What shows
how little
we know?
What can be is
oft far less than
what we expect.
What is now
has never been
what it was.
07/25/2024 j.g.l.
value beyond
Simplicity.
Is there emotion in austerity?
Humanity?
What do you see when attempting
to define your limited visibility?
Minimalism, abstract impressionism
or incorporeal thought.
Less is more, but is it enough?
Texture, tone, and value beyond
your current scene. If you take it to an
extreme, you will question
what it means.
What is really there?
What line do you cross?
Can simplicity be complicated, or
should it even be attempted?
07/23/2024 j.g.l.
Mondays are just young Fridays
Things will not go as planned. Intentions will be disrupted, even overlooked, in the aftermath of an unexpected reality.
Where you are headed will not be the place you end up, undoubtedly or undeniably. No matter how hard you attempt to make each gesture, brushstroke, promise, prayer, or pastime as perfect as you believe it can be, many times you will not arrive at a perceived destination. All too often your endeavors never hit the mark; at times your work may be better than expected (celebrate those moments), but everything (even your judgement) is subjective.
You are not limited to, or by, the colours in your paintbox or progression of your process.
Imagination is as limited or expansive as you want it to be. Give it time to blossom; in certain instances, you may even have to reel it in. This is all about possibilities, no matter which media, method, or style you are beholden to.
You owe your art (or life) nothing but your presence; the value comes from the practice, as rudimentary or spontaneous as it is or will become.
07/22/2024 j.g.l.
I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
beautiful thoughts
Posted on May 14, 2023 by j.g.lewis
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Today is a day of memories. For many of us, our mother is encased in thoughts of years gone by.
My Mother left this earth far too early, but I know she is still here for me. I realize, more a more as I grow older, that the distance between the time I had with her never grows further than a thought.
It’s funny what comes to you when you think of such a significant person. A mother gave life and guided you forward through the oncoming years. The lessons she taught, and the gentleness she personified, remain close to the heart.
A mother’s love never grows old.
Today I’m thinking, of all things, about clothing. I think, perhaps, my greatest sense of fashion is what I grew up with.
My mother regularly used to dress me in striped shirts. She called them my ‘Charlie Brown’ shirts (never once did I correct her by telling her it was Linus who always wore the stripes) and stripes in all sizes and colours defined my wardrobe for many years.
Years later, I learned that the choice of stripes was her way of distinguishing my clothes from those of my two siblings on laundry day. In our household, with three active (dare I say messy) kids, it was her way of sorting out whose was whose.
All those stripes set a pattern that continues to this day. Even now I will purchase, or I am attracted to, t-shirts with stripes.
Today I will honour beautiful thoughts of my mother by wearing a striped shirt and remembering all those colourful and long-lasting memories.
This is my way, today, of creating a Happy Mother’s Day.
