Eco Art by mayah(c)2021 "Gaia's Garden" 9" X 9" Shadow Box. Made from cloth, mesh, repurposed magazine advertisement image, original watercolor (rainbow eye), dried flowers, leaves, seed pods, stick. Hand embroidery, handmade butterfly.
Leslie was very much a "nature spirit", championing local organic farmers and heirloom seeds. He also loved flowers, and took many beautiful photos of them over the years, sometimes turning the photos into large scale posters. When he spoke of the Earth, She was "Mother Earth", and he saw Her as a Being in her own right.
In this shadow box I have placed some things that are meaningful to me:
--the bracelet in the center, made from seed pods, from a trip I took to the Peruvian Amazon in 2006, given to Leslie as a gift, then gifted back to me after his transition, along with the dried purple flowers and the little stick;
--three Job's Tear seed pods, one visible and two hidden behind other items; to Leslie, who grew Job Tear's plants and collected the seeds for many years, Job's Tears represented hope and renewal after experiencing difficult times;
--magazine image of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite (Roman Goddess Venus), but I always think of this image as a personification of Gaia. It is from an advertisement for supplements, slightly altered by the advertisers for modesty, from a famous painting by Sandro Botticelli ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Birth_of_Venus ). I have used this image in my art many times, and Leslie always appreciated it;
--leaves and seed pods found around my neighborhood during walks. Leslie always encouraged me to make Eco Art and appreciated the use of found nature items; he was one of my greatest supporters, often buying art right off of my walls whenever he'd visit me;
--the "rainbow eye", from an original piece of watercolor art I did many years ago; it was part of a mandala. The art piece was severely water damaged in a flood I had in my house recently, and the "eye" was the only part of the painting that was salvageable. I like to think of it here as the "Eye of Spirit", as Spirit flows through all things, including Gaia Herself. The rainbow also represents hope and renewal;
--the little butterfly handmade out of jute and embroidery floss was from another water-damaged piece of art. I use butterflies in my art a lot; for me, they represent birth, death, and rebirth. When I write that this art piece is "in honor of" Leslie Goldman, I mean just that. Usually people say "in Memory of" when someone has transitioned, but to me Leslie is still Here, he's just in a different state-of-BEing.
Plant Your Dream Curezone blog by Your Enchanted Gardener, Leslie Goldman: https://www.curezone.org/blogs/f.asp?f=92
Plant a Seed, Grow a Whole New World: Beautiful image of Leslie with his poster of closeup of a sunflower and its seeds: https://www.curezone.org/blogs/fm.asp?i=1103220#i
Clearer view of the sunflower photo: https://www.curezone.org/blogs/fm.asp?i=1044873
Recent 2021 Blogs:
Musings on a Monarch Butterfly: https://www.curezone.org/blogs/fm.asp?i=2438566
Lessons from Nature: https://www.curezone.org/blogs/fm.asp?i=2438564
Eco Art: New Beginnings https://www.curezone.org/blogs/fm.asp?i=2438563
2021 New Year's Message: https://www.curezone.org/blogs/fm.asp?i=2436828