"Dreaming Earth's Body": A Long-term Collaboration

At long last the collaborative work of poet, Carol Alena Aronoff, and Creation/Migration artist, Betsie Miller-Kusz, has become a published reality. Dreaming Earth's Body, described by poet Bill
Brown as a "luminous collection of poems and paintings" has been in the making since Betsie and Carol came together many years ago in San Francisco. They found an immediate affinity to one others' work while involved in the Braided Lives project.

Rarely has a book title been more appropriate. Meeting in that realm between earth and spirit, the poems and images come together with the force of birthing and slide into the golden liquid of regeneration. It is a place words and images do not inhabit, and yet Carol has found the words and Betsie the guardian figure to guide the senses in interpreting the mysteries of transformation.  Two examples follow.

Rain Dance

              Savoring the still after storm,                 

The only sounds: raindrops on stone,

a few peeps from plovers

sheltering under wing.

Above, the clouds release their gloom

in fragrant downpour, leave tentatvie 

smiles to cover sun, moist

folds in verdant pasture.

The stillness will not last

nor will the musky scent of soil--

air fresh as orange blossoms; soon,

day's symphony will start again,

willows weeping softly while wind

bows her head to nudge dead leaves

along the way of wary travelers.

Air grimaces at the return of dust,

the smoke and rot of daily living.

Algae grow anew in tide pools,

sunflower faces wizened

by the heat of unmuzzled sun.

Dry riverbeds creak their warning

to dying fish; it is time to pray for rain.

Metamorphosis

Slight as the whisper of chrysalis

on cloud branch, she is painted

with the black brush of underworld, 

trailing wings of lambent white past

raven sky. She faces east to sun's

 rising, awash in creation's fire.

Guardian of all that is changeless,

she carries the promise of morning 

to yesterday's children, transluscent

vessel dispelling fear. With darkness

her mentor, she dances

to the music of temporal reality.

Floating beyond time, 

she will listen to your night terrors,

heal your inner stories.

Her wisdon, forged in temple rites,

will protect those in childbirth

then help them cross Stygian waters. 

Both Carol and Betsie were present for the recent well-attended readings in Taos, which were especially well received at the SOMOS bookstore.

The many years of  work and collaboration shine through in the finished work of art that is this stunning new book.

Dreaming Earth's Body is available through Blue Dolphin at  http://www.bluedolphinpublishing.com/Dreaming.html

 

Carol Aronoff, Ph.D, is a psychologist, teacher and author of many books, including a chapbook of Native American/Hawaiian poems, Cornsilk, published by Indian Heritage Council in 2004. and an illustrated poetry book, The Nature of Music, published by Pelican Pond/Blue Dolphin Publishing in 2005, as well as Her Soup Made the Moon Weep, in 2007 and Blessings From an Unseen World in 2013. Currently Dr. Aronoff lives in Hawaii, working her land, meditating in nature and writing.

Betsie Miller-Kusz lived and painted in San Francisco for over thirty years and has exhibited widely in the San Francisco area, as well as New York, Santa Fe, and numerous international locations. She now lives in  New Mexico, where she owns a small rancho and studio, drawing continual inspiration from her surroundings in the beautiful Jemez Valley. Dreaming Earth’s Body is her first literary collaboration.

A New Direction for Creation/Migration: Under a Common Sky

It is with great excitement that Betsie Miller-Kusz and Donna Caulton plan a new direction for Creation Migration. Two of our founding members, Belinda Edwards and Harriette Tsosie, have retired from the collaboration (see right sidebar, "retired founding members"). While open to the inclusion of new artists to the group, a thoughtful process is involved in making that happen. To have a group come together and coalesce in the magical way that this one did requires time and incubation. For now the structure has changed and the planning process has also taken on new life.

We are very excited to have been invited by Taos Arts Council to produce the closing exhibition of the year long celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Taos Society of Artists. Opening November 13th, at Taos Town Hall, is what promises to be a thoroughly engaging exhibit, "Under a Common Sky", the first in a series of exhibits that feature the diverse works of multiple New Mexico artists. 

The focus of this exhibit, in keeping with the anniversary celebration, is to recognize the works of artists who have gathered here under the magical skies that surround us, invite us here, and hold us in the Northern New Mexico mountains. Some of the artists have spent their entire lifetimes here, but most have migrated from other places. Many work in tradition manners, others add new slants to traditional art languages, and still others bring entirely new ways of working. Without doubt, all are influenced by the skies above and the land that holds us side by side with the native peoples of the region. It is a place like no other.

Fifteen artists join this upcoming exhibit. The small selection of pieces shown here are examples of the works of some of the exhibition artists. They are not the exhibition pieces, but provide an idea of the diversity we will be displaying. The final pieces will include each individual artists' interpretation of the theme, "Under a Common Sky",

EXHIBITION ARTISTS (alphabetical order):           

Chevrons, Nick Beason, monoprint

Nick Beason, Llano de San Juan, prints

Esteban Bojorquez, Santa Fe, assemblages

Trish Booth, Truchas, paintings

Donna Caulton, Chamisal, paintings

Mary Cost, Santa Fe, tapestry

Jim Forcier-Call, Jemez Valley, mixed media

Lorrie Garcia, Rio Lucio, retablos

Ralph Greene, Albuquerque, paintings

Theodore Greer, Jemez Valley, photographs

Betsie Miller-Kusz, Jemez Valley, paintings

Michael Miro, Taos, glass

Jean Nichols, Llano de San Juan, mixed media

Kimberly Pollis, Chamisal, tinwork

Lise Poulsen, Llano de San Juan, felt

Harriette Tsosie, Albuquerque, encaustic

Distant Rain, Mary Cost, tapestry

Retablo, Lorrie Garcia

 

Oil on Canvas, Ralph Greene

In addition to the fine selection of artworks this exhibit brings to Taos, there will be a preview event featuring poets from locations throughout the United States. Each of the ten poets will select a piece that strongly resonates with his or her poetry. Both the poems and the matched work will be presented on November 7 at a reading in the Mural Room of the Old Taos Courthouse at 7 PM. This event was organized by Andrea Watson, writer and Taos Arts Council representative.


Opening event:
Taos Town Hall, November 13, 2015
5-7PM
Exhibit runs through Feb 5, 2016

Twilight, Trish Booth, oil on canvas

Sisters Sharing Birthday Trip

 

My sister (Bertie on the left) and I are sharing the grand adventures of a joint birthday trip.  Yes, believe it or not we have the same birthday, five years apart. And if that's not trip enough, tomorrow we head from Grand and Zion Canyons. 

Opening of "Honoring Our Ancestors" at Gaucho Blue Fine Art Gallery, Penasco, NM

Some memories of long ago shimmer with a golden glow than makes one wonder if they really happened. The April 19 opening of the Creation Migration "Honoring Our Ancestors" was such an event. It has that glow already, even though it just happened a few weeks ago. It was a well attended, well received and long to be remembered special event for the project artists as well as the community at large.

Blessing Place

The ancestral "Blessing Place", a collaboration created by the artists for this exhibit, was the center "stage" for the opening ceremonies. Symbolic articles were added to the piece to be inclusive of the major cultural and religious foundations of the region: Picuris, Spanish, Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, Ugandan, as well as a range of symbols making it's representation more widespread, even universal.


In this chapel-like setting  we were honored by a blessing from Picuris Elder, Cat Tsosie. The buffalo skull was loaned for this exhibit by Cat, and later in the event he presented a talk about "Buffalo" as a meaningful symbol in the lives of his Pueblo, as well as for Native Americans in general. With his natural mix of humor and the sacred, Cat brought many gifts to this special event.

Cat Tsosie

In order to honor the elders from  the local communities, we chose the oldest person from several of the High Road villages. Jerol Arguello, historian, and Miguel Torres of the New Mexico DNA Project greeted the elders or their representative family members. The elders honored for this event, from the eldest to the youngest, were as follows: Lucia Lopez of Chamisal, age 101; Margarita Torres of Truchas, age 100; Abenicio Sanchez of Ojo Sarco, age 95; Tillie Romero of Vadito, age 95; Delia Montoya of Rodarte, age 94; Ofelia Aguilar of El Valle, age 92; Theodore Sandoval of Rio Lucio, age 92; Rudolfo Ortega of Llano de San Juan, age 91, Gabriel Gonzales of Placitas, age 91; Clara Lopez of Las Trampas, age 90 (?); and Rose Allrunner of Picuris, age 85.  Additionally, the well known and well respected community member, Armando Martinez of Penasco, passed away in December of 2013 at the age of 100 years.  We were happy to honor him and his many community contributions during this event.

Theodore Sandoval with Lugarda, his wife of 66 years

As the evening progressed Miguel Torres presented a power point and discussion about DNA. His position in the New Mexico DNA project has prepared him well in the topic.

Following Miguel's presentation Jerol Arguello, an avid researcher of his family's genetic background, told of the long trail undertaken by the early Spanish immigrants and the settling of the land grant of Las Trampas. Jerol is directly descended from these original settlers, specifically of Sephardic Jewish heritage.

Jerol Arguello honoring the elders

 Although the opening officially began at 3PM, people began arriving at 2:30 and by 3:30 the gallery was filled with artists, friends, community members, and families of the honored elders. The place was "abuzz" until closing at 7PM.

Artists from the surrounding communities submitted pieces that spoke of their ancestral stories and/or their migration to New Mexico. In addition a collection of old photographs dating back to the early 1900's is on loan from the historic collection of the Ancianos Community

Miguel Torres, NM DNA Project

Center in Chamisal.  Community and cultural histories were documented by photographs from the community at large, and by two community quilts from a Penasco quilt project of last year.

New works by each of the project artists enlarged and enhanced the issues surrounding identity and sense of place brought to life by this opportunity to "Honor Our Ancestors".

Please enjoy this selection of photos of the  project artists discussing their works and enjoying friends. Also represented are some images of the works of other community art submissions.

Harriette Tsosie with her work

Agu, Betsie, Belinda, Linda, Donna's work

In addition to the above mentioned special guests, contributors and presenters, we wish to express our deep gratitude to Gaucho Blue Fine Art Gallery owners, Nick Beason and Lise Poulsen. Their generous spirits and beautiful gallery provided a rich environment in which this project was able to flourish.

Jean Nichols of Art For the Heart provided unending support as well as the lovely roses for our elders. Thanks to Cindy Alford, Jim Martin, Deborra Berlin and Marlene Santillan for keeping the food available and beautifully presented for guests.

And special thanks to Jim Martin for the amazing photographs he took at the opening event.
We are a community after all!!