Earth Lovers
What a difference a few weeks makes. We are living in extraordinary times indeed. I know many of us are feeling the sorrow (and outrage) of our collective history and the racial injustice towards people of color in this country. We are a nation founded on genocide and slavery and it now feels there is reckoning for those of us who have had the luxury to turn away. But the time is now. Change is here. I pray that like the lotus that grows out of the watery muck and the butterfly that emerges from the darkness of its chrysalis, that the beauty of unity, justice, healing, and reconciliation will blossom.
The arts are playing a significant role at this time. Numerous books, films, and documentaries offer us an opportunity to learn and understand. I don’t know how to have the difficult conversations but as a white woman, right now I am educating myself and ready to listen.
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| Arts & Activism Symposium with Greater Portland Sustainability Education Network, GPSEN.org |
Sneak Peek “Vespers: Prayer for the Sacred Waters”
| Vespers is the evening prayer of thanksgiving and praise in the Liturgy of the Hours. This was the most challenging painting for the “Where We Stand is Holy” installation as every body of water and her creatures are threatened. It was difficult to discern what to include: dolphins, sharks, blue fin tuna? The list is endless. Inspired by an interview I heard with world-reknowned marine biologist Sylvia Earle who spoke of the profound beauty when she started diving and given that our coral reefs are in crisis, I included many of the beautiful fish that call these underwater lungs home. The figure became Aphrodite who was born of the sea. Doves, the scallop shell, and pearl are some of her sacred symbols. And the chalice at the center, signifies the holiness of water that is used in every spiritual tradition for liturgical ritual. Water is life. Water is sacred. Thank you for following along on this journey that began many years ago. After the first two panels were complete, I placed it on hold while I cared for my elderly father and made the transition back to the East coast. It felt like an overwhelming vision when I began and grateful to Spirit for guiding my hand. Trust is an important aspect of the creative process! Working on the rest of the pieces for the installation that will create a temple space to celebrate the sanctity and beauty of the creation and to grieve what is being lost. Sending prayers to those in California who are affected by the recent wildfires. May all beings be safe. With love and gratitude, Amy www.sacredartstudio.net |
| In Praise of Water Let us bless the grace of water: The imagination of the primeval ocean Where the first forms of life stirred And emerged to dress the vacant earth With warm quilts of color. The well whose liquid root worked Through the long night of clay, Trusting ahead of itself openings That would yet yield to its yearning Until at last it arises in the desire of light To discover the pure quiver of itself Flowing crystal clear and free Through delighted emptiness. The courage of a river to continue belief In the slow fall of ground, Always falling farther Toward the unseen ocean. The river does what words would love, Keeping its appearance By insisting on disappearance; Its only life surrendered To the event of pilgrimage, Carrying the origin to the end, Seldom pushing or straining, Keeping itself to itself Everywhere all along its flow, All at one with its sinuous mind, An utter rhythm, never awkward, It continues to swirl Through all unlikeness, With elegance: A ceaseless traverse of presence Soothing on each side The stilled fields, Sounding out its journey, Raising up a buried music Where the silence of time Becomes almost audible. Tides stirred by the eros of the moon Draw from that permanent restlessness Perfect waves that languidly rise And pleat in gradual forms of aquamarine To offer every last tear of delight At the altar of stillness inland. And the rain in the night, driven By the loneliness of the wind To perforate the darkness, As though some air pocket might open To release the perfume of the lost day And salvage some memory From its forsaken turbulence And drop its weight of longing Into the earth, and anchor. Let us bless the humility of water, Always willing to take the shape Of whatever otherness holds it, The buoyancy of water Stronger than the deadening, Downward drag of gravity,The innocence of water, Flowing forth, without thought Of what awaits it,The refreshment of water, Dissolving the crystals of thirst. Water: voice of grief, Cry of love, In the flowing tear. Water: vehicle and idiom Of all the inner voyaging That keeps us alive. Blessed be water, Our first mother. ~ John O’Donohue |
The Journey of Art & Soul Continues
“Listen, are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?”
-Mary Oliver
It has been a slow unfolding here since my last newsletter. Settling into my new home and studio here in Panther Branch Township just south of downtown Raleigh. It’s now six months since I pulled out of Portland and headed back East to begin a new chapter of life. Something I swore I would never do after moving alone to Portland in 1993. It was hard then and I was in my early 30s. It took time to make a life but a beautiful life it was and remain so grateful for all the many gifts over the years.
Never say never. Here I am approaching 60 and starting over again! Natural concerns about finding community, making meaningful connections, and making a living linger but life–and loss–have taught me too many times that everyday is a gift. Some days I am lonely but on this day of life, I am following my soul. Where it will lead remains a mystery. This is the journey of a pilgrim. Will you join me? “Are you breathing just a little and calling it a life” to quote Oliver. Where are you being called to expand and take a step toward your soul calling? Artistically or otherwise?
Right now, I am committed to finishing the “Where We Stand is Holy” installation by the end of August to begin exhibiting in the Fall. I began the series of paintings around endangered species and landscapes several years ago but got put aside while care taking my father prior to his death and with the cross-country move. Prints of the first two panels (Lauds: Prayer for the Birds and “Sext: Prayer for the Desert”) are available at my shop.
The new studio seen above looks out over a quiet piece of land with wild trees, a little pond, and an abundance of Cardinals and Eastern Bluebirds. I traveled 3000 miles to find peace. Om shanti. Though I do look forward to returning to Portland to visit friends!
It was fun to connect with the Abundance NC community last month and bring artwork and the nature mandala ceremony to their event. Another beautiful offering for the healing of our world.
For love of the EARTH,
Amy
The Messenger: Ode to the Passenger Pigeon
“The eyes of the future are looking back at us and they are praying for us to see beyond our own time. They are kneeling with hands clasped that we might act with restraint, that we might leave room for the life that is destined to come. To protect what is wild is to protect what is gentle. Perhaps the wilderness we fear is the pause between our own heartbeats, the silent space that says we live only by grace. Wilderness lives by this same grace. Wild mercy is in our hands.” -Terry Tempest Williams, Refuge.
This painting came through me very quickly on one hand just prior to my move but I have long been drawn to the tragic story of the Passenger Pigeon. With a population between 3-5 billion, it was the most abundant bird in North America. Flocks would darken the sky for days as they flew overhead. Yet human exploitation drove this species to extinction over the course of a few decades. “Martha” the last Passenger Pigeon died in 1914. Originating in Scotland, the cairn or stacked stones, implies a funereal monument and in the lower left corner, the extinction symbol. Created by a London artist Xylo: “The circle signifies the planet, while the hourglass inside serves as a warning that time is rapidly running out for many species” during what is now being defined in our time as the Sixth Mass Extinction of Species.
The demise of the Passenger Pigeon is also an urgent message around our own vulnerability in the face of ecological degradation including climate change. “How might we act with restraint” to quote Williams? And how do we navigate these changing times? And with grace?
While speaking at the Parliament of the World’s Religions in November, indigenous elder Jim Dumont, of the Anishinabeck Nation, encouraged us to “Speak for the plants. Speak for the creation. Speak to the conscience of those who are destroying them.” This was affirming of my work and deeply moving. I wept. Art plays an important role not only in communicating a message/vision but, as most of you know, the process itself offers healing and a spiritual practice for resilience during troubled times. Even something as simple as coloring, drumming, planting flowers, or the latest ZenTangle can have enormous benefits for your well being and stress level.
I am settling into the new home and studio here in the Panther Branch Township (in Raleigh NC) and will share more next month. You can always check out Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram for updates between newsletters. As always, I welcome your thoughts.
For love of the EARTH!
Interfaith Tree of Hope
Panels for “Interfaith Tree of Hope” commission.
The Essence of Desire
I did not have to ask my heart what it wanted,
because of all the desires I have every known
just one did I cling to
for it was the essence of
all desire:
to hold beauty in
my soul’s arms.
-St John of the Cross
From my June/July newsletter:
Greetings Earth Lovers
The late Irish philosopher and poet John O’Donohue said: “God is Beauty.” When we encounter beauty, we have an opportunity to experience the transcendent. The numinous, that which takes us out of the profane and into the sacred. These are indeed holy moments and we all have experienced this especially in nature.
Many years ago, I remember driving through the Okanagan region of British Columbia, high in the Canadian Rockies. I was alone, driving back from seeing a friend perform at a music festival in the area and had Puccini’s “La Boheme” in the tape deck. I had driven through this valley in the middle of the night from Vancouver airport several days earlier and had no clue as to the landscape I had traveled. At one point on my return, I reached the top of one peak at the exact moment an aria from the opera hit its crescendo and was completely overcome by awe at the profound beauty and holiness of the land before me. Combined by the dramatic nature of the music, I stopped in the middle of the road and wept.
I could dwell in that space of awe all the days of my life and sense it is a longing for us all in our fast-paced, technologically driven world. What about you? Where have you experienced this sense of awe and wonder? These moments and others like them inspire my work as a sacred artist and advocate for the earth. I believe deeply that what we love, we will protect.
These days, I am immersed in completing two paintings (one a triptych or three panels) for the interfaith prayer room at Providence St Vincent hospital here in Portland. The two side panels from the “Interfaith Tree of Hope” are shown here. I look forward to unveiling these paintings to you later this month. You can see other photos in process at my studio Facebook page.
I appreciate your support of this holy work especially now as I walk with my father who was hospitalized again in May and is currently receiving hospice care in assisted living. There are pearls to be gleaned here even amidst my exhaustion. I see the struggle between his will to live and fear of dying for one who has no faith or spiritual grounding. I pray for his peaceful transition as a faithful witness to his journey.
For love…
Icons left:
Sikhism, Christianity, Buddhism, Sufism, Baha’i
Icons right:
Taoism, Judaism, Hinduism, Jainism, Islam
