As my latest exhibition comes to an end I have been reflecting quite deeply on the work I have created for Turquoise Paradox and considering the next series of works to come. In these quite small scale, intimate works I have woven the story of my life with that of my partner’s. The journey we have been on both individually and the intersections of life where we walk together is the basis of these works.
Using the colour turquoise has had quite a calming and healing effect on me. Coming out of the heaviness of the last series of works and looking more closely at the stories around love, connection, communication, journeys of the heart and more explicitly this notion of my “life path” de-coded through numerology has inspired me to delve even deeper into the next direction I want to take both in terms of my teaching career and my art practice.
What do I mean about ‘ life path number’? In my research about the re-occurring numbers in my life and subsequently about numerology I came across Dan Millman’s book ” The Life You Were Born to Live” which uses the calculation of your birth date to come up with your life purpose or life path number. Each digit has a particular meaning- much of the interpretation comes from the Pythagorean principles which I find fascinating! So adding my birth date together gives me the number 38 which is then added together to give 11. The 38/11 combination is apparently one of the rarest that can be found and the number 11 is considered to be a ‘master number’, which cannot be broken down any further and represents spirituality and denotes an ‘old soul energy’.
The meaning of the individual numbers according to Millman are: 3 represents EXPRESSION / 8 represents INFLUENCE / 1 represents CREATIVITY. So interesting that I am an educator (expression / influence) and an artist (creativity). I must be on the right path!
It really is a fascinating analysis, here is a paraphrased excerpt from the book: ” Those on the 38/11 life path are here to combine creativity and material success, learning to apply their power and express their energy with compassion and generosity…their life work, in whatever form it takes, involves…directing their considerable power and energy to creative contributions that uplift and empower those around them, helping others to find their own source of energy and inspiration”
Wow! I really feel that the work I am doing aligns with this description.
Currently I am opening myself up to total trust and allowing myself to create what is in my heart rather than in my head and the results are outstanding. It is an absolute honour to walk this path and inspire others to follow their hearts also.
If you are curious about your own life path number check out Dan Millman’s website and try out the life purpose calculator.
The artworks pictured above are also for sale. The are made with watercolour, collage, pen and ink on board. I have displayed them as a diptych, but they are sold separately. Each piece is 26cm x 20cm. If you are interested in purchasing them or seeing similar works please contact me.
I’ve been thinking a lot about my ‘muse’ this month, especially as I find myself struggling to get through the new series of works. A question I keep asking myself is ‘how do I maintain my creative flow?’
Stepping fully into my artistic path has been quite a journey these past few years. Since starting full-time teaching in 2007 followed closely with major life events of marriage and children, my art practice felt like it was a thing of the past. I had no proper studio set up and whilst I always kept art journals even that came to an end.
