Why I’m Here
הִנֵּֽנִי
Yesterday I bought a compass to make circles. This tiny Zohar was given to me by Paolo Moshe at the Centro de Kabbalah in Madrid.Since arriving in Madrid, I've been balancing my intellectual pursuits and my intuitive painting practice. While I enjoy thinking deeply, trying to combine my ideas with my painting here has felt forced. My spiritual practice teaches me that when things feel forced, I haven't found the right path yet.
I've been exploring and taking in my surroundings to find the intellectual grounding for my project. I'm aware of the objectives and expectations of my project partners, but I'm still figuring out how to move forward. I will be presenting my work when I’m done and that puts me in a frame of mind where I think about what others will think about it, and that’s the worst place to be for an artist.
I do think I’m still just getting started. One thing I know is that painting, for me feels holy when I am in the flow, and as I visit the land known for peaceful Islamic and Jewish relations, I am starting to look at my work as a prayer for peace.
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Key Themes of This Project
Here’s what I’ve been thinking about:
Borders and Convivencia
The multifaceted nature of borders, both visible and invisible, was inspired by the historical Convivencia between Sephardic Jews and Muslims in Spain. A cultural exchange, intellectual advancement, and the coexistence of different religious communities.
Sacred Geometry and DNA
I have been fascinated by sacred geometry, particularly spirals and circles, and their connections to fundamental aspects of life and the universe, such as the DNA helix. These geometric forms symbolize growth, evolution, and the unfolding of the universe.
Our Innate Sense of Geometry
Inspired by neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene's research, I’m intrigued by the possibility that humans have an innate sense of geometry that may have evolved before language. This primal understanding of geometry ties into the universal aspects of sacred geometry.
Historical and Spiritual Contexts
The historical context of sacred geometry from Al-Andalus (Islamic Spain) and the intellectual legacy of the Golden Age of Sephardism.
Power and Knowledge
There is a tension between religious knowledge and spirituality, with an emphasis on how knowledge can be a form of power and control, which is in contrast to the spiritual fluidity and unity suggested by sacred geometry.
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Central Questions
All of this has led me to this:
Sacred geometry reveals a universal spirituality that transcends both literal and imagined cultural and religious borders.
The concept of sacred geometry, particularly the spiral and circle, reflects the ongoing process of creation and evolution in both the physical and spiritual realms.
Peaceful coexistence is part of the evolution of our species.
It’s idealistic to believe that we will one day coexist peacefully, but how will we ever evolve if we choose not to live by our values?