Getting lost, art exhibition and exploring creativity again
Reflections
Let me tell you something! Winter in England is no joke! Let me rephrase it! Winter on an island in this part of the world is no joke! It s wet, windy, grey, very wet, very windy, very grey … repeat!
The other day, on what felt like coming out from the depth of a dark forest / metaphorical speaking of course - the sun interacted in a delicious way with my grey cells, magic happened and I felt the need to explore the world again! Well, let s not get over enthusiastic and say surroundings.
Remember if you find yourself wanting to do things again you are good baby! You are really good!
So here I was, full of enthusiasm and desire to open my arms wide and embrace life again! Got dressed, blessed the day as thanks God it was Sunday, picked my bag and started to pile up a journal, a ton of juicy pens, a book, make up kit purse … oho … the bag is heavy but nope I will not change my routine —— what if I want to write or read and I don t have any of my tools? What if the best idea for a book comes out of the blue and I have nothing to record it in!
Who cares that after 30+ years I am still doing this same routine and nothing monumental happened? It might just might happen tomorrow. The character Buratino from a famous Russian children s book comes to my mind!
Leyla, my car was waiting patiently! I noticed the dust on the windows - yep rain is full of dust, leaving heavy marks on Leyla s body. Nothing is the same nowadays, not even the rain!
I have to confess I am not the best at remembering roads, directions, finding my way with ease so google maps and spoken directions are highly appreciated but on that particular Sunday I wanted to break the pattern and trust my instinct.
So off we go through the familiar village and another one, and yea you get it another one, big round about … hmmm left, straight … couldn’t t remember so straight I went and of course after a while I realised that … yep I don t quite recognise the area.
By the way my intention was to go to St Leonard’s, walk by the sea, stop for a coffee, drift around a vintage shop and that was about it!
Well after lots of zigzagging I realised I was getting close to the sea, hurray, but the sea in Bexhill another seaside town on the same stretch with St Leonard’s!
Suddenly the Delaware pavilion, the best feature of this sleepy town came to my mind, the promises of an art exhibition and a nice coffee overlooking the sea made me realise that my inner guide knew exactly what I needed on that day and made sure I will arrive there no matter what.
So many times we kick ourselves for not doing what we absolutely think is right, in this instance for being so stupid and get lost, we bang our head on a brick wall, we force things to happen only to get wounded, hurt and depleted. Letting go, going with the flow helps at times.
….at least this was my lesson on that Sunday ….and little did I know that I was as going to have so much joy thanks to … the colours and paintings and thoughts ….inspire by a talented painter!
Manuel Mathieu and his fascinating work
Cannot even tell you the joy I felt when I noticed that parking by the sea was so easy … plenty of spaces, yes payment needed to be made but luckily I had the right app downloaded on my phone - what does one do if one is not as familiar with modern phones and apps I don t know - and miraculously the price was not an extortion but only 80p/ hour! Couldn't believe my luck!
Off I went, taking deep breaths and feeling some drops of the sea on my face! Checked it! It was sea water not rain for a change!
The sea is not always restful … whoever generalises needs to think again! The only sea I found soothing is the Mediterranean Sea in the summer time. On this particular day, the English Channel did what the English Channel does most of the time … reminds you of its force, reminds you who is the boss.
The walk to De La Warr Pavilion was delightful, not many people, the sun was shining, a touch of wind but hey this was not too bad. I had no idea what to expect in terms of exhibition and what I saw made my day. The artist is Manuel Mathieu, a Haiti born artist using painting, drawing, ceramics, installation to process his investigations on various themes … from historical violence to cultural interpretations of the body, nature and spirituality.
I found Mathieu’s work inspiring and the energy of each move inspiring and uplifting especially the choice of installation and clever placement in conjunction with the paintings.
The eye is moving from one corner of the painting to another wanting to take in the stories. We all tell our own stories when we look at abstract work or at least this is what I think, this is what I do.
The title I would have given to this exhibition is “Shredded lives” . If you are in the area do go and have a look! It will not disappoint you!
Filled with colour and inspiration, I climbed the spiralled staircase - a beautiful feature reminding of us that the pavilion was build in 1935 and has all of the features of space and proportion one expects to see in a place like this - ordered by coffee and eyed with trepidation one of the very few tables on the terasa. Everybody wants to absorb as much sun as possible after being in the grey zone for such a long time.
Made it! With a short hip hip hurray I sat down, coffee intact, not a drop spilled, decanted my workbook, journal, pens and … started to notice … the sea … not that close … yes I like that distance … not threatening … perfect for my needs.
What followed was an hour re-familiarising myself with one of the workbooks I recommend for people who want to reconnect with their creative side, give themselves a bit of space, healing space whenever they need it.
My aim was to see what do I feel about it now, what are my feelings, what are my thoughts.
I had a brand new workbook and the one I filled in a couple of years ago. A feast for my eyes really as for an hour, here I was, engaged in the magic of art and creativity … again.
If you are searching for creative ways to bring purpose, balance, healing and joy to your life this is the place for you. My aim is to share life lessons, the power of art, creativity, storytelling in bringing meaning, balance to our lives, and in the healing we so crave for. What I know is that life is far from being linear, that often we experience trauma and at times, we stay locked in a cocoon of numbness barely surviving emotionally, but still marching. It could very well be that you feel as if your voice is nowhere to be seen, it could very well be that you don’t know who you are anymore. This publication will provide support through sharing life stories, creative prompts, writing prompts and ways to reclaim our voices and our lives.
To learn more about my work follow the linktree