Artist Statement - "A Fiery Passion"

A Fiery Passion, 30"x22", India Ink on Canson watercolor paper, 2015.

The discovery of one woman was what brought this piece to life: Kiran Gandhi. Around a year ago, I came across an article about a menstruating woman who bled freely during the London Marathon. There was plenty of controversy around the subject, many expressing utter disgust in the face of her actions. While it appears her bold decision wasn't planned--and was mostly out of self-comfort--Kiran shared with the media that her intention was to bring attention to women around the world that don't have access to sanitary products. Where women in first-world countries may take this simple luxury for granted, other young women are kept at home and out of school because they lack it. There's great stigma regarding menstruation, and this one young woman had the courage to tackle this complex, widely unspoken issue in the public light. 

Kiran Gandhi, pictured on the left; Photo Cred

Immensely impressed by her bravery and righteousness, I decided to further research her name. Who is this revolutionary woman? I found that she's a Harvard graduate in math, music, politics, and business. She even toured as a drummer with M.I.A., a defiant hip hop artist whose work often makes daring statements on politics, world issues, and the like.

Out of all the typical players in a band, it is the drummer that has always captivated me. Despite almost always being stationed in the back of the stage and arguably garnering the least attention of all the players, drummers are the essential foundation that the other players rely on; without their consistent beats and time-keeping, the other musicians would falter. There's something quite primal and passionate about the way drummers repeatedly slam their drums--for what is seemingly wild and out-of-control to actually be perfectly organized and pleasant sounding...it's truly remarkable.

Photo Cred

When I first watched Kiran drum (in the video below), I was just as taken as I've always been with drummers, only it was paired with the additional impression that her outstanding leadership and feminism made on me. The beguiling, raw animalism of her drum-playing is amplified by the way her long, frizzy hair drapes over her mostly unseen face as she slams her sticks to the drums, mimicked by her enlarged shadow cast in the background. If I had to describe the way I viewed her in one word, it would hands-down be badass.

If I wasn't taken by her enough, I also discovered that she's given a Ted Talk the year prior (video posted below). She expresses how she manages to combine her many passions and interests and shares her philosophy to balancing them as she goes about life: atomic living means choosing to follow the magical, joy-inducing opportunities that present themselves to you over daily modernity/what society might suggest that you 'should' do. Her verbose, swift manner of speaking reflects the constant and tremendous amount of thoughts, emotions, ideas, passion, etc that this one, mere human contains. Being the 'Passion Juggler,' I could relate to her quite a bit; even our first names are similar. I was so unequivocally inspired by her and the energy she carries that I felt an energy ignite within my own self.

Briskly, I grabbed my India inks and watercolor paper and began to let loose. Feeling the warm, fire-like quality of the internal blaze of energy, I instinctively selected red, orange, yellow, and gold inks and splattered them wildly across the page. Allowing it to flow and drip in a similar direction, the thin streams of brilliant ink naturally transformed into a large flame-shape. I savored the the white spaces left between the unguided streams of ink, knowing they would pop. To add to the impulsive licentiousness, I made extra splatters by dipping my fingers in the ink and repeatedly flicking them upon the sheet. As a perfectionist, it is very unlike me to let go of control with my artwork, let alone anything, and yet I did it instantly and blissfully with this painting. 

"A Fiery Passion" (Detail)

Once the unhindered rush cooled down, I had looked at the page and felt it needed more, much more. After waiting at least 24 hours for the water-tolerant paper to dry, I applied my black line style to the work--similarly to "Organism," which I created only weeks before. Sensitive to the colored flow and shapes already impressed in the paper, I individually and carefully painted each black line to follow the movement that was already present. Struggling with my perfectionistic tendencies, I wondered if I should keep my lines in the colored portion or 'break the rules' and paint outside of them. Understanding the nature and inspiration of this work, I felt it was most appropriate to be just as wild as I was with the colored portion and do what intuitively made sense. 

"A Fiery Passion" (Detail)

Where the colored portion of my process took probably less than a half hour, the black line painting took at least eight times as long to finish. As I surveyed the completed piece, the name, "A Fiery Passion," came to mind; I decided that it wholly described the experience and development of this work. Visually, I most enjoyed the black ink portion and light colored splatters on the bottom right corner (partially pictured below); the playful black lines especially emulated the freedom of restraint that I so rarely experience and portray. Visually witnessing the release of my repression was very exciting, as it reflected that I am capable of growing not only as an artist, but a human. 

"A Fiery Passion" (Detail)

Writing about this work as of now is a wonderful reminder to let go, let loose, and unleash the wildness we all carry within; the timing couldn't be better as my usual overly-organized and controlled self would typically be freaking out at the idea of now being a full-time artist and the unpredictability that comes with it. Yet I'm realizing that life isn't about being, "perfect," and whatever that may entail. It's not always about meticulously following a regimented, planned path that will supposedly make you successful--it's about blissfully doing what makes your heart radiate with passion. Kiran has helped me see that there's a reason that we were given the gifts of passion, talent, and drive, and we're supposed to use these gifts with unobstructed, liberating, and boundless joy. 

And when we positively focus our energy on what we're passionate about, new opportunities arise magically and effortlessly to support those passions. The lessons I learned from this work encourages me to allow the passion of my heart to overshadow my worry-prone, controlling mind--to let the mysterious, powerful universe conspire in my favor. I wholeheartedly believe that, as human beings, it is a birth right to have love and joy ever-present in our lives, and we just have to choose to accept it, to know that we deserve it. 

I sincerely hope that this article can encourage you to follow what makes your heart glow with fiery passion, if you aren't already that is! Because when we shine our own light, it only encourages others to shine theirs, and the chain continues. Thank you very much for reading as well as your support!

I just recently sold this work to a very lovely gentleman, so the original is no longer for sale. That said, prints are still for sale at: http://fineartamerica.com/featured/a-fiery-passion-karen-kliethermes.html

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