Thursday, December 15, 2011

Portraits of Spirituality

Spirituality and acknowledging that there are forces at work greater than ourselves, that we are unable to control every detail and outcome of our lives, has always been an intrinsic part of who I am, and inspires much of the work that I create. This series, called Prayer Totems have emerged over the last several years. This is how I pray: for myself for others, and for the planet. It makes me ask myself what is prayer to me? It is asking the powers that be for greater insight, understanding, and capacity to have more positive relationships and impact on others, and that this positive interaction I have with those around me, will then inspire others to interact positively with those they encounter, thereby diminishing negativity and destruction. Yes, some will say this is naive and I gladly and wholeheartedly still subscribe to these beliefs, however challenging it is sometimes. I continue to work on this series each year. As my work has often made references to spiritual practice and working on my inner life, it seems that magically, similar energies are drawn to me, which I welcome, and have immense gratitude and appreciation.

Recently I received the following invitation:

"I write to invite your participation in Frequencies, a new web-based project to construct a collaborative genealogy of spirituality.
Frequencies is comprised of a series of essays, poems, and sundry other entries by scholars, artists, and activists. We seek to accompany entries with works from contemporary and emerging artists and photographers.
We envision these entries as fragments in a dynamic, large-scale critical portrait of spirituality as a historical subject and contemporary problem. Works selected will be exhibited on the Frequencies website and circulated among the multiple communities of interest surrounding this epic launch. To see the project, visit http://freq.uenci.es.
I invite you specifically to participate after seeing your work "Joy" at the Lowell Textile Museum last spring. I was impressed by the beauty of your tapestry. Frequencies is a collaboration of The Immanent Frame and Killing the Buddha, and was curated by Kathryn Lofton (Yale University) and John Lardas Modern (Franklin & Marshall College).
Sincerely,

Emily Floyd
Associate Editor, Frequencies

My tapestry Joy Is now posted on the their website. Click on the link here:

http://www.freq.uenci.es/