An Artist's Series: Categorising Artworks

My interpretation of the spiritual Medicine Wheel

Every artist has to somehow separate their work out into logical categories. The logical part is often hard for artists because it's not usually the natural mindset. We feel, we create, but we don’t do strategy so well. Not always, of course – I speak from my own point of view.

In starting out, and getting my website and portfolio looking its best and as [digital/design term warning] UX-friendly as possible, the inevitable question arrives: how do I set out my own work into a series?

How indeed.

I spent some hours pondering this. I practice what is not logical or seen; I delve into the subconscious willingly. I also can’t control what comes out, only what I decide to post, publish and reveal to the world. How do I categorise that? To make sense?

FINDING THE TRUTH AND REASON
My question in response had to be, is my art any different to how I now live my life? If anything, concentrating on art as a career has highlighted what is important to me, and has brought all aspects of my life into greater alignment.

So I decided to address this task spiritually, since it’s the theme of my work...

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My art reflects my current state of mind and what I am going through at any time. My art shows my internal and external influences at any time. It reflects my state of mind and my emotions, as well as current topics that are gripping my interest.

THE BIGGER PICTURE REVEALS THE CONNECTION
When I laid all my pieces out I saw the immediate divide, clear as  Air , if you like.

​There IS complete freedom, darkness, boldness, and immense frustration, power, fear and intensity. In contrast, there is also subtle, gentle, light. My work is both light and dark; feminine and masculine.

When I view my work side by side, I see both parts of my complex and intense personality. I see how much I have come into alignment and how important it is to me to find balance and harmony.

The result is that I split my work by the Medicine Wheel and the four directions: North, East, South and West. This can be alternatively split into the four seasons, four elements, four stages of life: creation, childhood, adulthood and elder years.

These are the general themes I meditate on and use to produce my paintings. 

I will go a little further into the Medicine Wheel and my interpretation of it in a future post. For now, it's explained a little in my portfolio as I’ve now uploaded more of my works.