Communication is tricky. Even when you know what you want to say, and you think you’re being clear, you can be misunderstood.
It’s harder when you’re not exactly sure what you’re trying to say.
Imagine trying to say something with pictures alone.
Can you feel the level of difficulty mounting?
Such is the case of my latest imagery, the BlockHeads.
The BlockHeads came to me in a dream. They woke me up and got me out of bed so I could sketch them.
On my way back to bed, I thought, “there is NO way I would have forgotten what they look like. I did NOT have to get out of bed for this!”
By morning, I’d completely forgotten them.
Three days later, out of the corner of my eye, I saw them peering at me from my midnight drawing.
I was smitten, but had no idea of what to do with them or why they’d chosen me as their artist. They don’t feel silly and frivolous, but what are they trying to tell me?
Two days before the entry date of the Hawaii Watercolor Society's Open Exhibit, I awoke “knowing" I was to create a 3-D pyramid featuring the BlockHeads.
I was psyched! I’d never thought of painting anything 3-D before and this was the first time I could enter something 3-D into an HWS Exhibit without breaking rules.
It took two days for me to finish and photograph it for entry.
To hedge my bets on getting something into the show, I entered two additional, paintings: “Anuenue Ali`i Wahine”, and a portrait of my artist friend Ron Kent titled, “Whole World”.
I was surprised when the pyramid was the only painting accepted.
Yes, it's a bit crude, yet it feels fresh and alive.
But what do the BlockHeads mean?
And why do they have six eyes?
I believe the BlockHeads represent all of us. When all of the eyes are all looking in the same direction, we are Hyper-focused on the task at hand.
Omni-focus happens when we’re “out of focus”, or focusing on more than one thing. This happens to all of us. We might be brushing our teeth, going to the bathroom, or even sleeping, when suddenly an idea pops into our head.
My artist friend Holly says the top set of eyes is for looking up to the heavens for guidance, the middle set of eyes sees this plane of existence, and the bottom set of eyes is for introspection.
Whatever their initial reason for entering my dreams, the BlockHeads are here to stay. They insert themselves into my journal and dreams weekly.