Atelier Talk: 04.17. 25 "Day after Day"
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| A small altar space inside a shelf in my room in New York City. |
Today it started with my still-let-lag mind. It has been like this since I came back to NYC. I woke up late, but the night before I finished most of the things I wanted to get done in the morning. So my day still started slow but nicely, as I woke up most of my chores were done.
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While I was in my home in Japan, I was watching my mother's daily routine every day.
Wake up in the morning, say good morning to plants in her bedroom, open the curtains, and make her bed, open her room door and go down the staircases while greeting the plants on each stair step.
Open the window and open the shutter, to get fresh air to the house. Wash her face and brush her teeth and turn on the light of the buddhist altar, replace the old water with fresh water, check the condition of offering flowers. Then she goes outside for about 30 minutes watering the plants outside while talking to each of them.
Then She comes back inside and sit in front of the altar, lit the candle at the altar and lit the Japanese incense sticks with the candle, put off the candle and started to chant the Heart Sutra (般若心経). Her day begins like this every day. Similar, but slightly different each day.
Making a day. Making their own unique day that suits the person and suits the land and suits the house they live in.
Each day is similar but they are very different.
I was thinking something like that while I was home. This was similar when my father was there too. We make our unique day that is connected to yesterday, and similar to many past days but it is truly different and original. One thing in common is that it is this specific person's unique day that they shape.
It is easy for me to feel this in Japan. I think it's because we culturally value routine.
Making a day. Making their own unique day that suits the person and suits the land and suits the house they live in.
Each day is similar but they are very different.
I was thinking something like that while I was home. This was similar when my father was there too. We make our unique day that is connected to yesterday, and similar to many past days but it is truly different and original. One thing in common is that it is this specific person's unique day that they shape.
It is easy for me to feel this in Japan. I think it's because we culturally value routine.
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| Kamidana and Butsudan conversion altar in my room. Sharing some details with you -Starting from the left side, the booklet for the Heart Sutra, the fox guardian bell from Shusse Inari, and crow are guardians from the shrine in my hometown (it had an Omikuji, a fortune telling slip, inside). Two amulets in the front, dried leave I'm not sure the name, and two candles from a temple in front of the two foxes. On the right side there is a snake, a fox, both had an Omikuji, a fortune telling slip, inside, and a dove and the dove is a whistle from a temple. Behind the dove there is a picture of my bird who passed away two years ago, and a picture of my father behind, and there are a few pictures of my family who passed away next to him which you don't see in this picture. There are two foxes from Naritasan Shinsho-ji, and behind that there is Kamidana from my local shrine. |
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Anyhow, traveling to Japan is a time for me when I can be reminded that I have two homes today. One in New York City, where I created it to be my new home and where I was accepted to be and allow me to challenge myself and allwed me to create my work, and another is Japan where I was born and I still have my family and it is where I had all my childhood and young adulthood, and it will always be my home. When I return to New York City, it takes only seconds for me to readjust to the city and the life here.
I still choose to live in New York City today because this is where I decided to create my work and search what I can contribute and return to the world I love, and I am indeed growing as an artist with people here who support me with this vision of mine.
I had a great time in Japan with my mother and friends, and now I am so happy to be here with my unfinished painting in my atelier.
Atelier music this month will be probably from CDs I brought from Japan. Well, perhaps this one -I have been listening to an album called "Mitaka Calling" while I was in the car when my mother was driving. It is an album I have been wanting for years ever since I heard the music in this album and I finally have it with me.
Book for this month if I have time to read is 『すべての神様の十月』 by 小路幸也 (Yukiya Shoji) I don't think this book is available in any language but Japanese. "Subete-no-kami-sama-no-jugatu", or "All Gods October"
I haven't read this book yet but I found this book at a used book store in Tokyo and bought it for the title and a few lines I read made me believe it will be a good one. I let my mother read it first while I was there and she loved it. I'm sure I will too.
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Coming back to on my birthday how I spent it, I did not buy anything for myself, instead I ordered something for my bunny which will arrive in a few days, and ordered small but nice things for my mother which will arrive on Mother's day. While I was in Japan my mother gave me many things so I'm content with them. Last night before I went to my bed, I made Thai curry for my birthday meal, and I bough a baguette at a polish bakery on the way to my studio. The sky was clear and beautiful and air was warm to my skin. I had one very nice studio visit in the evening and that is it, a perfect day. When I came home there was a lovely spring flower bouquet.
Thank you so much for the birthday wishes and I am looking forward to finishing a painting by the end of April. That will be my big goal for this month. I will spend one more day self-reflecting and questioning myself about what I want to accomplish this year. It is an important year for me as an artist, and I want to live each day mindfully and to the fullest.
Have a great day to you, and I will see you again here in May.
Have a great day to you, and I will see you again here in May.
