Bruised Reed

Bruised Reed
Bruised Reed

When I posted this work on Etsy where I offer original art, I got a comment from another artist that really made me smile. Right away that artist recognized from where I got the phrase, “bruised reed.” I was surprised by that but it was a welcome surprise.

Her face is striking; I know.
She pulls at the heart; I know.
She’s stripped to the bone.
She’s bruised but not broken.

Art Title: Bruised Reed
Art by: Faith Magdalene Austin
Size and Medium: black ink, strikes of color on light grain sketchbook paper. 4.5 × 7, signed, sealed, mounted. * SOLD *

Continue reading “Bruised Reed”

Bruised Reed 2

 Reed II
Reed II

Art Title: Reed II
Art by: Faith Magdalene Austin
Medium: black ink, acrylic paint, light card stock paper 4 x 7 , signed, mounted, raw unsealed.

Details: Blue, yellow, orange, headdress, large eyes, strikes of paint, finger paint, complex simplicity.

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Faith

I might have been torn to pieces

Jung Art


To the extent that I managed to translate the emotions into images that is to say, to find the images which were concealed in the emotions I was inwardly calmed and reassured.

Had I left those images hidden in the emotions, I might have been torn to pieces by them.

There is a chance that I might have succeeded in splitting them off; but in that case I would inexorably have fallen into a neurosis and so been ultimately destroyed by them.

As a result of my experiment I learned how helpful it can be, from the therapeutic point of view, to find the particular images which lie behind the emotions.

Carl Jung

The bird flew in the window fma

A Bird Flew in the Window

I Release Her

I release her

fma

Ashes – Hesitant to Speak

AshI know what I want from this painting but who knows how long it’ll take to reach the finish line.

24 x 36 on watercolor paper.

This young girl is made of ashes. She’s wearing a dress made of bits and pieces of this and that. There is burlap and there are wood shavings, colored paper and ink ‘spills’. In her arms she will carry a bouquet of red roses but not bright red. The young girl’s hair will change slightly. You can be sure I’ll pull the wolf (in the top right corner) out in more detail. He’s just a cloud formed above her. At this time there is only one raven in the sky and a few solar flares in the sky. The final question is, will she be for sale? I have no idea. Continue reading “Ashes – Hesitant to Speak”

On the Rise

On the Rise by SundripI’ve attempted to name this piece of art but I’m having difficulties. I see a main figure, a powerful leader with her hands out stretched giving encouragement, strength, maybe even reassurance. Every figure looks to her or is linked to her in some way. They look up, reach up and stretch far to hold her hands. Is she the center and balance or the distraction?

Can the others move on their own? Will their feet move freely if not linked so tightly or are they comforted by knowing they can rely on her out stretched arms?

What of her, this central figure? She supports but who supplies her with the ability to continue to lead? Will they hold her arms up if they ever tire? Are they the reason her arms rise now? Continue reading “On the Rise”

Traveler

Traveler by fma

What will you see in this ethnic, surreal painting? Ah, gold poppies, red poppies, a fisherman in traditional clothing reaching to the sun, an Asian woman in a white dress with a small orange patch whose arms reach down yet they branch out as bare trees. Beside her is a face within a face. Flowers grow, swirls spring out, color abounds then rests. Continue reading “Traveler”

Venture to Know

Venture to Know by FMAA large sunflower mandala, a white butterfly and stone embellishments cradle the main subjects of the painting called Venture to Know. Her hair becomes the tree that reaches into a red and turquoise sky. Her face is divided into copper, wood, bark, Indiana yellow and flaming red. Deep set are the dark eyes of this figure, deep set lined in turquoise, Indian yellow and coal black. Her lips are white and cracked like the detailed crags and bare tree.

Are these scars on her face or life experiences? Are the divisions made to keep peace or to keep away? Continue reading “Venture to Know”

Sunflowers Bless My Home

Sunflowers Bless My Home fmaSunflowers Bless My Home was super fun. She’s bright and beautiful, dreamy and just fun! A young girl stands with her arm out stretched with a large sunflower winding around her arm until it comes to an arch over the house of music. Green leaves touch the deep blue and purple sky. The white moon shares the purple and blue.

You can see the young woman with black hair in the red dress, breath the night air in as she stands in the grass by the rocky walkway home. It is a magical, fantasy and cheerful collage that would do well in any home or business office such as children’s dentistry or the bedroom of your young child whose imagination will be indulged. Continue reading “Sunflowers Bless My Home”

Dance of Dissonance

framed

By 4 am I was exhausted. My head was tired, full of noise that made no sense. At my threshold I got up from bed and walked 10 feet to my studio, pulled out a piece of paper and began to paint. I removed some of the surface paper for texture, scratched paint with a toothpick and smeared paint with all my fingers until finally the noise ceased. 

In the painting you’ll see a face outlined in black – eyes, nose, lips. While the face is hot with red and orange, the dreadlocks hang in blue and black. On the outskirts, into the white is yellow and the tiniest flicker of green.  Continue reading “Dance of Dissonance”