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Koers (Online) vol.80 n.1 Pretoria 2015
Poetic seeing in visual arts and theology. Aesthetics as a spiritual and loving gaze within the human quest for meaning
Prof D. J. Louw
Faculty of Theology, University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch 7600
A human being is essentially homo aestheticus and not in the first place homo faber. In the light of this basic assumption, it is argued that, due to poetic seeing, interconnectedness between art1, spirituality and the human quest for meaning exists. It is virtually impossible to define art. However, in one way or another, art is connected to imagination, inspiration and creativity. Art probes into the realm of the unseen, thus the value of iconic seeing in visual arts. By means of art, objects are moved into imagination and connected to the 'idea' beyond the vision of phenomenological observation. Serious art probes into the dimension of the unseen; it makes the invisible, visible. Art deals inter alia with 'signals of transcendence' (Peter Berger)2 and opens up new avenues for religious thinking and spiritual experiences. Serious art can thus contribute to the healing dimension of spiritual wholeness. Art can even assist theology in the reframing of existing God-images. In this regard, the notions of a Compassionate God and God as Covenantal Partner for Life, become appropriate alternatives for the imperialistic pantokrator-images (omni-categories) of theism.
Keywords: homo aestheticus, visual arts, poetic seeing, meaning in suffering, aesthetics, imagination, theology and God-images, theopascitism
Die mens is wesenlik homo aestheticus en nie in die eerste plek homo faber nie. In die lig van die estetiese funksie van 'n poëtiese skoue kan 'n netwerkverband tussen kuns, spiritualiteit en die mens se soeke na sin voorveronderstel word. Dit is basies onmoontlik om kuns finaal te definieer. Tog het kuns op een of ander manier te doen met 'ver-beeld-ing', inspirasie en kreatiwiteit. Kuns dring die sfeer van die onsienlike binne en 'maak' op 'n skeppende wyse die onsienlike in objekte en visuele waarneming, sigbaar; dit werk heuristies en kreatief-ontdekkend; dit penetreer die sogenaamde 'idee' agter dit wat mens in die fenomenologie van waarneming 'sien'. Kuns is in 'n sekere sin ikonies en staan in verband met transendensie. Kuns breek brute werklikheid oop en is 'n soort van venster vir sinvolle spirituele ervaringe en religieuse denke. Ernstige kuns kan beskou word as 'n vorm van heling op die vlak van 'spirituele gesondheid' (wholeness). Die basiese hipotese is dat die visuele kunste teologie kan help om bestaande, geykte vorme van teologisering, te transformeer. So byvoorbeeld kan die imperialistiese pantokrator-idee van'n 'onveranderlike, teïstiese God' (omni-kategorie) deur middel van religieuse estetika verskuif na die sensitiewe 'Mee-lydende God' (patos-kategorie): God nie as kousaliteitsbeginsel nie maar as Lewende Verbondspartner.
Trefwoorde: homo aestheticus, visuele kunste, poëtiese skoue, sin in lyding, estetika, verbeelding, teologie en Godskonsepte, teopasgitisme
From merely an empirical, phenomenological and observational point of view, perhaps not. The empiricist only 'sees' what the senses experience factually.
From an aesthetic point of view, perhaps yes. The artist 'sees' more than the eye of the beholder can capture. "Of course, all art is to some extent an illusion. It transforms experience in order to satisfy some need of the imagination" (Clark 1974:191).
Thus, the following hypothesis: artistic viewing supersedes the limitations of merely phenomenological experiences and observation. Art probes into the fourth dimension of life (signals of transcendence) wherein time and space are transformed into a visual and spiritual togetherness that brings about a kind of integration (wholeness), spiritual fusion and interconnectedness between object and viewer. For this "spiritual interconnectedness" one needs imagination.
In 1992 Ellen Dissanyake wrote a book entitled Homo Aestheticus: Where Art comes from and Why. Her basic assumption is that art can be regarded as a natural general proclivity that manifests itself in culturally learned specifics such as dances, songs, performances, visual display and poetic speech. Art makes life special, because making art involves taking something out of its everyday and ordinary use context and making it somehow special - the ordinary becomes extraordinary. As meaning-maker, a human being is basically homo aestheticus and thus in essence an interpreter of 'signals of transcendence'.
According to K. Jaspers (1962), one can walk through life like a "wise fool", leaving behind signs (chiffre) which function as poetic images to be interpreted: ut pictura poesis3(life as a poetic image).
Pictura poesis indicates that life is more than reasoning and seeing; life is poetic imaging; a silent poem to be interpreted. Applicable in this regard is the Ciceronian formula: poema loquens picture, pistura tacitum poema (poetry is a spoken painting; painting is a silent poem) (in Huyghe 1981: 20). Poetry is art and art is poetry: ut pictora poesis (literally 'as poetry, so painting').
As homo aestheticus there is an innate need in human beings for creative imagination; i.e. the making of transitional objects as means of overcoming loss and the limitations set by suffering and vulnerability. Our being human is intrinsically involved in the creative attempt to signify and decode the markings of life.
Imagination: the aesthetics of iconic seeing
To imagine is closely related to the art of seeing and the aesthetics of humane living.
The John Lennon memorial, Central Park New York4 (Strawberry Fields) with title of his very famous song Imagine. Gift from Yoko Ono and City of Naples on what would have been Lennon's 45th birthday. Design from a Roman mosaic in Pompei (Pappalardo and Ciardiello 2012: 7). Authorized copyright, Central Park Conservancy (http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/things-to-see/south-end/strawberry-fields.html. Accessed 05/01/2013)
In the now famous song Imagine, John Lennon dreamt about a different and, perhaps, better world.
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people sharing all the world
John Lennon's song gained iconic status. It captured the imagination of a new x-generation, disillusioned by the artificiality and materialism of a capitalist society. Imagination helped him to 'see' more. It opened up the mind of youth to start imagining a new or different world.
It is perhaps true that one cannot say what true art is about. To define aesthetics is impossible. However, my hunch is that art hinges on the mystery of the human spirit, the yearning for freedom beyond the limitations of what already exists and has been achieved.
Perhaps, the reason why Beethoven cherished freedom and virtue? The subject rumbled through his mind so that finally Fidelio became "the greatest of all hymns to liberty, as the victims of injustice struggle up from their dungeons towards the light. 'O happiness to see the light,' they say, 'to feel the air and be once more alive. Our prison was a tomb. O freedom, freedom come to us again' "(Clark 1974: 305).
Is seems that one could indeed assume that art is inter alia the ability of the human spirit to transcend and supersede the limitations of observation and perception (the seen) by means of inspiration and imagination, establishing a kind of spiritual freedom. Art probes into the dimension of the unseen and presupposes the creativity of imagination.
By means of imagination and the symbolic value of images, the poetic gaze probes into the realm of the unseen. Thus, the reason why iconic viewing and most forms of arts, especially the visual arts, operate within the spiritual realm of life. Paintings and sculptures, images (eikon) are in essence aesthetic reflections of "eternal human values" probing into the realm of transcendence and meaning. The iconic gaze is thus an attempt to represent glimpses of "the Ultimate". One could say that art largely is iconic; poetic images giving birth to the sacred dimension of life.
The chronotype approach: spiritual fusion
By means of imagination and symbolisation, time, space, subjective experiences, and meaning, start to fuse with one another. This fusion of time and space, which transcends the limitations of three dimensions, can, in Einstein terminology, be called: chronotope5(Antonova 2010: 24). Time and space, the unseen and the seen, are fused into what one can call: seeing and imagining the "whole"; different levels and dimensions attached to an object become visible simultaneously. A chronotype-approach6 to life experiences brings about a kind of spiritual synthetics or fusion that can overcome and supersede the dualistic split between sacred and profane, transcendence and immanence. For such a chronotype-approach in life, one needs imagination, an aesthetic gaze that creates meaning, a kind of spiritual fusion, signifying the signs observed by the phenomenological gaze.
Al Gore in The Future Six Drivers of Global Change (2013), advocates for the reshaping of market capitalism and representative democracy. It is his conviction that this is possible by means of a new understanding of transcendence as a kind of 'spiritual fusion': the so-called 'Global Mind' (2013: 369). The spirituality of the internet offers a welcome opportunity to reverse the degradation of democracy and the reestablishment of healthy self-governance (Gore 2013: 370). Digital information and 'Big Data' (Gore 2013: 55) are the drivers of renewal and the establishment of human dignity. "Still, the best chance for success in shaping a positive future and avoiding catastrophe is the reestablishment of a transcendent capacity for global leadership by the United States" (Gore 2013: 366).
It was the computer genius Steve Jobs, who has changed the whole face of technological digitalisation by introducing aesthetics to the computer business. He combined his slogan "Let's make a dent in the universe" (Blumenthal 2012: 93) with the aesthetics and art of design. While his youth companion Steve Wozniak could see "a sonnet in a circuit", Jobs, by contrast, could look at a beige box and see beauty (Blumenthal 2012:80). "He imagined a computer that was graceful and elegant as it was useful, an intersection of technology and art that resulted in something truly special" (Blumenthal 2012: 80). Steve Jobs changes a possible bankrupt company, Apple, into a financial miracle. The secret? He stayed true to his original vision for Apple: He believed there was room for beauty and art amid technology and commerce (Blumenthal 2012: 198).
Within the computer business and the pragmatic demands posed by man as homo faber (humankind as a producer of things; the making human being), Steve Jobs saw more. Jobs toyed with the 'idea of beauty' (homo aestheticus: man as the creator of beauty). For Jobs, the computer became an object of art with 'spiritual value'; even computers can contribute to a kind of aesthetic, spiritual fusion of life.
Poetic seeing and the fantasy of aesthetic imagination (the beautification of life)
In the publication Wie Kunst die Welt erschuf, Nigel Spivey (2006: 14) asserts that art is not merely the ability to craft (Handwerkliches Können); nor the endeavour to just beautify. Art emerges from the dynamics between human's creative ability and imagination/fantasy. The explosion of creativity in art is a mode of signifying life (Spivey 2006: 24). Serious art presupposes a kind of spiritual beauty; that what one can call 'creative integrity'.
According to Thomas Aquinas, integrity (integritas), harmony (consonanta) and clarity (claritas) can be described as the principles of beauty. They can also be interpreted as wholeness, proportion and luminosity (Skawran 2012: 3). The poetic question and the quest for beauty kindles a quest for congruency between viewer and an object. Within this dynamics, aesthetics can be described as the attempt to move images into the realm of imagination (Botha 2012: 5).
With reference to the art of Salvador Dali (Miller at al. 2012: 34), the following remark underlines the connection between art, imagination and fantasy: "One should never forget, that one is moving in the realm of fantasy, of the stream of consciousness, of dreaming reason, in short, where art becomes life and life becomes art".
The aesthetic realism of the South African artist Paul Emsley, can be viewed as an attempt to transform the object or image into the realm of the imagination, framed by the subtle interplay between fantasy, light and shadow. Art is a 'spiritual endeavour' when the object emerges from the darkness of nothingness: creatio ex nihilo.
Europa 2011 by the South African artist Paul Emsley. "The object matter is the visible end of space" (Botha 2012:6)7 . One starts to 'see' as the artist moves the object by means of imagination from the darkness of 'nothingness' into the light of aesthetics; art as creatio ex nihilo (permission from artist).
The question about "beauty" and aesthetics can also be linked to the qualitative question about vision, imagination, perspective, norms, values, convictions, culture and worldviews. It is not in the first place about the moral question regarding what is right and what is wrong. In essence, ethics and morality do not frame and demarcate the basic principles for 'beauty'. The question: what is beautiful? is more fundamental than the question: what is good? Why? Because the aesthetic question reveals an understanding of truth.
Oscar Wilde (in Botha 2012:5) once described aestheticism as a search after the signs of the beautiful through which men seek the correlation of the arts. Art is therefore the imaginative attempt to probe into the secret of life and the spiritual fibre of the human "soul". Art penetrates the soulfulness of life and could, thus, be rendered as the aesthetic attempt to probe into the realm of beauty. Beauty corresponds with the quest for integrity, meaning and purposefulness; it is an attempt to transcend transience into the direction of the sublime.
The iconic view in sfumato: probing into the 'idea' beyond the ridiculous and the frailty and transience of life
Imaging is to 'see' more. An iconic view probes into the 'idea' within and behind the object. In imaging imagination starts to guess, to suspect some-thing more; imaging toys with probability and creates something different; something that supersedes the senses. True imaging does what the Italians call 'sfumato' - "the blurred outline and mellowed colours that allow one form to merge with another and always leave something to our imagination" (Gombrich 2006: 228).
Imaging idealises. "Artists tried to modify nature according the idea of beauty they had formed when looking at classical statues - they 'idealized' the model" (Gombrich 2006: 244).
'Sfumato by sea periwinkles. Photo D. J. Louw.
True imaging does what the Italians call 'sfumato' - "the blurred outline and mellowed colours that allow one form to merge with another and always leave something to our imagination" (Gombrich 2006: 228). The photo poses the question: what do I see? The challenge to the viewer is to interpret and to discover the spirit in the signs. The tracks (chifffre) left behind by the moving Periwinkles then become "alive" again.
But what is meant by the 'idea of beauty'? Can life be beautiful when one is painfully aware of the horrors of life and the existential reality of suffering and death?
Aesthetics at the brink of death and the hell of slums: horrific scream or dazzling exclamation mark?
Aesthetics is amplified by the awareness of mortality and the acceptance of death. Aesthetics and imagination therefore cannot avoid the reality of a kind of existential anxiety: the fear for death, loss and rejection.
Maddi (2012: 69) points out that besides a kind of ontological anxiety about our future; the most severe existential sickness is vegetativeness. At a cognitive level, individuals, suffering from vegetativeness, cannot find anything they are doing or can imagine doing that seems interesting or worthwhile. "At the emotional level, vegetativeness involves a continuing state of apathy and boredom, punctuated by periods of depression that becomes less frequent as the disorder is prolonged" (Maddi 2012: 69). Another existential sickness is nihilism. At the cognitive level, the nihilist can find meaning only by disconfirming anything that purports to have positive meaning. The most hidden and masked form of meaninglessness is adventurousness in which some basis for positive meaning remains, but only through extreme risk activities while facing death. "At the cognitive level, everyday life seems empty, with vitality and importance reserved only for extreme, uncommon experiences" (Maddi 2012: 69).
For Salvador Dali the creativity of aesthetics is closely related to the awareness of death, thus the quest in art to transcend the realm of death and transcience. The duality death (thanatos) and sensuality (eros) are the two companions of the poetic event. "The two motors that which drive the superfine artistic mind of Salvador Dali are first, the libido or sexual instinct, and second, the fear of death. According to Dali not a single minute of his life passes without the sublime, Catholic, apostolic, Roman spectre of death accompanying even the least of his highly subtle and capricious fantasies'' (Néret 2007: 47).
Pablo Picasso: The Death of Casagemas 19018. The depiction captures the space of death with its total silence in a very poignant way. It is actually a kind of parody on Shakespeare's remark: "The way to dusty death. Out, out brief candle! (Macbeth).
"There is only one path out of the steamy dense jungle where the battle is fought over glory and power and advantage - one escape from the snares and obstacles you yourself have set up. And that is - to accept death" (Hammarskjöld 1993:7).
The encounter with death is the most realistic challenge of life.
"Tomorrow we shall meet,
Death and I-
And he shall thrust his sword
Into one who is wide awake" (Hammarskjöld 1993: 2).
Death brings about the imperative of seeing the unseen; it kindles a kind of yearning for transcendence, and, thus, introduces the aesthetic principle. All forms of life are surrounded by the framework of death. Death is, so to speak, the landscape of the human soul. Not in the first place, to threaten us with non-sense, but to challenge us with the quest for meaning. Death is like impressionism in art. Put next to yellow, blue and you "see" green. Put next to death, life, and you start to "see" the unseen and to decipher signals of transcendence.
From the viewpoint of "documentation" and "scientific verification" one should indeed confirm and say: Seeing is believing. Life is a catastrophe.
With reference to the now famous painting of Eduard Munch, life is a loud and horrified scream (Norwegian: skrik).
But, is life merely a skrik (dread and horror)? Is another perception not possible? Can life be beautiful and eventually become an exclamation mark (!) as well? What then is the meaning in life?
What makes life worth living? The human quest for meaning, healing and wholeness
It is the conviction of Wong (2012: 19) that the 21st century may be called a century of meaning in which people are struggling to recover a sense of meaning and purpose in the midst of international terrorism and the global financial meltdown. "The creation of a new world order and a more cooperative and humane society will demand a grassroots campaign to educate people about the importance of responsible and purposeful living" (Wong 2012: 19).
The question "What makes life meaningful?" is probably the most important question ever asked because it is vitally related to human survival and flourishing (Wong 2012: 3). The fulfilment of life revolves around the will to meaning and the creative principle of inspiration, imagination and purposeful motivation. The attributes of intentionality and purpose are the core of meaning (Klinger 2012: 23).
Apparently, meaning within the framework of a culture of entertainment, leisure and affluent wealth, art becomes closely related to happiness and pleasure. Research pointed out that people want to live a life of pleasure, engagement and meaning in order to live a real 'happy life'. However, happiness cannot be separated from the 'spirituality of aesthetics'. "Based on numerous studies, I have found that the worthy life consisted of the following components: happiness, achievement, relationship, intimacy, religion, altruism, self-acceptance, and fair treatment" (Wong 2012: 4).
Without any doubt, meaning in life depends on purpose, efficacy, value, and self-worth. These issues can directly be connected to belief systems and people's philosophy in life (worldview). All people possess a philosophy in life that is connected to culture. We all live by assumptions, beliefs, values, and worldviews that help us make sense of our lives. For example, capitalism and a market-driven economy will contribute to a happiness mind-set that values income and possession as most important for subjective well-being. Hedonism will focus on instant positive experiences and emotional equilibrium. According to Aristotle, a eudaimonistic philosophy is conducive to a meaning mind-set that considers virtue as the key to flourishing (in Wong 2012: 5).
In a nutshell, one can say that the four ingredients that define meaning are: purpose, understanding, responsible action and enjoyment or evaluation (Wong 2012: 10). I would like to add another three: vision, imagination and hope (the anticipation of constructive change in future that will make a difference in terms of existing difficulties: pro-spection and trans-spection). The hermeneutics of meaning is deeply attached to the creativity of future orientation and constructive anticipation; aesthetics is thus a 'proleptic enterprise'; it fuels creative alternatives for future orientation, vision and a hermeneutics of anticipation.
Meaning and the art of interpretation
In terms of hermeneutics, meaning is about the art of interpretation and the attempt to comprehend our experience. "Meaning is the web of connections, understanding, and interpretations that help us comprehend our experience and formulate plans directing our energies to the achievement of our desired future. Meaning provides us with the sense that our lives matter, that they make sense, and that they are more than the sum of our seconds, days, and years" (Steger 2012: 165).
This "more than the sum of...." is understood mostly in terms of the cognitive component in comprehension. However, it is argued that comprehension is fundamentally a spiritual category; it is an attempt to probe into the "idea' or "image" behind the object. Iconic viewing supersedes even the rationality of cognitive comprehension by means of imagination and symbolisation.
The act of meaning-giving is closely related to symbolisation. Meaning-giving can be described as the mental act of going beyond the specific characteristics of the phenomenology of experience and direct observation, by comprehending, categorising and interpreting them. In this regard, symbolisation and imagination play a vital role in the hermeneutics of meaning-giving and meaning-discovery. "Imagination is the mental act of combining and recombining categories of experience in a manner that goes beyond the literal ways in which they occur in the external world" (Maddi 2012: 57).
Both symbolisation and imagination imply judgement as the mental act of taking an evaluative stance with regard to literal or imagined experience. In this regard, metaphorical speech is needed in what one can call the hermeneutics of meaning-giving9. But meaning-giving implies more than symbolisation, imagination, wise decision-making and metaphorical speech. It also needs vision, i.e. the attempt to transform everyday experiences into images that deals with the unseen, spiritual dimension of life.
Healing and the spiritual realm of life
The realm of spirituality is becoming more acknowledged, even in the human sciences. Steger (2012:165-175) argues that psychological well-being cannot ignore spirituality, i.e. the general sense of transcendence and connection with something larger than one's self (Steger 2012:175). Spirituality can thus be identified and described as the pursuit of significance in that which is sacred about life (Steger 2012:175).
Even from the viewpoint of sociology, there is an attempt to re-evaluate the impact of the concept of "spirituality" on life and existential issues. A. Giordan (2007: 162) points out that spirituality is not anymore accessed according to its religious and traditional theological meaning. "Somehow, 'spirituality' has moved from the shadowy realms of theology to become a 'fashionable' sociological concept". What happened in our contemporary society is the "democratisation of the sacred". The principle consequence of the democratisation of the sacred is that spirituality is used in sociology to refer to the realm of meaningful relationships and the fostering of human dignity. The individual, in his or her search for meaning, no longer accepts pre-packaged external norms. "Contemporary beliefs are not functioning regarding religious identity, which was created according to the criteria of stability. Instead they focus on experience rather than on dogma, on subjective personal authenticity rather than on objective truth; this perspective legitimises change as normal rather than exceptional" (Giordan 2007:171). According to Toffanello (in Giordan 2007:167), Christian spirituality can be significant today if it matches individual needs and is committed to improving the quality of life.
Adrian Andreescu, in his psychological research regarding the value of prayer in processes of healing (2011:23-47), is convinced that spirituality (the transpersonal realm of life) contributes to healing and well-being. He refers to the notion of "transpersonal capital". Healing also comes from outside and is not limited by internal sources. "I suggest that acquiring transpersonal capital requires at a primary level a conscious individual effort to inhabit and maintain a credible spiritual worldview, found to be largely congruent with the person's own mediated and unmediated life experiences" (Andreescu 2011:31). Healing is thus closely related to the credibility and appropriateness of life views.
The significance of beauty in healing and the attraction of the unseen
The movie Life Is Beautiful (La vita è bella) is a 1997 Italian film which tells the story of a Jewish Italian, Guido Orefice (played by Roberto Benigni, who also directed and co-wrote the film), who must employ his fertile imagination to help his family during their internment in a Nazi concentration camp. His wife Dora was in a different camp. One night he managed to play Barcarolle from the Tales of Hoffmann through the speakers. From the distance Dora heard the tune. She realized it was a 'beautiful" message from Guido - the aesthetics of what you don't see, despite the horror of concentration camp transformed nonsense into significance and created a sense of spiritual wholeness.
In his autobiography, the German theologian Jürgen Moltmann, wrote about his experience as a prisoner of war (1945-47): "War stories are not tales of adventure. They are stories about destruction and death" (Moltmann 2008:19). He recalls how they sat in the trenches and "cracked" lice, which proliferated more quickly than they could kill them. And one day, when he was nearly at the brink of despair, while they were pushing a goods truck, he suddenly stood in front of a blossoming cherry tree. "I almost fainted with the joy of it. After a long period of blindness without any interest, I saw colours again and sensed life in myself once more. Life began to blossom afresh" (Moltmann 2008:27). The aesthetics of a blossoming cherry tree become an icon of hope.
Viktor Frankl wrote about his experiences in a concentration camp. He awoke from the sleep of exhaustion on his second night in Auschwitz. He was roused by music. "Suddenly there was a silence and into the night a violin sang a desperately sad tango...The violin wept and part of me wept with it, for on that same day someone had a twenty-fourth birthday. That someone laid in another part of the Auschwitz camp, possible only a few hundred or a thousand yards away and yet out of reach. That someone was my wife" (1963: 27).
The aesthetics of music superseded the limitations of horror; aesthetics makes transcendence possible where all reason to anticipate something different or new became impossible. Aesthetics creates a sense of spiritual wholeness despite the horror of the concentration camp and the smells of death, dying and destruction.
In her Diary, Anne Frank calls this possibility to transcend the ugliness of reality by the imagination of something beautiful, the art of life. To imagine that the inedible food in her plate was nice, she managed to cope with the reality of hunger (2008: 150). Beauty distorts, twists ugliness.
'Baroque Catholicism' and the hell of slums: the grassroots question
For poor people living in ugly townships at the outskirts of cities, the basic question is how to survive on a daily basis without losing one's human dignity. Zanotelli, in the publication The Slums (2002: 13-15), describes the slums of Nairobi as the hell of life. The slums are usually placed below the sewer line. Within a context of severe poverty, even before you dare to pose the question regarding human dignity, you first need to wash away your materialism, rationalism and 'baroque catholicism' (Zanotelli 2002:15). The next step is to descend into the hell of the slums; you need to undergo the baptism of the poor in order to talk about dignity. "You learn to read things upside down. Your worldview, your theology, even your morality, just goes to pieces. When I try to dissuade young girls from going to town for prostitution, they tell me there is no other way to survive.' But you are sure to meet Aids!' I insist, 'It's OK! Die of Aids or die of hunger, what's the difference? Or maybe there is! You have a chance of longer life with Aids'. I understood that what I held as morality is, to a large extent, middle class morality".
In Africa, at the grassroots level, life is normally determined by bread and butter questions. The reality of famine and existential suffering caused by HIV and AIDS determines the quality of life, not necessarily art and icons.
However, a recent personal experience in a remote and poor Masai village in Tanzania, made me aware of the appropriateness of an "iconic view" on life and how life can become beautiful within environments of severe poverty. I was privileged to attend the inauguration of a water tank, in the village of Emeshiye. It was donated to the people of this village by a Lutheran group of congregations in Germany. In the past people, mostly women and children, have to walk long distances to fetch water for daily use. An old woman of the village was asked to open the tap. She put a plastic bucket under the running water. She then put the container on her head and, with a gesture of surprise, turned to the people. They started to celebrate, to dance, and to laugh. They were overwhelmed with joy and gratitude. Suddenly I became aware of a miracle in the desert; I "saw" how Moses hit the rock in the desert and how God provided water for Israel. The place where I stood became holy; the space around the tank was sacred; the Masai village was a sanctuary of worship. With this iconic view in mind, I think about the taps in my home in Stellenbosch South Africa. I usually open them and just take running water for granted. To turn the tap was never ever in my life "holy"; for me water is a formula H2O, not a sacrament of divine provision.
Massai village in Tanzania. Left: The inauguration of a water tank, in the village of Emeshiye. Right: Procession of women to the tank, dancing and singing. The Massai village became a sanctuary of worship, holy ground (photo: D.J. Louw, 2012)
The Massai-experience was beautiful. Back in South Africa the Maia-experience brought about a reframing of daily life. Due to an iconic view, I started to "see" life and the functionality of running water from a tap from the perspective of aesthetics. Gratitude is the first step into a sacramental stance on life; the water in a Massai reservoir became a sacrament, a symbol of transcendent grace and compassion (spiritual wholeness).
In the Massai-case, the ethics of providing a water tank opens up the aesthetics of spiritual seeing: to "see" the providence and 'presence' of God'.
Could aesthetics indeed be connected to religious imagination?
Art as mode of religious, aesthetic expression?
Art is for the practical theologian Wilhelm Grab, a mode of religious based self-manifestation (2012: 15). Due to the inner power of aesthetics on human self-awareness, art contributes to transcendent-experiences. In this regard, art can play a decisive role in the transformation of existing God-images. Inappropriate God-images contribute to religious pathology, while appropriate God-images promote spiritual healing and well-being (Utsch 2012:106).
The point is: what we call worldly, the saeculum, is more than brutal matter and raw factuality. The cosmos is deeply determined by an x-factor. One can call it fate or providence or even the sublime. It does not matter. When we perceive and observe from the perspective of faith, we become aware of mystery, of a supernatural factor, of a kind of sacramental experience in which normal objects start to point to the transcendent realm of life. Matter attains a kind of translucent meaning; it reveals the aesthetics of creation.
In fact, one is often suddenly overwhelmed by the unseen and a sacred "illumination". This experience can be called the surprise of amazement. It is as if some-"thing" unreal, supersedes the senses and the rationality of the mind. This surprise stirs up an awareness that life is not about a void nothingness; there is indeed sense in nonsense, significance despite the impression of nihilism. Nietzsche, who has wrongly been called the father of nihilism, referred to this moment of existential surprise, as a moment of poetic inspiration. "One is seized by an ecstasy" (Nietsche 19663:20). Ekstasis in Greek: to be outside the normal state; a kind of spiritual "out-of-body experience" (Penthcheva 2010:37).
Towards a Socratic view of life
With the aesthetics of the unseen and the emphasis on an iconic approach to life I am back to what one can call a Socratic view on life. Life entails more than the flat horizontal and empirical approach of sensory observation. Socrates wanted to penetrate the physical world by means of the notion of the goodness, the inherent beauty that contributed to the fact that things are as they are. In spite of a scientific explanation, he opted for an aesthetic option. "He is looking for explanations in terms of some ultimate Goodness which forms everything, including us, and draws us to it by means of spiritual knowledge and desire. We must consider not the things which Anaxagoras and the scientists speak of, but the real, ultimate causes of Beauty, Goodness, Magnitude, and so on, which the good and beautiful things and the quantities of things on earth participate in and reflect" (O'Hear 2007:108).
Aesthetics opens up a spiritual knowledge that helps to view the "soulfulness" in life; it detects the imperishable and brings reality to life. Therefore, one of the possible functions of aesthetics and the visual arts towards the rediscovery of the soulfulness of life, could be to open the eyes of secularised people, captured by materialistic need-satisfaction and the commercialised endeavour of money making, for the beauty inherent to matter and the spiritual dimension of the unseen.
In the early religion of the Romans, lifelike portraits were important. It was believed that likeness preserves the soul' (Gombrich 2006:95). Statues were not regarded as lifeless objects, but an attempt to capture the essence of being; an object should present 'soul'.
Remarkable ceramic smiling, sensual soldier. Han (206 BC - 220 Ad). Sichuan Chengtu Pottery (68 x 22 x 12cm). Private collection, Seoul, Southern Korea (photo D.J. Louw with permission from the artist). This is an excellent example of how the artist captured the 'soul' of the person. When compared with Egyptian art the statue is much more 'alive'.
It could indeed be the case that most people experience life as harsh, painful and ugly. In a world determined by the struggle to achieve, to produce, to work hard, to survive, to suffer and at the end, to die, the cynical conclusion should indeed be: life is meaningless and therefore without 'soul".
For Socrates, art should represent the 'workings of the soul' (Gombrich 2006:85). Due to sensuality and how feelings affect the body, iconic viewing can turn a simple tombstone into a great work of art. It was Greek art who turned marble into life.
One can indeed concur with the assertion of Gombrich (2006:85) that Greek art turned marble into life (collection of casts from Greek sculptures, Royal Cast Museum, Copenhagen) (photo by D.J. Louw)
Statues started to present the 'inner life' of a figure and conveyed unspoken feelings making an appeal to the senses. Classical art therefore challenges the artist to capture the idea or essence of an object. This approach to aesthetics can be called the ontology of aesthetics; i.e. the attempt to wrestle in marble, clay or paint with the essence of being. Mostly this essence supersedes the vision in empirical observation. Art then tries to portray the soulfulness of life.
Inspiration and the metaphysics of surrealistic seeing
The urge to signify "the more", the yearning for "spirituality" beyond the limitations of reason and logic was well articulated by surrealism in the twenties of the previous century.
Rookmaker (1973:144) pointed out that the upcoming of surrealism in the early twenties, is an indication of a revolt against the structure of reason. "Their aim was a liberation of life, in every aspect, to free man from this strange world that holds him in a thousand ways; on the basis of Freudianism they wanted to liberate man from convention, culture and society. The third issue of La Révolution Surréaliste, asserts: 'Ideas, logic, order, Truth (with a capital T), Reason, all this is given to the nothingness of Death. You do not know how far the hatred we have against logic can lead us."
In essence, surrealism can be described as intrinsically a "religious" and "spiritual" act. Although atheism framed the worldview of many surrealists, Salvador described his art as a "new religion"; a kind of religion which probes into transcendence, but at the same time wants to be sadistic, masochistic, dreamlike and paranoiac (Descharnes & Néret 2006:96). The reference to the so called Dali delirium, becomes more understandable when one realizes that Dali's surrealism was about the quest for the archetype within the known objects of daily living (Descharnes & Néret 2006:166). The strange mysticism of surrealism is for Dali an entrance into the secret of reality. Surrealism is a kind of meta-physical, iconic seeing. Within an environment who became bored with time, he bended clocks into soft, weak, flaccid, objects in order to free human beings from the tyranny of time.
Poetic inspiration and ecstasy are the aesthetic means by which a human being gets access to the mystical realm of the unseen. This is the reason why Salvador Dali said:
I want to perceive and understand the hidden powers and laws of things, in order to have them in my power. A brilliant inspiration shows me that I have an unusual weapon at my disposal to help me penetrate to the core of reality: my mysticism - that is to say, the profound intuitive understanding of what is, direct communication with the all, absolute vision by the grace of truth, by the grace of God. More powerful than cyclotrons and cybernetic calculators, I can penetrate to the mysteries of the real in the moment...Mine the ecstasy! I cry. The ecstasy of God and Man. Mine the perfection, the beauty, that I might gaze into its eyes!" (Néret 2007:79).
The aesthetics of ecstasy is the creative power of artistic freedom and imagination.
Surrealistic seeing by means of aesthetic creativity and imagination. "Prehistoric Rock Creature", Banghoek. Molteno Eastern Cape (photo by D.J. Louw).
"Everything is in the highest degree involuntary, but takes place as if in a tempest of freedom, of absoluteness, of power and divinity" (Nietsche 19663: 20). Inspiration is in itself then divine. It makes one enthusiastic, literally from the Greek: en-theos, God within us, within our very being.
Playfulness and an iconic view ('visuel'): seeing the unseen
One is often struck by awe and an uplifting experience of immense joy and fulfilment. It is as if empirical sensation is overwhelmed by glimpses of transcendence. Life becomes iconic and objects are transformed into peep-holes, depicting the mystery of the unknown and the spiritual realm of life. "By reviving Spanish mysticism, I, Dali, shall use my work to demonstrate the unity of the universe, by showing the spirituality of all substance" (Néret 2007:79).
Dag Hammarskjöld (1993: 77) very aptly remarked: "A landscape can sing about God, a body about spirit". This cosmic singing and spiritual interpretation can be called an iconic vision and playful view on life.
In this sculpture made by H. W. Bissen (1798-1868) (Orestes flees from Eumenides) the playful movement and beauty of the free male nude, captured what Dag Hammarskjöld called a body can sing about spirit. (Permission: NY Glyptotek, Copenhagen, photo by D.J. Louw)
The art of iconic seeing is to see with a spiritual gaze until one sees more: transcendence. In this regard the difference made by the French philosopher Georges Didi-Huberman between 'visuel' and 'visible' is most appropriate (in Cottin 2012: 143). 'Visible' is about what one sees, what is visible for the senses. The visible can easily become an idol. 'Visuel' is about probing into the Ultimate (Jenseits), 'visuel' sees by means of images and makes the invisible meaningful; it is a mode of signifying life in terms of transcendent-awarenesses. The 'visuel' operates by means of icons.
Within the sphere of the visual (and here I purposefully use "visual" as opposed to "visible", "performative" bears the marks of phenomenal: it refers to the spectacle of changing surfaces under perennially shifting ambient conditions. In focusing on the interaction between object and subject, between icon and viewer, between poetry seen and poetry pronounced. I uncover the power of the icon's spectacle to transform the viewer from observer to participant, communicating with the divine (Penthcheva 2010:3).
The visual dimension of an eikon functions as a revelation (making truth understandable and visual sensual, even sensible); a kind of epiphany (epiphaneia) (the manifestation of divine presence (supernatural being) manifested in visible form.
The loving gaze: the art of religious seeing
The more of iconic seeing ('visuel') is about the spiritual art of imaging the unseen, even of seeing God. Christ himself is described as the image (eikön) of the invisible God (Col. 1:15). The fact is that in Christ as the image of God we share in the reality of a divine presence indirectly by means of a faithful gaze. In Greek thought, an image shares in the reality of what it represents. The essence of the thing appears in the image, e.g. God is himself present and operative in his image (Flender 1976: 288). In wisdom thinking (sapientia), the access to this divine presence is an act of faith mediated by the Spirit of God.
In his book Seeing Things, Stephen Pattison sums up the predicament of people living in an age of what might be characterised as 'visual overload' or hyper-visuality: "we have so much, but see so little" (Pattison 2007: 1). We are living in a visual culture overloaded with images. Images rain upon us in all spheres of life. "With the extension of sight by microscopic, telescopic, electronic, digital and other means symbolised by instruments such as electron microscopes, scanners, cameras and photographs, we are all too aware of living in a world structured round sight and the visual" (Pattison 2007: 3).
"If the scopic regime of the 'arrogant eye' is to be rejected in favour of fostering more intimate fellowship with visual artefacts, then an alternative approach is required that allows the emergence of a more intimate, loving gaze" (Pattison 2007: 19). And in religion this loving gaze is closely related to an iconic view on life and an understanding of the 'beauty of God'.
Religious aesthetics: divine compassion
It was the so-called atheist Ludwig Feuerbach (1904) who already in the nineteenth century warned the church against the idol of a God with 'brains' without any passion and 'heart'. In chapter VI on the secret of the suffering of God (Das Geheimnis des leidende Gottes) (1904: 126-136), Feuerbach distinguished between the God of abstract philosophy, God as pure action, with the God of Christendom, God as pure passion, the God of pure suffering (die Passion pura, das reine Leiden) (Feuerbach 1904: 127). The suffering of God means: God is a heart (Gott ist ein Herz) (Feuerbach 1904: 131). A God without a heart is an idol. The secret of the suffering God is the secret of existential experience (Geheimnis der Empfindung; kontingente bevindelikheid). Suffering and passion then defines the beauty of God within the ugliness of death and destruction.
The art of foolishness in religious thinking
Campbell and Cilliers (2012:67-68), in their book on the art of preaching as the endeavour to distort the fixed conceptions in orthodox thinking, refer to Enid Welsford's notion that the art of foolishness implies an engagement of "melting the solidity of the world". Fools instigate and sustain liminality. "They break into our circled wagons and smelt down our iron theologies".
Can then an iconic view on a vulnerable and suffering God do the same? Is it possible for aesthetics to melt down the solidity of iron theologies and demolish the bunkers of ecclesiological imperialism in order to rediscover the aesthetics of both God and human beings? Alternatively, are we merely corrupted sinners, doomed to die?
The 'ugliness' of a powerless God?
The "Father Almighty" (God as pantokrator: the imperialism of threat power) developed under the influence of an affluent society into the romantic sentimentality of Father Christmas All-merciful. Instead of a suffering God, the triumphalism of a theology of glory "removed the cross from the heart of God" (Hall 1993: 96).
God is depicted as one who, unlike us, does not exist under the threat of nonbeing in any of its manifestations. Thus, the divine power (omnipotence) is not challenged by any lack or weakness; the divine knowledge (omniscience) is not circumscribed by ignorance, uncertainty, or inherent limitation; the divine presence (omnipresence) is not subject to the constraints of time and space; and God is not vulnerable to change or prey to passions that may be aroused by any existential eventuality (immutability) (Hall 1993:96-97).
Paul links God to the event of suffering and introduces the "weakness of God"; the logos of the cross (logos tou staurou). This notion of power is marked as "foolishness" (a variant of the aesthetic category of ugliness). The power of human beings (ousia) is challenged by the 'weakness of God' which is stronger than human strength (I Cor.1: 25). Why? Because it affirms God's identification with the vulnerability of suffering human beings. It opposes destructive domination and affirms constructive opposition. God becomes the helpless innocent victim of the Roman soldiers. The sacredness and divinity reside in the cry of protest (derilictio): "My God, My God why have you forsaken me?" With the act of forgiveness, Jesus as the icon (eikon) of God, not of Roman power, became an innocent and helpless victim of Roman imperialism.
Crossroads, Cape Flats (Township Crucifixion). The necklaced Christ as victim of the Roman soldiers (Apartheid policymakers) within the hell of township life (D.J. Louw, 1991). In the painting the dying Son of God was killed by the injustice of all forms of oppressive imperialism.
Foolishness reframes God into "beauty" by means of sheer ugliness.
God is not a cosmic force, a worldly power, a physical or metaphysical energy or power source that supplies energy to the world, who designs it, starts it up and keeps it going, and who occasionally intervenes here and there with strategic course corrections, a tsunami averted here, a cancerous tumour there, a bloody war quieted over there (Caputo 2007:65).
As Caputo argues, we should replace Christian icons of amor fati, fatalism, with Christian icons of amor venture (the loving gaze), a love of unconditional acceptance; love as a challenging venture with God, our covenantal Partner for Life.
Art operates on different levels; visual art represents indeed a dimension of entertainment and amusement (the pleasant experience of I-like-it). However, serious art is the attempt to decipher signals of transcendence by means of creativity, imagination and inspiration of poetic seeing. Visual arts in religious thinking should revisit the realm of spirituality and the human quest for healing and wholeness. In this regard, depictions of God in terms of human vulnerability, weakness, frailty and the abuse of power, can contribute to a theological attempt to move omni-categies (imperialistic impressions of threat power) into pathos-categories (theopaschitic portrayals of divine compassion).
Competing interests
The author declares that he has no financial or personal relationship(s) that may have inappropriately influenced him in writing this article.
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Prof D. J. Louw
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Accepted: 01 Jun. 2015
Published: 01 Sep. 2015
1 There are different levels and dimensions of art. The article focuses on the visual arts, although the principles of aesthetics are applicable to all forms of arts.
2 Peter Berger (1992:121) in A Far Glory: The Quest for Faith in an Age of Credulity. "In openness to the signals of transcendence the true proportions of our experience are rediscovered. This is the comic relief of redemption; it makes it possible for us to laugh and to play with a new fullness." Signals of transcendence create spiritual spaces for processes of hoping when life seems to be merely the tragedy of a cul de sac.
3 The formula of Horace, in Huyghe 1981:20.
4 http://www.google.co.za/imgres?q=john+lennon+memo-rial&num=10&hl=en&tbo=d&biw=1197&bih=569&tbm=is-ch&tbnid=Je3U3pFEkAfxcM:&imgrefurl=http://mildlymystical.com/2010/03/&docid=z48pXrjoHV1CZM &imgurl=http://mildly-mystical.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Imagine-John-Len-non-Memorial_1.jpg&w=800&h=600&ei=uEvnUNL5OIKKhQe-wY-GIBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=891&vpy=257&dur=10969&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=198&ty=98&sig= 103342659865535404959&pa ge=2&tbnh=146&tbnw=189&start=18&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:39,s:0,i:210. Accessed 05/01/2013.
5 In the philosophy of language and philolog , chronotope is a term coined by M.M. Bakhtin to describe the way time and space are described by language. The term itself (Russian: ΧροΗοτοπ), from Greek: time (χρόνος) and space (τόπος) can be literally translated as «time-space.» The term describes the intrinsic connectedness of temporal and spatial relationships that are artistically expressed in literature. Artistic chronotope describes the fact that spatial and temporal indicators are fused into one carefully thought-out, concrete whole.
6 Chronotope can be used as a metaphor for the intrinsic value and aesthetic connectedness of temporal and spatial relationships that are artistically expressed in images, forms, colours, lines, words and symbols. One can therefore say that visual images and iconic seeing are in nature chronotopic and therefore "spiritual-synthetic"; it combines parts into the beauty of a "whole picture", that what one can call an "aesthetic image". For this "aesthetic exercise" one needs creative imagination and ecstatic inspiration: the birth of poetic beauty framed by a spiritual approach to life.
7 Online: http://www.google.co.za/imgres?q=paul+ems-ley&start=96&hl=af&sa=G&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=MHXtMiBlF-WLpQM:&imgrefurl=http://paulemsley.com/&docid=MohHlviNz_dDZM&imgurl=http://paulemsley.com/wp-content/gallery/cache/117900x663_dsc3187_3.jpg&w=900&h=663&ei=8DRT-T8ePDc-2hAf3ofWCDA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=771&vpy=2dur=8703&hovh=193&hovw=262&tx=141&ty=174&sig= 102009548252048832704&page=7&tbnh=145&tbnw=140&nd-sp=16&ved=1t:429,r:10,s:96&biw=1080&bih=489. Ac-cessed:04/03.2012
8 Online: http://www.google.co.za/imgres?imgurl=http://www.join2day.net/abc/P/picasso/picasso7.JPG&imgrefurl= http://www.abcgallery.com/P/picasso/picasso7.html&usg=_g08Ax7wyWG-55c1grfITfK8cyvB0=&h=328&w=432&sz=17&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=aCXZxSjTdgruOM: &tbnh=125&tbnw =176&ei=M2gR-TumTBMOi-gb3qoX1Dw&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dpicasso%2B-the%2Bdeath%2Bof%2Bcasagemas%26hl%3Den%26bi-w%3D1007%26bih%3D559%26gbv%3D2%26tbm%3Disch&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=141&vpy=73&dur=26 6&hovh=196 &hovw=258&tx-=178&ty=125&page=1&ndsp=13&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0. Accessed:05/07/2011. Public domain.
9 It is acknowledged by existential psychology that within the human quest for meaning, symbolisation, imagination and constructive or informed decision-making (judgement and wisdom) are constituents of psychological well-being, i.e. the eudaimonic principle of well-being. The latter focuses on fully flourishing and achieving one's potential as a human being (Steger 2012:165) (the inner-potential need-satisfaction theory). Meaning in life is then closely related to the level of personal need-satisfaction and the fulfilment of the dream: everything should work out to my advantage and to individual well-being (the eudaimonic principle).


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*808* Douche and Turd
Moderator: Big-Will
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douche and turd
Re: *808* Douche and Turd
skurtz wrote:nwt000 wrote:Get your trolling ass out of here!
I'm more friendlier drinking some espresso.
Re: *808* Douche and Turd
Stan should never have cracked under the pressure of insanity. With all Peta members dead and cow mascot restored, he could have gotten back home without being unwilling part in a sick mockery of real and true democracy.
All in all, this episode shows nicely how useless voting really is in America and many other countries too that feebly and miserably pretend to be democracies. With America's two headed one party fascism, it really is all about between douche & turd from a same office. Absolutely 100 % meaningless choice, abstaining your vote in front of such sick charade and system is only way to vote for true freedom & honesty.
Thanks again Trey & Matt for your honesty.
Those who have taken authority as the truth rather than truth as the authority. "
Re: *808* Douche and Turd
Vote or Die song is great. The PETA people making love to animals...hilarious.
The animal saying "kill ME!" is hysterical.
And the Giant Douche/Turd Sandwich metaphor was pretty neat, too.
Re: *808* Douche and Turd
Brendle wrote:And the Giant Douche/Turd Sandwich metaphor was pretty neat, too.
Yes, so very striking and true towards so very corrupt politicians.
I might say that the metaphors were mild and kind.
Those who have taken authority as the truth rather than truth as the authority. "
Re: *808* Douche and Turd
I ship: Stan/Cartman <3
Stan: MMOOMM!!
Sharon: What is it honey? (gasp!) My baby's killed again!
Haa, I love that line.
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The song
Re: *808* Douche and Turd
2004 and 2008 elections were almost like this. I was fine with re-electing Bush, but he was surely no fiscal conservative wasting money and time on Nation-Building.
2008, I didn't like McCain, Obama, Palin or definitely Biden. Since, I am in Oklahoma, I only had those choices and I went for McCain.
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Re: *808* Douche and Turd
Spitting on Stan and getting P Diddy to shoot him just because he didnt vote for him after how many times Stan saved Kyle
Im glad Kyle turns into a punching bag in the later episodes, they should make an episode were Kyle gets abandoned or dies just like "Youre Getting Old"
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The Vampire Diaries Season 6TV Series
The Vampire Diaries is based on a novel series penned by L.J. Smith where you are given the insight into the diary of 17-year old Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev). Elena and her 15-year-old brother, Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen), live with their Aunt Jenna (Sara Canning). Elena seeks comfort from her familiar social circle – best friend Bonnie (Katerina Graham), frenemy Caroline Forbes (Candice Accola), and former boyfriend Matt Donovan(Zach Roerig, Friday Night Lights). At Mystic Falls High, Elena and her friends become fixated by a mysterious new student, Stefan Salvatore (Paul Wesley, "Fallen"). Stefan and Damon(Ian Somerhalder, Lost) are vampire brothers – one good, one evil – at war for Elena's soul. The Vampire Diaries is from Alloy Entertainment and Bonanza Productions Inc in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios.


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Friday, January 30, 2009
Melting Pot goodness..
Posted by Sarah at 12:26 PM 8 comments
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Collections 1 for 1 swap
This is my Collection for 1 for 1 swap that I am participating in. You had to make something using the majority of Collections goodies.
Posted by Sarah at 12:21 AM 9 comments
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Aussie Dares-Jan**WET**
This months theme for Aussie Dares is "Wet."
For my piece I wanted to create something that had the look that it had been weathered and damp over a period of time.
I started with an old cabinet card photo album page (or did I???) aged the paper with inks, water and a bit of distressing.
Added bark covered in Lichen, hand dyed muslin, added some embellisments like these gorgeous tiny watch makers glass vials with a pic of a tiny little boy inside.
I love this Lichen, it grows so freely here in the colder months, it has so much texture and muted colours. And lastly it hangs with chain that I have been making over the last couple of weeks..
Posted by Sarah at 12:14 AM 16 comments
January Art Journal
This is my 1st page ever for my 1st art journal ever. Blue Bazaar are running a year long Art Journal Challenge, so I decided to jump in and play along. This months theme was to do an abstract background and draw a focal point.. Well I cant draw to save myself so I copied a birdcage stamp from BLine Designs.. Not original I know but if you saw my 1st attempts you would be glad I copied. However I did draw scomewhat scribbly with wire across the both pages and added some circles with pencil.. That was all me..LOL
Posted by Sarah at 12:03 AM 3 comments
Friday, January 09, 2009
Dear Friend this one is for you!!
Ok so leading off my last post of all things loose and 'Organic'; The other night I went out to the vegie patch to dig up a couple of carrots for dinner when these little fellows came out of the ground linked and interwined togeather.. My 1st thought was "OH!!!" Perhaps I disturbed them too soon!!!llol Dear friend says Hubby had been away for too long... hehehe I will leave it at that shall I....
Anyway, because they were linked togeather I thought I would add this chain that I have made. Yes I am into making chain. In fact I am rather enjoying sitting there hammering, twisting and twining metal into chain. Very theraputic.. Its still early days of wire work, but throughly enjoying the learning process..
Dear friend 2, (you know who you are) yes you have to move from Sydney, that way I could feed you good organic twisty carrots...LOL!!! Love your new piece for Bali, too talented I tell you.
This pic is of my new experiemental Art Journal I am doing through Blue Bazaar. I have completed it I think for this months theme, but after showing Dear Friend number 1 today I am a little scared of sharing my journey into the unknown of art journalling. I shall take pics tomorrow and hopefully the camera will perform magic.. I will tell you that I did loose focus on the theme for a bit and went off and did my own thing.. I also have a couple of other projects that need to be blogged about but they will have to wait until at least the weekend...
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 12:59 AM 2 comments
Monday, January 05, 2009
Bird Nest Ring
Last night when I was clearing my desk ready for my next project I came across a role of wire. Should I attempt to make something, or go to bed. Well as you can see I "Attempted" to make a birds nest ring. Not a bad a job considering it was 2am. I like to describe it as very "organic" in shape and structure with its "loose" form. (In other words, practice Sarah)
Though I do like this arty "organic" shot.
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 3:06 PM 10 comments
House Book swaps for January
Posted by Sarah at 2:39 PM 4 comments
Friday, January 02, 2009
My Mini Martha
Here is my Mini Martha today, preparing the feast the 2 of us would share togeather tonight. Of course it was a simple Corned Beef or Silverside. But I am rather fussy with cooking it with the right balance of added ingredients for maximum flavour. So today I shared those secrets with my bebe, she was so into it, as this is one of her favourite meals. But it also was one big experiment for me as this was the 1st time I have used my new beautiful LeCreuset pot that I got for Christmas. How long would it take, would it be just as good as always, would it be better??? Mmmm getting hungry just thinking about it. Anyhow as it happens we spent the afternoon with a dear friend and her beautiful daughter, you know who you are, you are so special!! that I forgot to put the pot on.. So improvised dinner of odds and sods, and pot on to cook for tomorrow night.
Well I forgot I had the pot on until 9m tonight, because I finally got the pink VW bug out of garage for a dusting and drive around town and out in the country. I did take my camera to take some pics of our adventure, but again I was just in the driving spirit that no pics were taken. Perhaps over the weekend she may be more lucky. She may even get a wash and polish if the weather is kind.
Well tonight after realising at 10:30pm beef still in the hot pot, it was time to remove and carve. Oh wow beautiful, tender and so so tasty, Le Creuset has my seal of approval and I cant wait until dinner tomorrow night. My mini Martha will be so pleased with her culinary skills tomorrow...
Forget food for now (hard I know) and a big thank you to Sue
for this wonderful blog award. Your far too kind you know. But now I have the pleasure of giving you dear readers 5 blogs that I think that are just fabulous. So no secret here that I stalk these blogs for all their wonderful and inspiring creations these wonderful woman create and share with us.
Numer one of the ranks is that dear friend... Jen Crossley
Number two is Mixed Media Extroidenaire Judy Wilkenfeld
Number three is an amazing artist, love everything she creates, Viola
Number four is an ATC magical genious Gaby Bee
And number 5 is just too hard to come up with as there is so many so I will leave you with this link to one of my favourite stamp designers who again has bought out another must have range of stamps. Now the decision which ones to buy, all I can say is I wish the Aussie Dollar was better then I would get them all.
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 11:53 PM 5 comments


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Ohio Toyota Dealers:
If you're interested in finding a new Toyota vehicle in Ohio, look no further than Buyatoyota.com. From Cleveland, to Chillicothe, to Cincinnati and every point in-between at Buyatoyota.com you'll find Toyota Special Offers & Inventory throughout the Buckeye State. Browse our extensive list of Toyota cars, trucks, SUVs, minivans and hybrids and you'll be on your way towards owning the vehicle that's just right for you. At Buyatoyota.com you can do it all in one place: Find new and used vehicles. Locate dealers convenient to you. View inventory. Review your options. Request a quote. Or simply get directions to nearby dealerships. There's only one website that let's you do it all: Buyatoyota.com.


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Film: Contraband
Released: 2012
Director: Baltasar Kormákur
Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Kate Beckinsale, Ben Foster
Chris Faraday once smuggled illegal items or contraband into the country on freighters. He left that life behind, got married has a family and went legit. But when his brother-in-law got involved with Briggs, a drug dealer and when he blew a deal, Briggs demands restitution which he can't deliver. So Chris offers to find a way to pay him but the he threatens Chris' family if he doesn't deliver. So he gets on a freighter destined for Panama and he sets out to bring back some counterfeit currency. Briggs "goes to see" Chris' family. When Chris learns of this he asks his friend Sebastian to take care of them which he does. He tells Chris that it would be better to bring drugs instead of the cash.
What I thought of it:
Once upon a time, there was an actor called Giovani Ribisi, and if you saw his name in a cast list, you were pretty much assured of a quirky, indie film with a strong performance from this guy. Then he went mainstream and started churning out the same character time and time again. Usually a drugged up scumbag. Here he is, as a drgged up, drug-dealing scumbag. It's now Ribisi by numbers.
And of course, we have the least talented of the Wahlbergs taking the lead (one of his brothers is also in this film, but alas, Donnie isn't the one as someone like him might have been able to add a possibly film-saving spark!). Marky Mark (who akways tries to leave behind his Funky Bunch persona) doesn't act – he just frowns his way through the plot in an unconvincing manner and, unfortunately, has absolutely no chemistry with Beckinsale (who plays his wife). How can someone not have chemistry with kate Beckinsale? For crying out loud, she's hot as Hell! I'm straight as can be and even I fancy her!
The plot is basically Gone in 60 Seconds, but without the cars and without any real structure (coincidentally, Ribisi was in that film too – I sense a pattern…). It was dull, dull, dull and there is absolutely nothing redeeming about this movie at all.
Avoid at all costs.


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Coronavirus: Events may be cancelled and venues closed at short notice, you are advised to check on their websites before making a trip.
Monthly open day at one of London's more curious and delightful museums, devoted to the history of the sewing machine.
Open for just a few hours on just one day of the month, this marvel of industrial heritage is as much a delight for the artifacts as for the way they have been laid out.
The museum is an offshoot of a company that makes its living selling and maintaining sewing machines — mainly the large industrial models today — but the owner, Ray Rushton has built up a huge collection of vintage models and in the Millennium year, he opened up the collection to the public.
The collection is actually too vast to point out specific objects of historic note — it is simply a visual feast of metal and wood and china.
The museum is only open on day a month, and only between 2pm-5pm.
Entry is free, although a donation in one of the charity tins is appreciated. A voluminous booklet about the museum's history is freely handed out.
Cost: Free of Charge
Contact and Booking Details
More information at this website.
No need to book tickets - just turn up on the day.2020-09-05 14:00 2020-09-05 14:00 Europe/London London Sewing Machine Museum Open Day Monthly open day at one of London's more curious and delightful museums, devoted to the history of the sewing machine. https://www.ianvisits.co.uk/calendar/2020/09/05/london-sewing-machine-museum-open-day-85313 London Sewing Machine Museum,308 Balham High Road,,London
See more events today, tomorrow or rest of this month
London Sewing Machine Museum,


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Nature Drawing - Abstract Series - 8 Guanacaste, Costa Rica
8.5" x 11.0"
Nature Drawing - Abstract Series - 1 Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Mixed Media
Photograph on Paper - As an Abstract Expressionist painter, I often see paintings in rocks or formations when I am walking on beaches or fields.. wherever I am.. Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Cost Rica, Europe.. there are so many opportunities to select a spot through my view finder and document Natures painting and drawing. Our beaches in Costa Rica have black, blue, beige, pink, and white sands that vary in time of year and vicinity. These colours and the ocean flow allow for beautiful contrast and design for an abstracted 'painting' image.


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Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center
The Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is 110,000 acres of pristine mangrove forests, uplands and protected waters on the western edge of the Everglades. Where rivers and streams meet the sea, a unique habitat is formed. A myriad of wildlife, including 150 species of birds and many threatened and endangered animals, thrive in the estuarine environment and surrounding upland hammocks and scrub found within the Reserve. The reserve operates an Environmental Learning Center for the public that features aquariums, interactive exhibits, children's exhibits, marine touch tank, live animals, nature trails with observation platforms over Henderson Creek, guided kayak trips, art gallery, lunch and evening lecture series, gift shop, picnic areas, special events and more. Learn more at rookerybay.org and facebook.com/friendsofrookerybay.


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SEAL Consulting
If You Want to Save Money, Raise Your Hand! And who doesn't?
Liberty Tax Service® is offering employees of SEAL Consulting, Inc. a special new customer discount and the chance to declare independence from tax headaches in 2018! We provide fast, efficient and accurate service. Liberty Tax® is the second largest international tax service, and offers the following services at all of its locations in the United States and Canada:
- Year round service
- Free tax advice
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Call 866-871-1040 to be directly connected to the nearest location, or use our office locator.
For new customers. Valid at participating locations. Cannot be combined with other offers or used toward past services. One coupon per customer and per return. Void where prohibited by law. Valid 1/01-4/10/18.


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Emma Stone arrived in Paris yesterday and hit up Miu Miu with a friend. The Miu Miu show is tomorrow. While Emma was photographed landing in France, Andrew Garfield was shot at LAX. They were together in New York just last Friday when Sony confirmed that there will indeed be a sequel to The Amazing Spider-Man, setting up for what will eventually be a trilogy. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (or whatever they end up calling it) is scheduled for release May 2, 2014. Shooting will begin early next year. Obviously no plot details have been released but I keep reading online about the mystery man at the end of the movie being the villain which...
I saw the movie and I have no idea about a mystery man.
Who was the mystery man???
They tried to break up, they went back to school, and then there was some flirting again in class that suggested that Gwen and Peter wouldn't be able to stay apart and then ...that's it, right?
Was it an after-credits scene? It was probably an after-credits scene. All these f-cking superhero movies and their after-credits scenes. SOME PEOPLE HAVE TO PEE.


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Why buy property in fethiye Turkey
Property buying in the Fethiye area of Turkey means you get more per square metre than most other areas of Turkey.
Investment property, holiday homes, or permanent homes can be purchased in Fethiye, in a range of areas, whether it be a stylish luxury villa in Ovacik with stunning Oludeniz sea views, a seafront apartment in the Calis Beach area, an exclusive marina property in Gocek or a humble apartment in Tasyaka, Fethiye offers it all, quite often at affordable prices that suit almost everyone's budget.
The type of property and area you choose to buy depends on your reason for buying. If you are searching for a buy-to-let option for holiday rentals then Calis Beach, Ovacik, Hisaronu and Gocek are ideal areas offering excellent rental potential for summer bookings. Permanent home buyers tend to buy in Calis, Tasyaka and Deliktas for the excellent everyday local amenities, though some do prefer more rural locations away from resort life, in the villages that sit on the outskirts of Fethiye, such as Uzumlu, Kemer, Ciftlik and Yaniklar all having excellent road and public transport connections to the centre. Holiday home buyers tend to buy in their favourite location, though some do buy in central Fethiye areas for the ideal base to explore everything that Fethiye has to offer.
Property for sale in FETHIYE Turkey
Uzumlu is a small traditional Turkish village that sits in the mountains on the outskirts of Fethiye in south-west Turkey.
Uzumlu is located a little off the beaten track but full of local culture surrounded by lush green countryside and pine clad mountains.
A quaint village with traditional stone houses and narrow winding streets, with life centred around the old village square, where locals gather in the tea garden for a chat over a glass of Cay and a game of backgammon after a day of tending their land. The village centre also has a small selection of local shops, bakery, restaurants and bars, and once a week you shop with the locals at the weekly market near the square for all your fresh organic fruit and vegetables all picked from the local fields by the locals.
The ex-pats and the locals meet in the local restaurants and small bars for an evening of live music often with the sounds of the traditional 'Saz', a Turkish guitar like instrument, and locals singing traditional Turkish songs.
Away from the square, there are many private villas with large gardens and swimming pools, some owned by the local ex-pat community, that have retired to the peace and quiet of the authentic village away from the busy resorts of the Fethiye area, though the centre of Fethiye is just a short 20 minute drive away for a wider selection of shopping facilities and nightlife.
Real Estate in Uzumlu
Property in Uzumlu is mostly based on private villas that area built in large plots of land offering lots more value for money than other Fethiye areas, with the majority of the homes enjoying stunning views of the local mountains and open green landscapes for a back-to-nature style of living.
Uzumlu property for sale is found close to the village centre and often on the hillsides that surround the village with great views over the valley and enjoying ample amounts of privacy for a peaceful laid back lifestyle.
For anyone searching for accommodation for sale in Uzumlu, prices are normally considerably lower than other Fethiye areas and as said above, also come with large plots of land giving you far much more for your money.
Investors looking to buy property in Uzumlu, Turkey can expect good rental yields throughout the summer as more holiday makers are now in search of tranquil locations for their summer holidays, and homes that are centrally heated can bring in a rental income all year round.
Turkey Homes will guide you to your ideal accommodation in Uzumlu, Turkey, taking into consideration your lifestyle requirements and budget.
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Newly-released data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows "that the fraction of Americans living in poverty rose sharply to 14.3% from 13.2% in 2008 — the highest since 1994." With 43.6 million Americans in poverty, it's important for progressives to look to policies that can alleviate the country's poverty problem.
Looking to the Census data, the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities's (CBPP) Arloc Sherman discovers one of these policies. Sherman finds that unemployment insurance kept 3.3 million Americans out of poverty in 2009:
An exclusive Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis of the new survey data shows that unemployment insurance benefits — which expanded substantially last year in response to the increased need — kept 3.3 million people out of poverty in 2009.
In other words, there were 43.6 million Americans whose families were below the poverty line in 2009, according to the official poverty statistics, which count jobless benefits as part of families' income. But if you don't count jobless benefits, 46.9 million Americans were poor.
CBPP illustrates this number through a chart it created:
As ThinkProgress has documented, conservatives have done everything they can to delay extensions of unemployment benefits. Republicans in the Senate have repeatedly locked arms to block extending the benefits for unemployed Americans, putting the wellbeing of jobless people in peril. And as the Wonk Room's Pat Garofalo notes, a major chunk of 2009's unemployment benefits were funded by the stimulus bill, which "House Republicans unanimously opposed."
Conservatives have also demonized Americans — who, in the midst of recession are unable to find decent work — who receive unemployment insurance. NV GOP Senate candidate called the recipients of jobless benefits "spoiled," former GOP House Speaker Newt Gingrich complained that "welfare" was keeping Americans from wanting to seek work, and conservative TV personality and Nixon speechwriter Ben Stein said the unemployed in need of benefits are "unpleasant people…who do not know how to do a day's work."


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February 1891
COLDEST NIGHT of winter thus far chilled Deputy
Sheriff Cory Muldoon to the bone as he made his rounds in the alleyways of Porterfield. Cold wind howled around the corners of the buildings now closed up for the night. Most everyone in Porterfield had gone home to their families and warm homes. This was all the winter he cared to experience, and even this would be only a few days, as the weather in Texas could change in a heartbeat, summer or winter.
Lights and music from the saloon rang out and mocked the dark silence of its neighboring buildings. Friday nights found cowboys and lumberjacks both squandering their hard-earned money on liquor and women. Tonight would be no different despite the cold, near freezing temperatures. Most likely at least one or two of them would end up in the jail for a spell.
Cory turned up the collar of his sheepskin-lined jacket and shoved his hat farther down on his head. When he rounded the corner of the livery, the gentle nickering and snorts of the horses boarded there broke the quietness of the night.
A cat skittered out from behind the general store, and a dog barked in the distance. Ever since the bank robbery last fall, he or the sheriff had roamed the alleys behind the main businesses every night to make sure everything remained locked tight and secure. So far he'd seen only a typical Friday night, with everything as routine as Aunt Mae's boarding- house meal schedule. Of course, being Friday the thirteenth, anything could happen.
They already had two men put up for the night back at the jail. Sheriff Rutherford took the night duty to keep the jail cells warm so Cory could have Saturday off for his Aunt Mae's wedding. Ole Cooter probably got drunk and disorderly just so he'd have a warm place to sleep tonight and not have to go out to his shack. Cory held no blame on the man for that. Durand, the saloon owner, caught the other man cheating at cards and had him arrested. Maybe the card shark would move his game on to some other town.
He shivered despite the warm coat and hoped Abigail and Rachel would have dinner waiting for him back at the board- inghouse. What with Aunt Mae's wedding tomorrow, those two women had taken over mealtimes until his aunt returned from her wedding trip.
What appeared to be a pile of trash sat outside the back
door of Grayson's mercantile. Ordinarily the store owner wouldn't leave a heap out in the open like that. Cory hesitated in making an investigation, but the snuffling and nickering of a horse grabbed his attention. His hand caressed the handle of his gun. No one and no animal should be here this time of night.
The horse, a palomino, stood off to one side. He wore a saddle, but the reins dangled to the ground. Cory went on alert, his eyes darting about the alley in search of a rider. He reached for the reins and patted the horse's mane, then ran his hand down its flank. "Whoa, boy, what are you doing out wan- dering around?" No brand on his hindquarters meant he didn't belong to a ranch around here, and Cory didn't recognize the horse as belonging to any of the townspeople.
Then the pile by the back door moved, and along with the movement, a moan sounded. With his hand on his gun, Cory approached the mound. An arm flung out from the heap, and another cry. This was no animal. He knelt down to pull back what looked like an old quilt.
When the form of a young woman appeared, Cory jumped as though he'd been shot. Every nerve in his body stood at attention as he reached out to remove more of the cover. A woman lay huddled under the quilt, and her body shook from the cold while a cough wracked through her chest, followed by another cry.
On closer inspection he realized she was younger than he first thought. Her smooth, unlined face and tangled hair were that of a young woman. She couldn't be more than twenty, the same age as his sister Erin.
He bent over her to pick her up, and she started to scream, but another coughing spell prevented it. When her blue eyes peered up at him, they were so full of fear that they sent dag- gers of alarm straight to his soul. This girl was in trouble.
"Don't be afraid. I'm the deputy sheriff. I won't hurt you, but tell me your name and let me take you to the doctor." He pointed to his badge in hope of reassuring her.
Instead her gaze darted back and forth as she pulled the blanket up under her chin. Her ungloved hands trembled with the cold. He removed his glove and reached out a hand to touch her forehead then yanked it back. She burned with fever.
"You're sick. We need you to get you to Doc Jensen's right away." He slid his hands beneath her to scoop her up into his arms. He almost lost his footing as he rose, thinking she'd be a heavier burden than she was. Light as a feather meant she was
probably malnourished too.
She moaned against his chest. "I'm so cold."
Her voice, weak and hesitant, touched a nerve in him. He had to get her warm. Cory made sure the blanket covered her then grasped the horse's reins. A low whistle brought his own horse closer. "Follow us, Blaze. We're going to the infirmary."
He held the girl tight to his chest to transfer some of his warmth to her. The quicker he could get her to the doctor, the quicker Doc could warm her up and treat that cough.
No time to worry about drunken cowboys or lumberjacks tonight.
The man who called himself a deputy carried her in his arms. With his gentle touch and voice, this man wasn't like others she had known. Her body burned with heat then turned ice cold with shivers. So much pain racked her body that she didn't have the strength to resist him anyway.
The man cradled her to his chest. "We'll be at Doc Jensen's in just a few minutes. Hang on, little lady."
Little lady? Little, maybe, but certainly no lady by his stan- dards. Another cough wracked her chest and set her throat afire with pain. Her thin jacket and the quilt had been no match for the cold, especially after she'd crossed the river. Not enough heat in the day to dry her clothes before chilling her to the bone and causing this cough. She'd lost count of the days since she left home and had no idea how far she'd come. She'd avoided towns as much as possible, only entering long enough to pick up food at a mercantile.
Pa had to be on her trail by now, or he'd have others searching for her. Either way, she didn't plan to get caught and be dragged back to Louisiana. Even now the memory of all that she had endured because of Pa made her stomach retch. She'd die before she let anyone take her back to that.
The man called for someone named Clem to go get the doc, and he'd meet him at the infirmary. Maybe he was a sheriff after all since he was sending for help. She didn't dare open her eyes, lest he'd see her fears again. Until she could be absolutely certain he meant her no harm, she'd stay still and quiet.
She inhaled the masculine scent of horses, sweat, and leather. He smelled like hard work and not a trace of alcohol. Unusual for a man, even a lawman. In the background raucous music came from a saloon. She'd recognize the tinny sound of saloon piano anywhere. It disappeared in the distance, and they proceeded down the street and up what felt like stairs or steps onto what must be a boardwalk or porch.
He set her on her feet, and she peeped with one eye while he fumbled in his pocket then pulled out a ring of keys. In the next minute he had the door open and strode through it, car- rying her once again.
Antiseptics, alcohol, and carbolic acid greeted her nose. This must be the doctor's office. Not until he laid her on a hard surface did she open her eyes, half expecting him to be leering over her. Instead he had walked away to light a lamp, which filled the room with flickering shadows dancing on the walls. A glass door cabinet stood against the wall, and another bed sat a few feet away from where she lay.
He returned to stand beside her, and she almost shrank in fear at his size. Well over six feet tall, he'd removed his hat to reveal a mass of dark red hair curling about his forehead. His hand caressed her forehead, but she did not flinch, even though every inch of her wanted to. No need for him to know her fears.
"I see you're awake. The doc will be here in a minute. He'll fix you right up."
Instead of resisting, her body relaxed at the gentle tone of his voice. He certainly didn't fit her idea of a lawman or a cowboy. No one but her ma had ever treated her so kindly. Most people treated her like trash under their feet and didn't care whether she was well or sick. Still, he was a man. She had to be careful.
A woman's voice sounded, along with another man's. She turned her head to find a beautiful red-haired woman and an older man entering the room.
The one who must be the doctor stepped to her side.


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/ Tuesday, March 31, 2009 / 6 Comments / North American , Vegetables
Mushroom Ragout
Mushrooms Ragout is a great side dish. They can be served over mashed or baked potatoes, polenta and salad too. Here, I have served them with some baked potatoes. Do try the recipe, if you are into mushrooms :)
Mushroom Ragout
400 g White and Brown Button Mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 Big Red Onion, chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, chopped
3 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
Fresh Italian Flat Parsley, chopped
I Tbsp chopped Chives
Sea Salt To taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Heat the olive oil and cook the onions over a moderate heat until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
Turn the heat on high and toss in the mushrooms. Cook until all the mushrooms have become browned and wilted, about 4 minutes.
Add the parsley, butter and balsamic vinegar and season with sea salt and black pepper. To serve top with some chopped chives.
Labels: North American, Vegetables
Related Posts
6 comments:
Looks awesome! I'm bookmarking this for sure.ReplyDelete
And while I can't eat the dish in your previous post, the pictures are fabulous!
I am definitely into mushrooms and into this yummy looking dish! I'm going to make it just the way you did, over mashed potatoes. Yum!ReplyDelete
this looks so delicious! I think I'd have it over wild rice for a super earthy mealReplyDelete
@NAOmi: Thanks and do try the recipe.ReplyDelete
@the wicked noodle: Sounds good and hope you will like the recipe.
@LK-Healthy Delicious:Wild rice is delicious;)
This looks delicious!ReplyDelete
Hey TreeHouse Chef, thanksReplyDelete
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Prince Albert, a.k.a. England's King George VI was never supposed to be King George VI at all. In fact, his older brother, Edward, was the country's reigning monarch until he abdicated to marry a divorc e. And thus, soft spoken stammering George was thrust into a position of power on the eve of the second world war.
So he turns to an unorthodox Australian speech therapist named Lionel Logue. At the time seeking this kind of help was an unheard of solution for a royal. And the clock is working against him—George must be ready to deliver his first radio address when England declares war on Germany in 1939.
The King's Speech is a fantastic film—it won the Oscar for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (for Colin Firth as George), and Best Screenplay at the 2011 Academy Awards. Bonus fun fact: parts of it were filmed on the same set used for a porno just weeks earlier. [Netflix]


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WebImage necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 332 diseños de 65 diseñadores freelance.
Edit Insite
We are a web development company looking to create a separate brand for our new content management system.
As a web development company, our content management system can really benefit just about any type of end-user. We primarily focus on business-to-business opportunities. Our target market consists primarily of travel related companies, law firms, and construction companies.
The logo needs to look clean, fun, friendly, and inviting. Please feel free to use colors, but make sure it looks good in B&W and that it looks good large or small. Uses include website and print.
The name of the website management system is "Edit in Site." This is meant to be a play on "Edit Insight." The name Edit In Site was chosen because our content management application allows users to edit their site by clicking editable areas.
I do not have a treatment preference for how the words should be arranged in the logo design (for example "editinsite," "EditInsite," "EditInSite," etc.). I also do not have a preference for uppercase, lowercase, or any other combination. This may change as I receive entries and I will update the brief/post comments as necessary. Both the symbol and typography are extremely important. The one preference I do have is that the typeface be sans-serif.
The logo should not use any sort of clip art or photo images.
The final logo design needs to be provided in a vector format such as eps or AI. Winning designer will also need to provide the font name(s) used.
Note for those that might be interested: There will be at least two follow up projects to this logo design: (1) the website management application itself, and (2) the website that promotes the website management application.
I will be an active CH. Best of Luck!
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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May 20, 2013
Maria Milanes-Murcia became the fifth person to earn McGeorge's unique JSD in International Water Resources Law with a successful defense of her dissertation on May 14, 2013.
Milanes-Murcia's dissertation, "A New International Legal and Institutional Framework to Manage Fossil Aquifers and Groundwater in Conjunctive Use with Surface Water along the US-Mexico Border: A Water Banking Perspective," proposes a complete program for conserving and equitably distributing scarce shared groundwater resources along the US-Mexico border.
Milanes-Mucia, a Spanish environmental attorney who earned her LLM in International Water Resources from in December 2008, faced a formidable panel of experts in her dissertation defense. Professor Gabriel Eckstein of Texas Wesleyan School of Law, one of the leading authorities in the world on international groundwater law, chaired the examination board. Professor Rachael Salcido, the director of McGeorge's Environmental Law Concentration, and her faculty colleague John Sims were the other examiners.
"It was a well thought-out dissertation that may well have significant influence as competition increases for dwindling freshwater resources in the border region," said Professor Steve McCaffrey, the director of the JSD program. Milanes-Murcia has worked closely with McCaffrey in her years at McGeorge, including joining him as part of a Uruguayan team representing that country in a dispute with Argentina before the International Court of Justice in 2009 in The Hague.
A JSD (Doctor of Juridical Science) is legal education's equivalent of a Ph.D. The JSD typically requires three to five years to complete, and requires an advanced study in law as a scientific discipline and a dissertation, which serves as an original contribution to the scholarly field of law.
Arizona water law attorney Margaret Vick, '83, JSD '09, Taiwanese attorney/engineer Wen-Lu Wang, JSD '10, Bennett Bearden, JSD '11, special counsel on water law and policy for the state of Alabama, and Rodrigo Rondon, JSD '12, a Brazilian attorney and law professor, are the other successful candidates for the McGeorge advanced degree.