Mindful Meditation

Drawing the figure has always been my subject of choice, and because of this I have explored with drawing self portraits many different times. I usually go in the direction of making pieces that are more emotional and tapping into my personal life, or ones that are outrageous such as drawing myself as a mermaid or other fairytale creatures. Instead, I wanted to explore another side of me this time. Not the things that trouble me, and no the things that distract me. I wanted to explore the things in life that keep me grounded and where I come from. Growing up on a small remote island in Washington State, I was practically born and raised immersed in nature. Because of this, my interests and comfortability tends to gravitate towards the natural environment. My childhood home was in the middle of a forest, and I grew up playing in the woods, getting dirty, building stick forts, playing in tree houses, walking on the beach every day and looking out at the evergreen trees and endless greenery that surrounded me in my home town. 

I drew my self in a cross legged seated position not only to challenge myself with a more complex seated position, but because sitting cross legged is widely known as a meditative position. Meditation is something that I hold near and dear to my heart because it's something that keeps me grounded, and nearly cured my anxiety disorder. Growing up I struggled with anxiety on and off and as soon as I began practicing meditation for an extended period of time I noticed drastic improvements in my mental state. The background of the piece is green, which is associated with health and wellness. I am a very spiritual person, and one way of meditative therapy is through the use of color. Every color has it’s own specific meaning, and each one is associated with a different chakra. Green is the verdant color of nature, health, wellness, environment, renewal and good luck. If you want to meditate for overall healing, they say to meditate with green, or with the fourth chakra. 

In my hand I am holding a necklace that has a pendent in the shape of the island I grew up on called Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands. I have it held over my heart because of the impact growing up in such a tight knit community had on me throughout my whole life. Moving to California and starting my life here has made me appreciate it all the more.