Finding Common Ground Through Sacred Words

I am so pleased that my art will be “speaking” in two exhibits of sacred texts simultaneously in northern California, one a Catholic university, and one an Islamic cultural center. That I am speaking for the Sacred Feminine feels doubly sweet. “It is the Earth I sing.”

A new interfaith exhibit is opening on Saturday, May 11 entitled “Finding Common Ground Through Sacred Words.” It is the second to be presented by the Faith Trio congregations (Kehilla Community Synagogue, Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California, and Montclair Presbyterian Church) in Oakland. This juried exhibit includes 130 pieces of art of all kinds, but each have in common the use of text or letters in painting, textile art, stained glass, ceramics, collage and digital art. These works “underscore interfaith understanding, spirituality, peace and cultural dialogue. Artwork has been submitted to the exhibition that incorporates writing in English, Hebrew, Greek, Arabic, Runes, Farsi, Korean, Chinese, and more.”

Above, The Mother of Us All, from the Homeric Hymns as translated by Charles Boer. This is a wonderful modern translation of the same Hymn to Gaia that I used in my Litanies for Mother Earth. This is a more condensed version of the ancient Greek poem, c. 700 BCE. Paper painted with acrylics, 23K gold leaf, and lettering in gouache with a pointed nib.

Below is another ancient poem, this one by the 13th century Persian poet Rumi, in a modern translation by Coleman Barks. This one is called Whatever Circles, and was made with acrylic paints on paper, lettering in gouache with a monoline nib.

The exhibit is at the Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California, 1433 Madison Avenue in Oakland, near Lake Merritt. Please come to the opening reception for the exhibit on Saturday, May 11, 5-8 pm at the ICCNC or visit the exhibit during the open hours, Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 am to 4 pm, May 15 to June 5, or the Artist Meet-And-Greet during the Oakland First Friday/Art Murmur on Friday, June 7, 5 – 7 pm. I will be at the opening reception and the artist’s evening in June. Hope to see you there!

For more info and a PDF of the flyer, go here. And here is a list of the artists who will be showing (click for larger image to appear).