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A Place in the Sun
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us”
Ralph Waldo Emerson.
The Sky is The Limit Series came to me in a series of consecutive dreams over a short period of time: a time of upheaval, sadness and feelings of profound isolation. A time of loneliness and self- reflection, questioning and limitation, all brought about by a series of pivotal events that threw me into a search for truth and purpose. The death of my mother from cancer at only fifty seven was the culminating event that prompted me to find myself; not the self that was projected onto others or the self I was supposed to be, but my true self. The primary reason and motivation for my entire existence; the essence of my being, the driving force and the vessel of my creativity. Ultimately, what I was trying to find was the God Source inside me.
In the process of trying to find it, I had to shed multiple layers. These layers were the adds-on from many years of doing without thinking, finding without searching and looking without seeing. As an artist, this seeing part has always been the most important. And more and more the vision comes from within first, only to be manifested later in the physical world as a concrete thought, which sustained long enough gives birth into creation; into the work of art itself. The thought of this vision seldom comes first, it is preceded by feeling and emotion which determines the mood and quality of the work.
The Sky is The Limit came about from a mixture of feelings; the feeling of humility was the main one; the humbleness that comes when we engage in the contemplation of the universe, the vastness of it in comparison with us; our own insignificance and yet, our limitless power; our power to transform, to heal; our power to become that which we envision. This humility arises from the feeling of supreme gratitude. Gratitude from our own insignificant, yet significant existence, gratitude for the Gift of Life.
The subject of these paintings are not really fruit but People, people that shine with their own light, their own gifts and purposes, their own missions and their own creativity. Humanity’s quest for meaning and understanding takes us on a journey on the road less traveled and the ultimate finding of our Soul.
Since all this journey was taken upon the passing of my mother who was the one that taught me how to see, I am surrendering all the credit to HER, my primary source of Life and the main Vessel of my Creativity.
In loving memory of Maria Jose Usero Guijarro (Pepi) 1952-2010
