Visions

Medium: Watercolor on paper

Date: 2019

A psychotherapist, whose practice follows the work of Carl Jung, said to me, "In all adults there is still both a little girl and a little boy. We can talk to them. They have wise observations. For instance, we can ask, what is your opinion about what kind of picture l should do next? What haven’t I given you that you need? What am I hiding? This is a way we can talk to our subconscious to get answers and advice that has not yet come into our clear thinking."

Visions, my featured work for this week, is an illustration of myself sitting with a boy and a girl on my lap. The girl is dressed like a tiger. The boy is wearing green winter underwear.

I ask, "How do you feel?"

My girl says, "l want to run and pounce and sink in claws. I want you to ruffle my fur. I want you to direct me to something really hard for me to do." She's all about wild energy, wanting to run, pounce, and tackle life head-on. Yes, I think I do often feel like this. I want to fight. I want to tackle something difficult.

My boy says, "Leave me alone. I'm tired. I feel really thin. I am not hungry. I want to just sit and read. My sister has good ideas. Pay attention to what she suggests to you." He is more of a chill reader, not so hungry for action. But again, yes, I can often feel like this as well. I guess I can always do what he says.

The tiger says to me, "You need to do a picture that shows your violent side. You need to do several. Do not hide this side of yourself. You do not have to show them to anybody but my brother and me." She wants me to embrace it.

I see that the boy is starved and naked. His color is odd, and he does not look well or energetic. His head looks like a skull. He has glasses as if he reads too much. He is over disciplined.

The female side of me is the raging little tiger, lots of bristly hair, sharp teeth and claws. She is frantic with energy. She is wild and will be free once she gets away from being held by her daddy.

I, as the paternal figure, sit on an ancient Chinese folding chair, symbolizing the intellectual posture that encompasses both the creator and the male child figure. This grown man bears a resemblance to the boy, appearing thin with a pallid complexion, his darker face squinting in confusion, uncertain about his gaze.

In Marie Louise von Franz’s book PUER ETERNUS about the eternal boy in men, she said the essence of the male is "Spontaneity!" I said to my brother, a clinical psychologist, "I have always thought the essence of the male was 'Duty" "Yes," he said, " have always thought so." We were amazed by the possibility that "Spontaneity" could be our essence.

Examining my artwork, I perceive the bear masks floating in the background as liberating expressions, diverse in size, form, and color. While not violent, they exude a sense of power and a hint of a potential bite.

The feminine energy of the cat looks like she could jump right out of the canvas. I believe she channeled her energy, intertwining it with the suppressed vigor of the boy, birthing these imaginative bear masks. I asked her if this is so. She answers. "Your boy is dreaming of being a bear, big and powerful and possibly hungry. I get you to put this down on paper. He has dreams but unclear. I have the energy to make you get your pen to work. Shall I try to prompt you to put down more of these visualizations?"

"Yes," I said to her.

The bear masks, with their colorful personalities, stand as cheerful witnesses to this fascinating journey.

As my hands glide across the canvas, it's as if the playful spirit of the universe joins in, adding a sprinkle of stardust to every art line. The boy's dreams, once elusive, now unfold like a captivating story, urged to life by the energy of the wild, feline muse.

In this vibrant tapestry of imagination, I find myself embracing the unexpected with a grin and a flourish of my brush. After all, isn't every stroke a witty conversation between the artist and the canvas, each color adding its own punchline to the tale? Here's to spontaneity, dreams, and the delightful surprises they bring to the canvas of life!