A work in progress by Michele Bledsoe
Life got busy.
Really busy.
It happens..
but I let it pull me from my easel
for too long.
That was a mistake.
Suffice it to say
I was no longer myself..
I had become
an unbalanced load of laundry.
So, I ran to my neglected painting
to set things right
and threw myself into it
with wild abandon
falling fearlessly
and gratefully
into the glorious embrace
of God’s gift.
When I first started painting
I had no idea what I was doing..
but that didn’t matter.
All I needed
was the unshakable
unrelenting desire
to create.
“Like Clockwork” by Michele Bledsoe
When I paint
I don’t make preliminary sketches
I don’t plan anything out beforehand..
I just sit at my easel
and dream.
It is a spontaneous conversation..
an intimate, spiritual exchange
between myself and God.
“Assemblage” by Michele Bledsoe
If you look at a photograph of me
you see the face I wear,
the body I walk around in
and a few items of clothing;
unlike my paintings..
which show you what I look like
on the inside.
“Under the Pillow” by Michele Bledsoe
No one rolls out of bed one day
and decides to be an artist..
you were meant to be one.
Even if you don’t answer the call for many years
it has always been there
inside you
waiting.
“The Ghost and My Obsession” by Michele Bledsoe
Several years ago I was sitting at my desk
in my high-level corporate job
and I had a terrifying vision.
I imagined myself far in the future
sitting at the same desk..
doing exactly the same thing
and wondering to myself
what life would have been like
if I had decided to pursue my art instead.
Not long after that, I quit my job..
and let my path take me to where I was meant to be
instead of where I thought I should go.
In life, as in art
we must be fearless.
Trust the gift.
“Salvation and Desire” by Michele Bledsoe
“If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you.”
Gospel of Thomas
I love to paint.
I need to paint..
but sometimes life intervenes
and pulls me from my easel.
I feel unbalanced.
Irritable.
Something is off.
I am suffering from art deprivation..
Like some kind of
horrible sleep deficiency..
there is an almost physical
longing to dream.
As artists, it is necessary to make time
to create..
our lives depend on it.
The Bridge by Michele Bledsoe
The desire to create is a gift from God.
The ceaseless passion to paint and draw
has been with me since childhood..
and by embracing this gift
it has defined my path in life
and led me to my purpose.
By nature,
the gift is selfless.
It has nothing to do with
the empty pursuit
of fame and fortune..
it is so much more than that.
Through art,
I met my husband
made friends..
and forged relationships.
Through art,
I became a volunteer drawing teacher
for a group of inner city kids..
and began working with young adults within the autism spectrum.
As an artist
I’ve found that’s it’s not all about me..
I am just a paintbrush in God’s hand.
“Metamorphosis” by Michele Bledsoe
I remember making a book when I was little.
I vaguely recall the story had something to do with a family of animals living near a beach.
I made drawings of weird dog-like creatures on pieces of paper that I folded to look like pages.
When I showed it to my grandfather
He knelt down so we were face-to-face
And looking directly into my eyes
He said to me:
“Michele, you have a gift from God.”
Believe me, the drawing wasn’t THAT good…
Sure, I drew recognizable objects
But that’s a far cry from being like some child prodigy drawing like Michelangelo at the age of 4.
Did he see something I didn’t?
Was it a glimpse of the artist I would become..
or was it something else?
My husband I volunteer to teach art
To a group of inner city kids in downtown Phoenix.
A couple of days ago
Something beautiful happened.
Surrounded by kids,
talking and drawing together
at a crowded table..
I saw a small boy.
so small, and quiet
he practically disappeared.
His tiny head was bent down
intensely focused
on the drawing in front of him.
I glanced at what he was working on
and I felt time stop.
All the chaos in the room
faded into the background.
There was something different about this child.
Something rare and beautiful.
I saw it.
Felt it.
And in that
seemingly small and insignificant moment..
I understood that there was something tremendous
in consequence
that brought me here.
“That is a great brontosaurus, “I told him
“and what a terrific volcano!”
The boy looked up..
clearly surprised that I noticed him..
that I was talking to him.
“You draw really well,” I continued
“I can see your wonderful imagination
in your drawings.”
With a tiny smile, and light in his eyes
The boy whispered. “Thank you.”
I asked him his name..
“Jesus.” He replied.
I leaned in real close so we were face to face..
And looking directly into his eyes, I said,
“Jesus, you have a gift from God.”
“The Ghost and My Obsession” Michele Bledsoe
While painting the other day
A lens popped out of my reading / painting glasses
And landed on my palette.
In other words
I painted so hard, my glasses broke.
As it is now
I have to TEAR myself away from my easel
to perform the simplest tasks –
eating
showering
refilling my empty coffee cup..
but now I had to leave the house
and get new glasses.
As I drove around
I noticed
the further away I was from my painting
the more anxious I became.
I was longing to go back to it..
Back to my studio
Back to my painting
Back at my easel
where I feel closest to God.
The Secret Kingdom 