Redtree Times

Islander— Now at Principle Gallery

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend’s or of thine own were; any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

 –John Donne, Meditation XVII, 1624

The painting above, Islander, is another painting from Flow, my annual solo exhibit at the Principle Gallery, which opens next Friday, June 12. This painting from 2013, 24″ by 30″ on canvas, has always had a lot of personal meaning for me. It was even the title piece for a 2013 exhibit of mine. I viewed it in many ways as a representation of the solitary nature of my studio and, to an extent, my life.

Of course, as John Donne expressed over 600 years ago with his immortal phrase, No man is an island, I realized long ago that, short of abandoning everything and everyone to go live the life of a cave hermit, one can never be totally set apart from connective tissue of this world.

We are all, like Donne, involved in mankind and our care for humanity is to care for oneself.

So, while I feel many days as though, snug in the solitude of my studio, I am set apart and free of concerns of the world, it is only a mirage. It turns out that my island is not mine alone. My island is your island and is the realm of everyone everywhere.

We are all Islanders together.

Below is the statement I wrote about this painting in 2013. And below that is a song about being an Islander, of a sort. Not just any island– Newfoundland. Though it is a bit more specific and I have no attachment to Newfoundland outside of it being part of my island as I described a few paragraphs above, and have never heard of the song nor the group that plays it, The Navigators, it seems to be the song I needed to hear this morning.

If you’re an Islander, you’ll get it.

Islander is included in my solo exhibit, Flow, which opens next Friday, June 12 at the Principle Gallery in Alexandria, VA. The opening reception runs from 6-8:30 PM. I’ll be off my island for it so hope to see you there.

I am an islander.

But I don’t live on an island. Never have and probably never will.

No, my island is a metaphorical place, one that exists in the creative ether of my mind. An island that is completely apart from and immune to the outer world that exists across the deep surrounding waters. Self-sustaining and self-ruled, a blank slate on which I can create my own reality.

It’s a place free from the ire and pettiness of others. Free of strife and injustice. and filled with the quiet of solitude. Filled with color, warmth and emotion.

An island of creation and peace.

But there is a paradox in being an islander. While trying to remain separate, it becomes abundantly clear that we can never really exist as totally independent from the outer world. Actually, to the islander those bonds to the outside world become even more apparent and important. The isolation only serves to heighten our recognition of our inclusion and connection to the world. You begin to recognize them as lifelines, bringing those things to the island that you cannot create in yourself.

Try as one might, one can never live in isolation from their own humanity. I think the best you can do is to create an island that you can visit periodically to revitalize yourself. And that’s what I believe I see in this painting, a transport that takes me to that peaceful place, insulating me for a short while from the din and whirl of the outside world.

For that short time, I am truly an islander.