shiva - the god of destruction in hinduism. in one of his incarnations he is nataraja - the lord of dance. he is surrounded by a circle of fire - maya = the illusion represented by the cycle of birth and death. he dances wildly covered in ashes - a ritual of letting go, letting it die. it is the law of nature. and there is no creation without destruction. something has to die to bring forth new life.

shiva - a week long mourning period in judaism.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

there is no creativity without destruction.

by definition, to be creative, we have to destroy what we know - ideas, pre- conceived notions, parts of the problem. looking at what what you are holding, and assuming you know what there is to know about it based on previous interactions or having read "knowledge" of it, is the definition of our limiting beliefs and a major block to creativity.

we often remain stuck in patterns and do, make, create the same thing over and over again because creativity is hard. it requires looking at something we believe and make it wrong or at least less true, in order to invoke new ideas and creative insight.

creativity challenges our beliefs about the world, so we stop short, because change is terrifying. yet, when we show up for our art every day, we have an opportunity to destroy the world (all of our concepts of what it is or should be) and create it anew.

this is the power of the artist.

let us look at everything with fresh eyes and open hearts. every person we encounter throughout our day, including ourselves, every piece of media we use in our art: it's all new in this present moment, brimming with potential and possibility.

let's explore!

here you can find me crushing, tearing, ripping, cutting, poking, sanding, scraping, burning, and smashing through some of the simple materials that show up in my work.
i challenge myself to look at them with fresh eyes every time.

so excited to art and grow together.

much love,
-anca.