Part of large symbolic mural commissioned for a public building in the States thirty years ago. 
When I was commissioned to paint this mural, based on the theme that all of life is interconnected, climate change and many other elements that have become part of our daily conversation were rarely discussed.
We believed that if we put a border or line around something, it was contained.
Artists of all disciplines understand that when we change one small part of a creation, the whole is changed and so it is true for life in general.
Today we see how an unseen virus has dramatically changed the world we live in. A virus activated by an ever growing and unsustainable population with disregard for the laws of nature.
This week I received a beautiful hand made gift from my dear friend Kat Ranalli – who I met in the States in the early seventies. The gift is a symbolic reminder that we are all connected BY THE THREADS THAT BIND US…….
When Kat and I first met in West Chester Pennsylvania…our world was very different. I am not imagining it when I say things were simpler and calmer – (definitely not without problems) but nevertheless a healthier and happier time to be alive.
On the same day that I received this beautiful gift my daughter Christie Reed, who was a baby when Kat and I first met, wrote a blog entitled LIVING LIFE IN BLACK AND WHITE – 5 which taps into this subject of there being no lines or borders around anything very eloquently. I am also proud that she has chosen to use one of my watercolours to demonstrate her point. (please read)
HUMANKINDBYDESIGN.LIFE
This morning’s headline notes that DAVID ATTENBOROUGH MAKES A STARK WARNING ON EXTINCTION.…
Attenborough, a man who has been actively involved in the care of our environment for sixty years. We must listen to him and the others who have been working tirelessly to educate and warn us.
It seems that we have been sleep walking as we have doggedly plodded on destroying so much in our collective paths.
Bigger cars, bigger houses, bigger planes, bigger resorts, bigger hamburgers, bigger cruise ships, big containers to ship all the crap that we have and continue to consume….and the list goes on and on….and then we are
STOPPED
STOPPED BY AN UNSEEN THREAD THAT HAS NOW CLEARLY BOUND US TOGETHER in ways that we could never have imagined.
It is my sincere hope that we all learn from the virus. That we wake up to our vulnerabilities and at the same time wake to new and wonderful possibilities.
CHANGE is NECESSARY
We must recognise that we really are all interconnected and that we need to support and cherish the fragile threads that bind us.
I see Kat’s gift as a metaphor for a new way of thinking and being.
watercolour/gouache
Janet:)
I love the mural!
Also, I agree with what you’re saying about Covid. We have such a large world human population that we are becoming a resource for other organisms. The same thing happened when plant life was dominant on earth – some organisms evolved to feed on the plant life and so larger multicellular animals came about. Then it happened again when herbivores became really numerous, carnivores started to feed on that population. I think that if we don’t manage our population, nature will.
Anyway, thanks for an interesting post!
Thank you very much for this insightful comment…it is much appreciated. janet.
What a charming sewing kit you received. It sends a message to me that repairing what we have is more important than replacing it.
I like the message your received:). Thank you so much and hope you are enjoying a peaceful and creative weekend. Janet XX
Great post! Have a nice, creative weekend.
Beautiful post.
Thank you very much – Janet 🙂
What a beautiful and interconnected world we live in. I share many of your hopes and concerns. And believe the elite, corporations, and technocrats are the main cause of the state we are in. I hope we the people can gain control of the world systems to align with nature and all life.
Good morning Brad. I agree with you 100% and let’s hope that we the people can make the necessary changes. Hope you had a lovely time with your Mother. Janet 🙂
Thank you much Janet. Staying creative and connected will certainly help.
The mural is absolutely stunning. I alos love the care and attentionto detail that has gone into creating the sewing kit (and the Jaeger label!). Yes, live life with less and less.
Reblogged this on Fast Twitch NZ.
Beautiful mural and peacock Janet! I hope we wake up to the change needed too.
I loved this and agreed with everything you said. Individuals simply have to take individual responsibility and reduce their carbon footprint. What a wonderful, creative sewing kit! Off to read Christie’s blog. Love and hugs my friend.xxx
Thank you Dina….You and I are so much on. the same wavelength. Thinking of you as you enjoy your garden with the beautiful little Urchin:)xxxx
I like that peacock painting so much that I bought the peacock night-light from your website and treasure it. Beautiful mural too. I studied the mural and really appreciated all the many critters intertwined with the flora, beautifully done. Numerous hummingbirds. As I was reading your post just now, Janet, a hummingbird rose up in the window outside. That’s how interconnected we all are! Sending love your way….
How wonderful is that, – the hummingbirds are most definitely with you and me…..we are connected in so many ways:). Hope you are enjoying a beautiful weekend. Janet X