As I have shared before, creative energy is the primary tool I use in
my shadow/personal growth work and is foundational to the Intentional Arts process I teach. This choice was born out of a spontaneous encounter I have shared before so I'll just briefly recap it here...
One night in 1991 I was awakened in the middle of the night and drawn to the art studio in our home. Something beyond my normal waking self guided me, and the painting that would emerge over the next several hours. I was as much a spectator of the process as if someone else held the brush. Eventually the energy withdrew and I discovered that hours had flown like minutes. As I stared at the piece that had been painted, I had an experience I did not know existed. A type of information download occurred resulting in an expansion of consciousness that was palpable, profound and deeply personal. Waves of emotion moved me through tears and joy as a type of uncommon healing permeated my heart and mind. My counseling background gave me a great foundation for understanding the profoundly healing nature of this experience, so I dove deeper into understanding and nurturing this creative healing process. I have practiced and shared it ever since.
I found that when I focused deeply on anything I wanted to understand, eventually that understanding would emerge through creative energy. I began to be intuitively informed that all energy is creative energy. Artwork was in many ways like a dream portal for symbolic imagery and communication, only I didn't have to be asleep for the messages to filter through. Another plus was the informational 'downloads' that accompanied these experiences. Unlike a dream, it was always clear what the creative experience came to convey. Blocks of information came into my mind that awakened and enlivened me in ways it is impossible to imagine apart from the experience itself. This was powerful because I had tapped into a type of communication that came directly through me, about me, without any sort of middleman, therefore I could completely trust the information I got. 
As the years went on I began to create this way without posing questions. I began to invite this energy to simply 'be' with me and teach me what it wanted to teach me. It can sound crazy and certainly esoteric but I knew this was a spiritual experience; a sacred communication. Eventually, and for the last two decades, broader messages with more universal meanings emerged. I still created some pieces just for the fun of it, but even then an open line of communication was always present. Creativity is a very meditative process and in that relaxed, receptive state, if one opens to it, communication flows effortlessly between ones higher and lower mind. Yes, I had a spontaneous awakening to this reality but it is easily learned and applied.
A few years ago I was inspired to create balanced totem like paintings built around a central core
or 'spine'. Eventually I developed a blind print process that allowed for the manipulation of media to create very
intricate shapes and forms along a central line.
Using a variety of media I further defined each painting until an
image-story that spoke to me emerged. These were to me, wordless poems or image stories awaiting the teller. As I first began sharing them, I noticed that different people discovered different imagery within the same painting. This fascinated me even further and I was compelled to keep creating this wonderful pieces.
I was guided to understand that the 'spine' in the paintings mirrored the function of the human spine in communications between our own higher and lower mind. From the crown of our head to the root of our spine light engages and in-forms buried or hidden aspects, coaxing them into awareness. As an energy worker (reiki master/teacher) this made perfect sense to me, and the artwork captivated me in new ways.
Over the last three years a series has emerged with pieces ranging in size from 16"x20" and 11"x14"works on canvas, to smaller works on heavy card stock that range in size from 8"x10" to 4"x6", and tiny 1"-2" miniatures on bamboo paper. While I intuitively understood the meaning of the work on a personal level, I have been guided to understand that the size variations as well as the imagery itself is part of the overall message. This is because the entire series of paintings tell the story of transmutation;
bringing our
shadow aspects into the Light of conscious awareness/awakening/expansion and healing. It is important to understand that I did not know this fully throughout the three years I spent creating these works. Much of the understanding of the overall message came through as the miniature series began to grow. I was shown that the larger paintings, with less hidden imagery, represent individuals that have done much introspective work and have little left to clear. These paintings read much the same from a distance as they do up close. Many of them are reflective of freedom or beauty and simply encourage positive states of being such as soaring or serenity. Some individuals have more deeply buried aspects that need to be coaxed into the light of awareness by peering deeply within. These pieces read very differently from a distance as they do up close. Frightening or whimsical faces recede and emerge as the viewer explores these smaller paintings up close. Lastly there are those individuals that have turned away from the light for so long they need a magnifying glass to see even one tiny shadow aspects hiding from the light of their conscious awareness. The miniature paintings speak to this, and a magnifying glass is provided for viewing the tiny hidden aspects within each miniature piece.
Together this series and my story about the evolution of this intuitive process I call Intentional Arts make up the foundation of my One Woman Show (and tell). Included are other art forms from sculpture to textile pieces just to demonstrate that any exercise in creativity can be a vehicle for connecting with our higher mind/guidance. I'll share more about that in future posts. Until then I encourage you to think differently about your creative energy. Use it to ponder the deeper questions of your soul. Ask about the meaning of life and let go of any answer you already have. Because even if you do have an answer, just letting go of it will open a door through which more revelation than you can imagine will flow through.
- Albums of this series can be viewed by clicking on the PHOTOS link and then the ALBUM link on my Intentional Arts Facebook page. Information about the Intentional Arts process and my One Woman Show (and tell) can be found at my website, http://susanlewisstorey.com
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