...the work of a craftsman is not unlike that of a monk or nun or other kind of ascetic. For however many hours a day the craftsman dedicates herself to the materials of her art. She steps around her longing for an easy, unexamined day and tries to peer through the illusions of the stubborn wood and the refusing posture of metal. She sees, accepts, and calms her own reactions of frustration, of terror, of boredom, of denial, and avoidance.

Whether we notice it or not, the shop is the scene of a craftsman’s psychodrama and she must find a way through her own fractured emotional, mental, and spiritual material. In the end, she must have something like compassion for her wood, her metal, and herself. Something nonviolent must appear that nevertheless prods, coaxes, and prays for new light and new possibilities. Craftsmanship and spiritual evolution require the same miraculous fusion of compassion, honesty, & intensity – employed to different ends, they have the same aura about them.

Both give us a more organic sense of the miraculous where a little attention here, a short pause from the efforts, or a meditation on the deeper forces at play, can allow small miracles to take place. These invisible, organic miracles accumulate into visible, tangible transformations.

The sacred tree of life grows
into the openness of our prayer
and into the place of our infirmity.

Sculpture And Words above by David Orth.

"Jimpsie Ayres works from a spiritual perspective. Her world view embraces the tenets of many different religions, chiefly Christianity. For her, the underlying force connecting everything in the universe is love, and the energy and emotion present in her paintings are a reflection of her philosophy." (From her web site bio.)

Writing about her art and her process, Jimpsie says: “I try to honor my home in my work, as I try to acknowledge all the disparate, diverse influences on my life and my ethos. Spirituality and art are one thing for me. The love that underpins and connects us all, the beauty (and pain) of simultaneously being parent and child, the rich texture of old friendships and new. . .these are the lovely, seductive components of the flow of life that I strive to convey."

She goes on to say “My goal is to paint sincerely, without self-consciousness, and with respect for the materials and craft that carry me. I hope to engender in the viewer a response which will take him or her beyond the confines of everyday existence.”

Images and words above by Jimpsie Ayres. Top (and front-page mastheads): Tobacco Barn in Appalachia; middle: Palapas in Belize; and bottom: Moon in Purple Sky..

By gracious powers so wonderfully sheltered,
And confidently waiting, come what may,
We know that God is with us night and morning
And never fails to greet us each new day.

Yet when again in this same world You give us
The joy we had, the brightness of Your sun,
We shall remember all the days we lived through,
And our whole life shall then be Yours alone.

Seen above and on front-page mastheads: Lunar Phases by Angela Rockett.

Words above: "By Gracious Powers So Wonderfully Sheltered" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1944)