Final Paper: Art, Archetypes and Creative Process

My Journey of Occurrences with Symbols, Metaphors and Art

I have discovered important gauges to my nature of self-discovery, creative self-affirmation of spirit and a deeper dimension of my own identity. Therefore, I believe my newfound discoveries will help me transform my abilities into healing art. Also, this journey has brought me closer to understanding my career as an artist.

I. Collage

My journey began in Portugal living in a small village known as Sao Martinho do Porto. This experience has enabled me to be in a deep creative and spirtual mode during this entire mentorship class. My creative process let loose during my journalling, note taking and reading assignments causing simultaneous reactions reslulting my art getting off into an interesting space.
My psychic felt like a big pot of cooking soup. The more I obsorbed and lived the sounds, smells and images around me in this culture and space I became intensly motivated to create art and write about it. Therefore, my first art devloped into an interesting collage.
My collage amplify´s this mood by reflecting on fragmented faces, eyes and mouth expressions. I feel each day I rise I am bombarded with images and expressions all around and all of the time articulating different degrees of this culture. I feel that my American-ness is pealing off and I am growing a new skin. Slowly, I feel my awarness to different symbols and motifs (or achetypes) tranquilizing my senses and psychic. Therefore, my creative mood and self (or unconsciousness) is combating my old self and creating a new perception of who I am as self and spirit. Finally, I see now that my first interpretation of my art was reflecting on my American-ness because I had not obsorbed this different culture and space that I was entering and creating.

II. Mandala

Continuing in my journey I realize that the mandala concept resonated for me, therefore, I created my “Creative Flow Mandala”. Again, the combination of reading, writing in my journal, meditating and living surrounded by nature and different culture inspired my creative flow and I created my mandala.
The mandala construes five experiences and my “Now” life. It includes 1. Poem from my husband, 2. Poem I wrote after he passed away, 3. Wedding ring, 4. Burial site and 5. My son´s diabetes-testing strip.
As I meditated on these images, I realized that they represented symbols from my past and present life especially the poem from my husband. A very unusual incident occurred in which I realized that I had been receiving messages as symbols from my deceased husband during the past 23 months after his passing. My husband gave me a plaque in the shape of a scroll with a poem written on it. I had come across it about four years ago among unpacked boxes from the 1990s in my Portugal house. I placed it on my dresser bureau and forgot about it. But, three days earlier, while reading and meditating I heard a noise coming from my dresser. When I walked towards the dresser, I discovered that plaque had fallen to the side. I picked it up and began to read it. At that moment I realized that I was receiving a message from my deceased husband. Therefore, these five images became symbols of my past and present life path and I was inspired to create my mandala.
I sketched diagonal and horizontal lines followed by large circles within the main circle. Then an image of a mistress or goddess began emerging from the sea followed by smaller circles outside and inside the large circle. The small circles at each corner have symbols of two fish, moon, stars, sun, tree and sea snail. The larger circles represent poem arcytypes (notes,1 & 2).
Finally, these elements and symbols surmize and represent issues and arcytypes discribing my inner spirit and life experiences that I created with art as my mandala.

III. Bear

My dreams/images of White Bear stirred many emotions for my inner self because (as far as I know) I do not have American Native ancestors. Both my parents are Portuguese in fact they were first cousins therefore my heritage is Portuguese.
This is not the first time that Native American spirit healers have come to visit me. Years ago I contracted walking pneumonia and suffered acute back pain. It felt like my back was pealing apart. My doctor gave me the usual antibiotics and painkillers but the pain took a long time to go away.
My husband and I were invited to visit with friends who had a log cabin in a deep-forested area located in Calavaris County close to the vicinity of Oakley, California.

I sat on the ground on the edge of the lake, which was surrounded by huge red woods and pine trees and shut my eyes to meditate and began calling on spiritual psychic healers from the universe to help heal my back pain. Suddenly, in my third eye imagery I saw a great Native American chief wearing his feather head gear pounding slowly on a drum. Then I began feeling the healing heat of the sun as it shined directly on me. While I meditated, I asked who he was and why he was there. He told me his name was Chief Eagle Head and that he came to heal my pain.
When I left the forest and joined our friends, my pain had faded and I was completely healed in next few days. From then on whenever I have pain I call on him to help heal. Later he introduced to his daughter, Blue Feather, and both perform healing´s on me whenever I call on them.
I also work on healing close friends and family. Lately, I have been working on my younger son who has diabetes as well as my older son´s emotional problems and finally my friend in Portugal who developed sever sciatica and back pain.
Unknowing to me I had created a healing alter. Above stood my Christ painting, husband´s poem and some other art and artifacts/statue like objects. This is where I saw the great White Bear in my semi/dream state. I believe that it is the Great Bear that Native Americans use in their healing ceremonies which has come to aid me in my healing projects.

Finally, White Bear made me aware of my sacred space and strong energies radiating in this area. Therefore, I decided to make my alter there. It is made up of my artwork and candles. My creations include imagery of Christ, (earlier art)Bear and hand painted silk scarfs.
This space and each piece has contributed to my dreams, imagery and healing. I noticed that after I placed my Christ image on this dresser in this space, I began to hear sounds and experience images while in a semi-dreamy and awake state. This spot is where I saw Bear twice in the monster-like form. Also, this is where my deceased husband’s essence lured me to his poem. Finally, I truly believe I have created a very special space to heal and bring messages, which will help me in my life and art career as a healer.

IV. Conclusion

To wrap up, my journey has acted as a tool for the continuation of self-discovery, creative self-affirmation of spirit and a deeper aspect of my own identity as an artist and healer. Therefore, I believe my newfound discoveries has transformed me and my abilities to heal with art. Finally, I feel this journey has brought me closer to understanding my career as a healing artist.


Notes
1. Husband´s love poem scroll
I Love You
We met as though we were destined by fate,
At a moment in time when our need was great.
Our minds merged & two lives became whole.
You add another dimension to my soul.
For we share love, hope &honesty,
And there is much need for us
Permanently.
2. My poem written for his buriel site:
Meu querido Carlos,
A tua vida foi cheia com o meu amor, dos nossos filhos, familia e amigos.
No presente e passado com muitas cores do nosso
arco-iris e a musica celestial com que descansa a tua alma para sempre.
Adeus meu querido.

Translation:
My dearest Carlos,
Your life was full with love from our sons, family, and friends.
In the present and pass, with the rain bow and celestial music, may your soul be in eternal peace forever.
Good-by my dearest beloved.