I found Heather through Gaia.com. Drawn in by the little blurb she had written about herself and her artwork, I clicked on the link to her website. The work I saw on her site was magically whimsical and universally powerful – so I contacted her and asked if she wanted to talk about her process and her work. Our email back and forths knocked my socks off. Not only do Heather’s pieces radiate an innocence that touches my soul in the gentlest of ways, like a dewdrop or butterfly kiss; her honesty and authenticity of self are refreshing, inspiring, and uplifting. Below are a few of Heather’s paintings, and in her own words a taste of what runs through her as she is creating each piece. Prepare to be in a state of wonder, and check out Heather’s blog for more of her … well, Heather-ness!
The Moon Always Rises © Heather Brown-Truman
“The Moon Always Rises: I am only letting myself work, in studio, when I feel sure that I can keep
my promise to stop thinking. You know, stand back and kinda squint real
hard at reality. What happens when you do that?
When you distance yourself from what is real and try to understand the
origin of your beliefs. The origins of you.
I know that is one of the main reasons I was placed here in time. To be
the squinter. I like that, the amazing squinter folks, step right up…er,
ahemmmm…OK where was I? Yeah, taking a look at the reality of life, examining costs and returns,
loving out loud, skating the edge, pushing the limits of innate
understanding. You know what we came to this place in time, what we
came with, within our DNA. The instinct, the essence of being human,
and in these times. Do I want more reality? Do I?
I don’t think so, really I don’t. If I stand back, look at the world and my place in it, in this moment in
time…what is my reason, what’s my motivation? Sound a little like an
acting class? It is. In this play I am the writer, director, editor, and star. In my world. In my
world that I created because what was shown, what was apparent at a
young age for me was that there is so much MORE. More love, More
possibility, More goodness, More intelligence, More living out loud,
More Magic To being Human. It is possible and attainable, it has to be, I have known it all my life. It’s
instinct that drives me, tells me I can find it. Just stand back and
squint…you can see it around the edges of things as they are. Beyond
that lies the question, I don’t want the answer anymore, I want the
question. The Question Is the Key. I knew as a baby, out there, in the dark…where you are all
alone…anything can happen, Monsters are all too real. Where there is light there is life. That’s why the moon has always dominated my art. Mysterious orb of light and shadow. Many a night have I picked my way through the dark, alone. The moon, my companion, my torch, my ruler of tides. This moon sits full and slightly golden, just cradled in the patchwork sky, brightly shining stars compete for center stage. Embraced by the treetops below, the greens reach into the blue- blackness and find a fuzzy edge of hyper-light and blue velvet darkness to rest in. I really liked stepping back and seeing what happened when I just let it all go. All the knowing, the technique, the balance, the direction, the
rules, the marketing, everything…just step away from the world and
squint. Paint. Repeat.”
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Tangled Hope © Heather Brown-Truman
“Tangled Hope is memorial to my recently deceased Father. We have been at odds my entire life, and never close. He was an abusive and hateful man while alive, this is my acceptance and my forgiveness. Lesson learned, live regret free, it’s all the freedom we may really have in this free will wholesale life. That’s good stuff, I know it’s just a painting, just some time spent thinking with paint out loud. It’s done to honor the passing of my Father, Michael Brown. I could not share many years with this Man, which I think we were both a little less, inside, for. He was my Father, and I didn’t get to say ‘goodbye, I am sorry, it’s all okay’. And the fact will remain for the rest of my life that I will not be able to do that act.
What I can do is live, better. Simple.
Make it right when you can, and if you can’t then still be able to, love, as a verb. I spent my whole life loving my Father, I never stopped. I always sent that energy into the world. I can love him, by living my life and being what he made me to be…more, better, smarter than they (my parents, both absent in my growing years) were. That I now know what not to do, and I also know HOW freaking hard it is to raise kids to adulthood…shit fire.
I know there is no way I can turn back time and fix stuff. And if I live with that on my heart and soul, it will eat me alive. Forgiveness is the only gift I have to offer myself for that fact. And to become wiser. Become more. Become. Continue.”
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Two © Heather Brown-Truman
“Two is: the dual nature in each human being. We are all, each and every one of us, of a dual nature. We all have the good and the bad, the beauty-full and the ugly. The mistakes and the lessons learned. It’s what we do with that information that makes us who we are. It is the realization that we are only in control of one thing on the planet, that is ourselves, nothing more, nothing less. It is in that acceptance we become free to live the lives we desire, free to let go, free to no longer play the victim, free to allow ourselves the ultimate gift, the gift of imperfection. It’s what makes us the most dynamic beings on our planet and at the same time the most terrifying of life forms. It is the nature of humanity, we rise above what we were given at birth or embrace the darkness. It’s about the choice we all have, what will you do with that choice today?”
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And a few questions, ArtOneMent style:
What gift do you give through your art?
Resonance. I create works that are talismans, healing, understanding the human condition, not an explanation, a simple “I see you”, “I know you”, “I am you”, “I am” and that is all.
What does ‘the future of a blissful planet’ mean to you (words from the ArtOneMent purpose statement)?
To me it means that this world is big enough for us all, and the beauty in this world is there because of diversity, different is good, different is beauty-full, different is the light of understanding. We can all be who and what we are and that becoming the very best you can personally be, attaining your true calling and being devoted to bringing that as a gift to the world at large is way more important than having stuff, fighting for stuff, or being at war with anyone. Love and understanding really are all we need. Manna of the Gods.
Do you believe such a thing is possible? If so, do you believe you have a role in that?
Yes I do believe it possible. Yes I have a role, I am playing it now and every day. I create, I document a life being lived, simply put, I AM.
Kentucky Girl © Heather Brown-Truman
