Gorilla House LIVE ART Battle: February 6, 2013

I sigh deeply as I begin to write.

I was tired last night. My cousin-sister-friend was sick. Her ear ached.

She lifted one of my bags into the van. She looked through the windshield dotted with saliva spewed by my dog after countless trips to the pond. She was gift…because she didn’t complain.

We headed for ‘the house’ even though we were tired. We actually felt more like witnesses to the evening than participants…well, I speak for myself. I wonder about that line, as I write.

I felt so proud and grateful for the people who waited for us. Oh yes…there were new folk…there was Stanley and his friends…people like that. But I had a hug waiting with Andy and Aaron and Rich and Jessica and Elijah and Harold and Jen and Karen and Bruce (who I hadn’t seen in ages) and new friend, Marta, and Chen who I bumped into later…and others…several others. I thought about how I enjoy the weekly narratives from our awesome Masters of Ceremonies, Bassano. I smiled when I saw his mirrored glasses and heard his first selection of the night… whistle…too loud…over the microphone.

I remembered the moment I walked into the Gorilla House, just how much the people feed my soul and I was glad for doing the drive when I was tired. I was glad to leave the dog at home with his doggie treat bribe. I was more than grateful to be bringing a part of my life, my family, my cousin…into this space.

The topics for the evening…hmmm…they didn’t make any sense to me.

1. From Solipsist by Henry Rollins, “Pray for me as you hate yourself and the unceasing neediness of your life” I moved on, instead, to the very next paragraph….

“You are all colours. You are the birth of true jazz. You are ten thousand years of flowers blooming at once. You are the flavour of the sunset. You are perfect like the stars that watch over me in the night sky of winter.” And…this is what I painted!

2. From Michael Ondaatje’s Secular Love, “And here ducks dressed in Asia pivot in foreign waters…”

and finally, out of the Book of Symbols, a Rabbit/Hare mask…

And so…I painted what I needed to paint…the Henry Rollins truth…as I see it. I painted my son and two daughters into this painting…the jazz, colours, flowers, sunset, the winter stars. I painted all of that and more. Through the evening, I met Cheryl and would like to thank her for generously purchasing my work at auction. I would also like to tell my cousin Margy what a blessing it was to have her share this evening with me. Thanks to Jess and Karen and Elijah for their hospitality.

I am especially blessed by three new pieces of art…Jen, I am so glad to finally have a piece produced by you, hanging in my front foyer.