Before starting Art From Awareness™ , I have been working as an artist for many years. This collection is made up of a vast variety of work that reflects my great joy and fullfilment that comes from drawing. In many ways, it reflects my seeking soul, trying to find ways to express my growing awareness of the beautiful world around me. Sometimes, the inspiration leads me to draw what I see, and others, I try to convey something about what I've seen through mark-making and colors alone. Whatever the case, my work comes from an appreciation of both the natural world around me, and the Spirit within me. My goal at Art From Awareness™ is to bring the same enthusiasm that fuels my work to teaching.
To start exploring my portfolio, simply click on any of the images below.
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Artist Statement
There is an ebb and flow to my creative process. My intuition guides most of my process at the outset, so I rarely know where the drawings will take me when I begin. It is a struggle between clarity and uncertainty. At the root of it though is an inspiration from the natural world that is so compelling, that I have to respond to it. The fuel comes from the moments in life that only occur when I’m ready, when my mind is clear and watchful. The sun slowing descending into a wake of clouds but still shining through their haze, like a light from Heaven. Or when the sun is setting and the blues and oranges and reds vibrate in the sky. It’s the realizations in these moments that somehow begin my creative process.
But then again, life is not only made up of these joyful moments. There is also much to learn from suffering. When I draw, sometimes the initial inspiration takes me down perplexing and unsure paths. Such as in life, these paths cause a certain anxiety and even doubt. Not all the drawings I make come from the truth of the initial moment. So, I stumble. Even though I may get stuck here for awhile, the pursuit does not come to an end. Soon I come to understand that there is something missing, and something more to be learned. So this rejuvenates my search. Suddenly, the inspiration from the sky is gone, and I become inspired by something else entirely, the drawing itself.
My work has become a catalogue for the ebb and flow of my life. I have had moments of joy and of suffering. Drawing has become another way that I understand the world and myself, and the forces behind it. Like drawing, I see that understanding my life is a slow process, and God does not share the entire tale all at once. What continues to inspire me are the moments I am blessed to perceive something so beautiful in this life that I respond in a drawing, and also the potential for growth when I go down an untrodden path. The journey of my life is like the journey of a drawing: it is fueled from one awakening moment to the next.
Jeffrey Sama |