ART YOU CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT

Make What Hangs on Your Walls Count !

There are certain art objects and paintings in my life that would be hard to live without now, as they have become so much a part of my reason for being. One is a painting and altar to the Divine Mother. This is in our living room and dominates the vibration of the space. For me it offers a “meeting place” of my soul with the ever giving benevolence of Life Itself, which is what the Divine Mother represents.

 

There is a powerful statue of Quan Yin sitting on the altar, along with a picture of Mary and one of Ammachi. The statue is only about a foot tall, but it emanates a huge sense of peace and relaxation. That is what your living room should be, yes? A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN REST, RELAX AND REPLENISH.

Moving into the hallway we have some sculptures of wood carved in Bali that would be hard to imagine living without. One is a very small carving of a Balinese woman, very delicately carved, and the other is a set of Balinese rice field Goddesses, one of which is shown here.

I guess you are  noticing the Divine Mother energy is very strong in our place. The Divine Father is here too, in the form of a Painting of Jesus I did a few years ago, and a lot of photos of Babaji.

Last but not least are a couple of Divine Mother paintings that are important. One is by Francene Hart from Hawaii of Madame Pele, which is on the cover of Sondra’s book Pele’s Wish. The other is an original copy of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a very famous Ikon painting that lives in Mexico City.

These are some works of art “I can’t live without.” What would yours be? You might like to give this question some attention. Make what hangs on your walls count. Your home is your temple, and it is the place where you can “charge up” your battery of soul energy. Why not have lofty stuff around you, in addition to the usual souvenirs?

MARKUS RAY

 

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WHAT TOUCHES YOU?

A Picture Awakens Through Touch.

It is often said, “A picture is worth 1000 words.” In many ways an artist paints because he wants to leave words behind. The color, subject and composition  is not something in need of verbal description. It hits you in the heart or not. The Image sears itself into your memory or not. It “touches you.” I painted this “Babaji in Barcelona” last summer, and my friend Joe Petri was touched by it and bought it on the spot when he saw it. He was touched.

Recently I have been reading the work of Immortalist, Robert Coon, who gives touch the utmost spiritual importance: “Oh, Let my touch be the Highest Manifestation for the Will Divine.” So a painting is made by the qualities of my touch. I am touching the physical matter of the paints and the canvas and the brushes in just the right alignment and relationships to ultimately “touch” the person looking at the painting. This is an “Art Look” that transcends the “picture worth a thousand words.” The words cannot come close to the Touch of a great work. That happens instantaneously without words.

This portrait by Leonardo is touching in the way the man holds so delicately the piece of paper. It is a moment when time stops and our minds are still. It needs no explanation. We are touched. Touch is superior to words, because it cannot be misinterpreted. You are either touched or you are not. You are struck by the impact of this touch or you are not. You may only look at these two images above for less than 10 seconds, but the touch will go on long after you look away at other things. That is, if the artist was successful with his touch. If his touch has risen to the “highest manifestation for the Will Divine.”

MARKUS RAY

JESUS of MADRID

What Makes an Ikon Painting Really Work?

I had an exchange on Facebook with a Russian friend of mine I met in Herakhan last April regarding Ikon paintings. He was struck by the last painting I did of Babaji, and mentioned he would like to take me to see some of the most powerful Ikon paintings in Moscow. The Russians were quite good at this art form. What makes these paintings so powerful? What makes them work? They would be the same reasons I would put into my own paintings of Babaji, Jesus, and the Divine Mother.

This is the most recent “Jesus of Madrid” I painted last weekend.

And here is another one I painted, “Jesus of Tenerife,” a few weeks before:

What do these have in common with the Russian Ikon paintings? It is interesting to trace the similarities between the concept of the “murti” in India, in which the “Living Presence” of the deity is imbued in the painting or the sculpture, the Russian Ikon, in which the Presence of Christ is meant to come through, and my paintings which are attempting to do the same.

Here are some Russian Ikons that I found compelling:

 

I suppose that a realistic rendition of the Christ, such as in the High Italian Renaissance period, is not my style. I am more attuned to these Ikons. I never gave them much thought until my Russian friend mentioned them. Perhaps I had a past life in the golden age of Byzantium, or in the  golden age of the Russian churches in which Ikons were the means of communicating the love of Christ to the people.

What makes an Ikon painting really work is the heart of the painter himself. Is he in the vibration of the Christ? Is he impeccable in his love? Is he living the principles set down by the Master? All these factors contribute to the effectiveness of the Ikon. Without being a “fish,” as the great Chinese painters would say, “You cannot paint a fish.”

Also, it seems my study of A Course in Miracles, and having been brought up in a Christian family and society has encouraged me to explore this form of painting even more. And all the many paintings I have done of Babaji and the Divine Mother over the past 9 years, as “darshan,” have contributed to the strength of these “Jesus Paintings.” People are moved in their presence, so I know I am on the right track. Also, people are buying them for their homes, which is another good sign.

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MARKUS RAY

PS. Jesus of Madrid is for sale. Send an email or comment here if you are interested.

 

IN MADRID AT THE PRADO

Paintings Unforgettable

There are some paintings that are unforgettable. And some pass you by, and don’t even register. Sondra and I went to the Prado here in Madrid yesterday and saw both kinds. Usually the art of the West is dramatic, but spiritually elevating in more visceral ways. The technical abilities of the artist are impeccable, and the subject matter depends on the times. We are very good in the West in depicting Tragedy, Suffering, Royalty, Sex, and Delight as though they are all holy charges of the artist’s eye.

This “Descent From the Cross” by Rogier van der Weyden is unbelievably crafted. The Northern Renaissance painters had a propensity for touching detail. 2D is given 3D; 3D is given 4D. Amazing! If you study the geometry of this painting closely, it is remarkable as well.  And the brilliance of the color is superb, almost defying the tragedy of the scene. The reds and the blues take us to another dimension, one of merited fame in the pantheon of Western masterpieces.

Goya’s “3rd of May” is also such a famous painting. He was intent upon capturing the horrors and dramas of war. But at the same time, there is a nobility that lifts us: the innocence and the courage of the victims who are about to be shot, and who have a very human face. And there is an ignoble quality that appalls us: the almost inhuman robot like soldiers in their high hats, without a human face, and with perfectly pointed weapons of cruelty. Have we really changed much since then?

Well, after a dose of man’s inhumanity to man, Sondra wanted to see Goya’s “Maja” paintings. They are in a room together, on the same wall, clothed and unclothed. From a purely male “arousal” perspective, I found the “Clothed Maja” much more enticing than the unclothed one. Also, the head on the “Clothed Maja” is more relaxed than the one on the nude. I can relate, as a painter, to the difference, even though it is the same model. The head on the “Nude Maja” seems lower, perhaps without as much breathing space. A subtle difference, but one I could feel.

The last painting that stood out in my recollection was Bosch’s “Garden of Earthly Delights.” It is a kind of allegorical arena of human desires, just a small step short of an unbelievable Eden of orgies. Again, a Northern Renaissance work, the minute detail of this almost “miniature” scale of the work is breathtaking. One could wander for hours in the scenarios of this Paradise of the Senses.

These would be my “quick pics” of what was impressionable from our walk through the Prado. Of course, there are other great works in the Museum, but these are the ones that struck a chord of delight in our 2 hours of sauntering. Madrid is lucky to have these paintings. May they always inspire us to ascend as human beings, to manifest the beauty and creativity of a Divine Life.

—MARKUS RAY—