Leiah Bowden:
"I paint intuitively and quickly, so watercolor,
pastel, and acrylic are my chosen media.
I offer my vision
and whatever ability I have to translate energy into shape and color to the Divine.
I once went with a friend to hear
the grand diva, Jessye Norman, sing at a venue so small that we could see the beads of sweat on her forehead without benefit
of opera glasses. During intermission, my friend and I turned to ech other, awestruck at the Presence that still enveloped
us. "What music she creates," I said. "I am barely aware of her - only the music."
"That's because when she sings, she is music," my friend said.
When I am creating with my wings unfurled, I know that I am art.
My best work - whether it's creating paintings, essays or meals - is intuitive. I
approach a piece knowing that it already exists somewhere, and what I need to do is to allow it to appear. Something flows
through me and out my fingers for which I take only the credit for getting out of the way and knowing how to manage the media.
In these moments, I am aware that I am in the altered state of consciousness I call Heaven. I hear - and sometimes sing -
beautiful melodies; my left hand (I am right-handed) sometimes flutters or waves with the energy of Faery. Sometimes
I am aware of unseen observers and guides. Sometimes I recieve direct, clear, verbal suggestions to use specific colors, to
extend a line here or curve a line there.
The signature I use on
my paintings came to me one winter night after artist friends chided me for not signing my name to my artwork. "You need
to sign your work!" they chorused. I felt that my name interfered with the energy flow the painting expressed. Later
that night, as I stood ouside on the porch waiting for my dog to return from his errand, I asked All That Is to send me
a signature. Immediately I felt and obeyed an urge to lean forward and trace something with my finger in the snow. It was
a symbol that felt powerful, grounded, soaring, and mine. And rather than interfering with my work, I feel it seals
it the way "Amen" seals a prayer."
