Does something in your life call you into generosity - into a space larger than your own “play small” story? Can you give yourself permission to move slowly and release your artistic fruit when it is ripe and perfect? Can you create beauty without attachment to who receives it? Like me, you were born to create beauty, to give generously, live abundantly, and appreciate the blessings waiting all around you for you to notice their presence. Teaching beauty is what I have to offer and I’m blessed when I share what I know with you. |
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Every June I am abundantly blessed. Daily I am reminded of what it means to have more than you need, to be presented with an opulent overflow of scent, taste, color, and beauty. My backyard hosts a majestic 40-foot tall mango tree. She is my teacher. She does not ask for my collaboration, for my effort, or even my prayers. She asks only for appreciation from me. In her slow and patient fashion, she transmutes the Florida sun and rain into a gift of a thousand wondrous golden fruits, each one sweeter than honey, each one dressed in the colors of the sunset.
From early June to late September I step onto the wet grass each morning to gather my blessings waiting for me like fat red and orange Easter eggs. Each one is a spectacle of color; glazed in red, orange, pink, purple, yellow, and many shades of green. Slice one open and inside is the embodiment of golden sunlight, a smell so sweet it attracts families of birds, lizards, and fish to feed on any bruised or imperfect fruits.
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Some days there are more than 40 mangos waiting to be collected in my basket and displayed in my kitchen window. The abundance is so great that I must reach out to others and share with my friends, my colleagues, and even my dog. All year long I collect grocery bags so I can deliver this abundance to everyone I know. Long absent friends just happen to drop by and leave laden with fruit for smoothies, chutney pickles, and fruit salad, and neighbors receive anonymous gifts on their doorsteps, even my accountant has taken to calling me the “Mango Queen”. All winter long, frozen mango supplies drinks for visitors, spicy chutney, and sweet, golden smoothies to light up my blue days.
I have a personal core “story” that: “I am not enough, I don’t have enough, and I don’t do enough” to deserve unearned blessings. Whenever I am down it is connected to the smallness of this feeling. For more than 10 years this tree has been teaching me a different lesson - one of abundance and generosity.
Generosity blesses the giver and the receiver. The tree gives generously and asks for nothing in return. She creates because creating is what she was born to do and I imagine her joy in what she produces. She works slowly and patiently, and for many months it appears she is doing nothing, just resting and sleeping. Yet every year she supplies more and more beautiful mangos than the year before. Each mango is delivered in its own time, each one as large and as perfect as mango can be. And she shares just as generously with the iguanas as she does with her most ardent admirers. I am truly grateful for her example and for the way she moves me into the space of grounding and gratitude as I step into her shade each morning.
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Reach out if you would like guidance on creating more abundantly or if you would like to join me for the June events below. |
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With Love & Creative Blessings,
Susan Convery
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P.S. If you didn't get the chance to download your free gift from me: Here is my "Inner Artist Inspiration Package" - a series of illustrated quotes in watercolor based on flower photos taken by family and friends. |
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“If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you don’t bring forth what is within you, what you don’t bring forth will destroy you”. - Gospel of Thomas
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What to See: Morikami Museum in Delray Florida
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Painting Enlightenment: Experiencing Wisdom and Compassion through Art and Science,
features works by a Japanese scientist and artist Iwasaki Tsuneo (1917-2002). The paintings create a contemplative journey and meditations on the interconnectedness of the universe. Iwasaki collapses distinctions between image, text, and thought with imagery representative of both scientific phenomena and Buddhist principles. He forms the images by using characters from the sacred Buddhist text, the Heart Sutra.
Upon retiring from a career as a research biologist, Iwasaki expanded his own practice of copying sacred texts, called shyakyō – a form of devotion with a long history in Japan. In his unique process, instead of separating the verses written into vertical blocks, he reconfigures them into images such as DNA, lightning bolts, bubbles, atoms, and ants. He created this artistic practice to express the intricate resonance he observed between scientific and Buddhist views of reality: interdependence, impermanence, and the fluid nature of phenomena.
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Join me on Friday, June 11 at 11:00 am EST at the Morikami Museum
for lunch & the exhibition at the Morikami. We will sit together and visit the exhibition together. (Lunch & Museum entry not included)
if you cannot make this date or time please take the opportunity to visit and experience the art on your own. It is well worth the time and effort. The work is on display at the Morikami Museum in Delray Beach from May 8 through September 19, 2021
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Art Book Club Selection -
"Painting Enlightenment"
June 17 at 6:30 pm EST on Zoom
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In June we have the extraordinary opportunity to combine reading with the direct experience of scientist Iwasaki Tsuneo’s art.
Why read this book?
It is a stunningly beautiful, full-color book of Buddhist paintings by twentieth-century Japanese artist Iwasaki Tsuneo, interpreted by Buddhist scholar Paula Arai. Paula Arai presents over fifty of Iwasaki's paintings, elucidating their Buddhist contexts and meanings as well as their intimate connections to Iwasaki's life as a war survivor, teacher, scientist, and devout Buddhist practitioner.
Tickets are $10 for the Zoom discussion and available on Eventbrite at this link:
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Private Lessons and Events |
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Summer Art Portfolio
Private Coaching
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Private, highly personalized summer classes for artistically-minded US & international students virtually on Zoom or in person at my home.
If you have a student who is a visual thinker, willing to push the boundaries of their own work and serious about improving their options for college, I want to hear from you! Schedule a time to discuss how I can collaborate with you to build a portfolio that will give your student the greatest chance for success.
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Private Guided Art Events |
Host a live or virtual art party for a group of friends, a family member, or a business event!
Choose from a full menu of flexible painting packages to fit your party’s vibe. Or, I can create a custom art project to suit your event. I will take care of the details so you can just relax and enjoy yourself.
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Sketchbook Prompt:
What is "treasure"? Think of several visual images to illustrate this idea. Glue on tin foil or another shiny wrapper. Where can you dig for your personal treasure? What would it look like?
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New Artwork Available
On Display now at the Broward Art Guild until 6/25
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Exhibition: The Human Image
Location: Broward Art Guild Gallery, 3280 NE 32nd Street, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308
Gallery Hours: Wed., Fri., Sat., noon -9pm; Thurs., noon -6pm
Free Public Reception: Saturday, June 5, 2021, 4:00 -9:00pm by scheduled time slots.
Exhibition Run Dates: June 2, 2021 -June 25, 2021
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