Portrait: “an aspirant”

Portrait: “an aspirant”

Laura, a local artist and yoga participant, came to class one evening in early March
with a vision, and now that vision has come to fruition…

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Visit to a DC Gallery: Impressionism & Beauty

Back in the late 90’s, I went to an art gallery in DC with my parents, my brother, and two friends. I would never call myself knowledgeable about art, and having grown up outside NYC, as a kid I was the one in the museum dragged through the exhibit as my mom held onto my ear. Well, not really, but almost. Anyway, in the late 90’s, I was in my early 30’s and was willingly going through this exhibit of impressionistic paintings. My dad did have an eye for art, and he could paint as well, and passed that gift on to my sisters. While going through the gallery that day, we kind of split up into various clusters of two’s and three’s, as happens when perusing an exhibit. While part of one threesome, my dad said, “It is interesting how these are such famous and stunning pieces of art, yet the subjects themselves are not beautiful.” While, I believe a similar idea was embedded in my own mind, I neither had the awareness nor inclination to verbalize it, nor did I have a reply. But one of my friends did. And she immediately and very confidently said, “Oh, you see, the artists wanted to show that their techniques were so superb that they could make beautiful art without a beautiful subject.” By this point my mom had also wandered over, and both my parents were taken by this answer – me too, which is why I can so easily recall the scene more than two decades later.

Today’s blog post is not an exact parallel, but a variation on this theme…and we’ll get back to this.

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Meeting Laura – Again

Laura came to class – remember when we still had yoga classes(!!) – on March 4th, less then four weeks ago, with an idea. She said she wanted to take a photo of me during class and asked if that would that be ok. She said she particularly liked the lighting behind me as I sat on my mat, and that she wanted to use the photo as “source material”. Fully aware that I am no one’s prized subject for any photo, I willingly agreed, as in today’s climate of cell phones we’ve all become quite adjusted to being in photos, just as matter of course. Besides, I had no idea what “source material” was, and class was to start in a few minutes.

Here I would also like to add that while Laura first came to classes some years ago (though I do not fully recall seeing her then, yikes!!), it was only more recently that we’ve met, as the last few months she was very keen to come to our Wednesday evening Community Yoga class. And most often she would bring a friend or two as well. Community Yoga is the one class all week where I do not take attendance, so it takes me a touch longer to match up names and faces. So it is that through our discussions this month that we have gotten to know one another.

With all that said, here is the photo that Laura took that evening, 4th March. You may have seen this before as I used this photo in my blog post that week about the Breath Challenge. This was the “source material”.

And in that blog post, as per the meaning of “source material”, I noted that Laura would use the photo as the basis for a forthcoming painting.

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Masterpiece in the Making

And yesterday morning (Sunday, 29 March), while I was sitting innocently at my desk in this era of quarantine, Laura texted me the below image, and she wrote:

Using my time wisely to work on the “masterpiece” Lol. Coming along nicely.

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Beauty in the World of Art: The Yogic Vision

Now, remember my account of the visit to the museum of impressionistic paintings? There were three components: The artist (talented), the subjects (rather homely), and the technique (superb).

The yogis also recognize the great value of art and its role in society, and place art in the realm of nandan vijiana, or aesthetic science, i.e. that which makes the world beautiful. The question then is where does the beauty lie. Well, in today’s era of stark materialism, “beautiful” people are often depicted in degrading ways, and that is often presented as “art”. This is rampant in movies, advertisements, billboards, photo shoots, dance videos, and the like. Most often it is not the artist’s fault. To make a living, they are forced into it, while fat cats at the top of the food chain are keen to sell something on the mass level. And they need an alluring piece to draw in their targeted audience, i.e. just about everyone. So those fat cats procure artists to fulfill their desire and maximize profits. In today’s pop culture, extreme sensuality is what often gets passed off as art. And the yogis want no part of it, and rather warn people of its harmful effect on society.

According to the yogis, the true place of art is to inspire the mind towards a sublime ideal. In this endeavor, the subject need not be beautiful, and unlike my friend’s interpretation of those those impressionistic artists, the aim is not to highlight one’s artistic skill either. For the yogi, the value of art is when the artist is able to use their talent to bring forth a more subtle inclination in the mind of the beholder – where neither the artist nor the subject are extolled, but rather the pursuit towards a sublime ideal is embraced. In this particular piece, the ideal is meditation, goading the mind towards a more sentient and peaceful state. And the message is that this endeavor is for absolutely everyone. It is the birthright of one and all – where we all move jointly, arm-in -arm, along the path, no one higher and no one lower, whereby everyone has the opportunity to realize something wonderful, something beyond the material plane. And I feel Laura has captured this in her work, and I thank her for it.

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The Finished Piece

By Sunday evening, the piece was done – and here it is….

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About the Artist & Prints Available

Laura Kramer (Bohemian Studios) is a local artist best known for her painting, sculpting, and sewing.  Her masterful use of these disciplines enables her to monopolize an art piece, infusing these skills into one body of work.

Laura will be making 8 x 10 matted and sleeved (ready to frame) prints of the above piece. Those interested may contact her via (a) phone: 410. 570. 6851, (b) text: 410.570.6851, (c) or through her website.

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