Episode Notes

Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk: true-life, practical, funny, heart-breaking, insightful human experience stories from women who are walking their lives while their lives walk them and the lasting difference these journeys have made. You’ll recognize yourself in stories of adversity, challenge, fear, discovery, adventure, expression, and more. Why? Because, the sorcery of stories is this: they help each of us to be seen and heard, to understand and be understood. I’m your host, Diane Wyzga.

Welcome back to my conversation with boldly abstract artist Ruth Dent who joined me from Bergerac in Southwest France. Ruth mixes colours with emotions to help you celebrate life, nature, humanity, and the spirit in darkness as well as light. When last we spoke I asked Ruth about the themes that inform her imagination, themes like Mother Nature, climate chaos, beauty, and joy. Let’s hear what this engaging woman artist has to say.

Minute

00 to 2:08 Intro

Nature Is Inspiration

2:08 to 4:50 – Begin here!

• Nature always starts her off
• Tip: when stuck go outside
• Open your eyes and observe what you notice
• Amazing to see rain to sun to castle view like gold – lucky to witness!
• She sees what’s there, files it away, and then it reappears in her work one day
• Feeling of being connected with and in nature
• Meandering along have a feeling that you’re held
• What’s the point of creating unless share it?
• I say: this is what I’ve seen, what I feel, it’s deliberately abstract, here it is for you

4:50 to 8:15 – Interpretation

• How you want spectator to view work and respond to Climate Chaos
• The Day the Sky Shattered & Flew Way comes from Breathing Space
• Surprised at her own anger in her work because her work tends to celebratory
• Uses handmade paper Moulin de Larroque, from Couze, France, about a 40 minute drive away
• Gold experiment and seeing a figure that rises up from cauldron
• Theme and I’ve created this!
• How do we get humans to notice?
• We live in an amazing magical place: Planet Earth is wonderful and Mother Earth is screaming – when will we listen?
• Her feelings are represented in paint and print: now it’s over to you, the spectator, if this resonates what will you do?

8:18 to 11:45 – Magic & Hope

• In the long run what will my little efforts do versus maintaining a sense of magic and hope and we do what we can to take care of what we have while we have
• Just because it’s impermanent we still take care
• She integrates colours with emotion and says: here is my take on what’s going on and come along with me!
• She’s the translator
• Stewardship: humans so far are failing their stewardship roles but all is not lost
• Encouraged by the young and their work on the climate with passion and engagement to loosen the grip around the throat of life
• There is always more!

11:45 to 14:45 – Light & Dark

• “We are not alone.” “Accepting that we need darkness to see the light.” Explains: seasonality; life/death/life cycle; acceptance of everything is part of human feeling
• We are part of something much bigger
• Feels strongly: each of us has a gift and we need to embrace each person and their gift and their purpose – at this time!
• Interconnectedness is who we are
• We have what we need: imagination + technology

Wondrous New Body of Work!

14:45 to 21:20 – Videos, Paintings, Poems, and Digital Book

• New body of work with video and sound from Breathing Space and it’s successor: The Day the Sky Shattered and Flew Away
• Where did this new idea come from? We all have a spark that begins with imagination
• These two works came together to create a third from an idea that wouldn’t go away: Scattered Thoughts which is to be a digital book of five walks that circle the stations of the year with video images and poems
• Very full circle for her: writing her own poetry and then interpreting it
• Overall: Celtic connectivity, life on earth, the thrill of life on earth based on The Celtic Tree Alphabet which consists of the 5 vowels and 15 consonants and fits on a hand
• Each letter is linked to a tree (see following):
• Essentially, Scattered Thoughts uses the Tree Alphabet as a structure, and for each letter I have chosen a word, and have written a poem, using nature and the seasons, cycles of life and death within the poems, as well as the beauty to be found on Earth and the joy of being here.
• I have loosely tied myself to the trees rather than being too prescriptive.
• I shall be releasing ’Scattered Thoughts’ one ‘digit’ at a time, starting with the thumb, with each being a ‘walk in the woods / with the trees’ … and each ’book’ being a video …
• The five paintings:
• A – Ailm – Silver Fir: New Year’s Day (Birth)
• O – Onn – Gorse: Spring Equinox (Initiation)
• U – Ura – Heather: Summer Solstice (Consummation)
• E- Eadha – White Poplar/Aspen: Autumn Equinox (Repose)
• I – Idho – Yew: Winter Solstice (Death)

NOTE: an image of each of these paintings will appear on Ruth’s website.

Legacy

21:20 to 29:53 – Observation & Awareness & Magic

• Engage in an on-going relationship with Ruth  –  connect with newsletter
• At this moment sees legacy unfolding: for more people to see the work and go out, open their eyes and see differently, appreciate life on earth as magic; keep hold of that even in the darkest hours
• Breathing Space helped her write Twirling

Twirling (listen with appreciation) 

“Twirling around as sunlight and shadows play a game of hide and seek.

I move; they move.  I am still; they still move.  Attracting my attention, showing me lines, textures, shapes and colours.  Fleeting and passing, these images freeze, to be replayed staccato like as a film in my memory.

Aware of my continually shifting viewpoint , I look forward, step forward and look ahead.  Every step marking subtle changes.  Familiar and fresh, I ramble along well worn paths where light and dark sparkle and glint amongst the trees.

A mesh of the tree trunks.  Those from ages past extend their branches to secure their space, whilst thin, coppiced trunks sway and chatter in the breeze.  Clashing and bending, creating an elongated grid which constantly shifts with the breeze.

It is never silent in the woods – there’s always the sound of oneself, and the birds, and perhaps most surprising is when the trees clap, their upper branches swinging into a frenzy as the wind whips through.  There is rhythm and energy.  And complaints from the birds as they are forced to move!

A groundswell of emotion – deep, primal.  Of being, belonging and of forever … changing.  A challenge to capture the moment, a glimpse, a feeling, an emotion.  To explore what is seen and unseen.   To acknowledge the healing found in nature, in colour and in truly seeing and being.  Alive.”

There is magic in the world and in your work! Thank you for sharing your magic, your work, and walk with us!

Here we are, at the end of the road but not the journey. Thank you for listening to this episode of Stories From Women Who Walk with your host Diane Wyzga and my guest Ruth Dent. I hope you were as enthralled as I was by Ruth and her mesmerizing boldly abstract painting life story. Remember to visit Ruth on her website and sign up for her monthly newsletter to stay in touch with what she’s producing next. All links are in the Episode Notes. Meanwhile, please stop by every Monday through Friday for 60 Seconds, Time Out Tuesday, Story Prompt Friday, and every Thursday for longer guest interviews and Diane-On-Mic episodes. You’ll find us on Simplecast or your favorite podcast platform. Come for the stories – stay for the magic! And speaking of magic, would you leave us a nice rating and review on Apple Podcasts. When you return bring your friends and rellies. You will have wonderful company as we walk our lives together.

Ruth Dent BIO 

Mixing colours with emotions to help you celebrate life on earth.

Working from her studio in SW France, Ruth’s bold and expressive abstract paintings celebrate nature, humanity and the spirit.

‘Visible, Invisible, Veiled’ explored natures broken grids.  A question: ‘Did cathedrals, temples, stupas and labyrinths originate in the forest?’ culminated in Breathing Space.  Lying within the installation, Ruth imagined ’The Day the Sky Shattered and Flew Away’.  The ‘Q-Series’ captured the angst of ‘lockdown’ whilst current work is linking the Celtic Tree Alphabet, life and nature – as 25 poems and paintings in ‘Scattered Thoughts’.

Links to Contact Ruth Dent

Website:  https://www.ruthdent.com

Here’s the link to the film: https://www.timeandattention.uk/friday-film

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ruthdentart/

Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/ruthdentart

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruth-dent-0b35a431/

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/ruthdentart

 

Production Team: Quarter Moon Story Arts

Music: Entering Erdenheim from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron Music

Sound Editing: Dawin Carlisle & First Class Reels

All content and image © 2019 – Present Quarter Moon Story Arts

About the Guest

Ruth Dent BIO 

Mixing colours with emotions to help you celebrate life on earth.

Working from her studio in SW France, Ruth’s bold and expressive abstract paintings celebrate nature, humanity and the spirit.

‘Visible, Invisible, Veiled’ explored natures broken grids.  A question: ‘Did cathedrals, temples, stupas and labyrinths originate in the forest?’ culminated in Breathing Space.  Lying within the installation, Ruth imagined ’The Day the Sky Shattered and Flew Away’.  The ‘Q-Series’ captured the angst of ‘lockdown’ whilst current work is linking the Celtic Tree Alphabet, life and nature – as 25 poems and paintings in ‘Scattered Thoughts’.

Contributors

Steve Schuch & Night Heron Music
Abstract Artist Ruth Dent
Darwin Carlisle & First Class Reels
Diane Wyzga, Podcaster, Story Artist & Wordsmithery Coach