teapots 45 and 46

What I like best is just doing the practice, the practice of painting and drawing the teapots. Shows, sales, framing, collecting, even posting to blog and flickr--that's all extra. Being with the teapot, the paint, the tea, the light streaming in, the changing conditions as I paint--that's the heart of the practice. Being and doing combine. When I do the practice, I am the paint, the teapot, the tea, the paper.

That said, here are teapots no. 45 and 46 of my 2nd set of 100 teapots.























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I've been enjoying the following piece on art, healing, and creativity that I watched from a video clip of last year's retreat for women at Upaya Zen Center in New Mexico. I've transcribed the part that speaks to me most, words spoken by Joan Halifax Roshi of Upaya.

Healing is the practice of art
It's painting, it's praying with
It's learning how to touch
It's learning how to write poetry--
to write out your heart

Learning to move beautifully in our lives
Bringing beauty to [your?] story of the world,
Bringing it forward

There's so much ugliness...
Let's love it
Let's love up this life
Let's let the creative come forward...

~ Roshi Joan Halifax

This year's retreat takes place at Upaya from July 11-15: In the Shelter of Each Other Women's Retreat: Women and Altruism--Compassion, Shadow, and Power.

I would love to go and I am fine not going. I know how to create retreat conditions for myself when I cannot actually go on retreat.

Yes, let's bring it forward.