February Flying Carpet 2014

             Amidst all the zooming and twirling, Flying Carpet must rest.
A contemplative cup of tea can stop the world.

                                                                                             

Some of you may remember gathering our exquisite tea cups
after matcha a long time ago...

 In Tea the expression ichigo ichie is often heard.

 It means “one time, one meeting.”

“Each tea gathering is an opportunity for an experience

that will never occur again in one’s life.”

In this spirit of the celebration of each unique moment, 

may I share TEA JOURNAL with you?

Each page records a time of drinking tea.

                    constants: 1 sheet of handmade paper from Gallery Kei in Kyoto

                                         1 drawn rectangle

                                         rubbing of texture

                                         signatures (real or invented) of companions

                                         date & sometimes location

                                         tea stain (sometimes coffee) (or wine only in France)

Tea can also make us mindful of

“...the evanescense of all things and the unchanging in the changing”

                                                       TEA TIME CUMULUS  is
                                                       a cumulus of tea bags
                                  from September 1, 2013 to February 27, 2014

 

So relax and enjoy a cup of tea and spill a little on the Flying Carpet

Special thanks to Soshitsu Sen XV for quotes from his book Tea Life, Tea Mind

January Flying Carpet 2014

At the end of January,
the Flying Carpet sends you a pre-emptive valentine:

If your love is

on the rebound

If your love is

    not in the cards

 If your love is
    full of tempations

If your love is

needing to be recycled

If your love is 

sailing the stormy seas

If your love is

too transparent

...but I hope your love is

clear and light

Special thanks to all the Valentiners over the years 

who have come out to play with me

and also to Sialia

for collaborating on the Sailor's Valentine (#5)

Love from The Flying Carpet

December Flying Carpet 2013

In December The Flying Carpet 

hovered over Santa Fe 
to revel in Holy Days

the waning light  in the disappearing afternoon

 

Grandma’s menorah shines in the window for the world to see

Jake’s farolitos light the way

 
 Zack’s ikebana Chistmas Tree floats above the gifts

Dr. Furoshiki’s wrapping fanaticism astounds himself
(perhaps no one else)

and we move with requisite glitz
into the New Year

November Flying Carpet 2013

What do Flying carpets do in the winter time?
They lay around in front of fireplaces
catching stray cookie crumbs
and splashes of hot chocolate

and recollect images of Paris windows...

the indirect... the unexpected glance
the iconic becomes mysterious...
Sacre Coeur

random juxtapositions
found paintings

Institut Du Monde Arabe
light streaming through lens apertures

a million captured prisms
ubiquitous chandeliers

the genius of Rodin and Camille Claudel
in the filtered light of the quintessential Hotel Biron

and coming full circle
to the erector set image
of the Eiffel Tower

Grateful   Grateful   Grateful

October Flying Carpet 2013

Flying Carpets are good at pretending.

I invite you to come along with me 

to the little medieval  town of Montmirail 

in one of the most picturesque areas 

of northern France, 

the Perche 

and to stay at the chateau of Maison Conti.

Ka Boom... the moment we have been waiting for... 

the first rays of sun 

striking the chord of the morning

We tiptoe down the stairs. 

The whole house is asleep in 

the blue room, 

the yellow room, 

the rose room, 

the green room. 

We join the awakening sun 

glancing at the early morning terrace... dew...

We look toward the glass door... 

the entry to the atelier 

which will be a humming hive for many hours

Later but still in a dream state, 

we are invited into the dining room 

to a scrumptious breakfast

...perhaps a walk through the town?
(Montmirail is a classified,
architecturally preserved "petite cité de caractère.")

past the fairy tale castle

and its medieval herb garden

to the deserted cemetery as the light rain illuminates

through the Hollow Ways
that have connected each rural town for centuries

“Pinch me! Pinch me!” we say to each other...

Special thanks to our incomparable host and hostess,
Rick & Nancy
and the magnificent Maison Conti
maisonconti.com

If Gayle, Linda, Leslie, Michelle, Sydney,
Celeste, Carrol, Karen, Gwenola, and Nelly
had not come out to play in the atelier,
the Flying Carpet would not have flown to France...
thank you all for adventurous artistic spirit.

and to Zack, my Sidekick, for photo #1 and everything else...

August Flying Carpet 2013

In August The Flying Carpet

visited the Shadowcatcher...

an elusive being in and out of time

 

The light streaming

oblique in the afternoon

umbra & penumbra

soft on the morning leaves

shadowing the cobalt glass

capturing angular complexity

and swoop and jiggle/giggle

ichi e

ichi go

this moment...

this moment...

each morning a new datura 

blossoming white

No matter how far you travel,
you can never get away from yourself.
It is like your shadow.
It follows you everywhere.
Haruki Murakami  

Special thanks to all

who opened their eyes and hearts