Abbey of the Arts

Transformative Living through Contemplative & Expressive Arts

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      • Day 1 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Cathedral
      • Day 2 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Scriptures
      • Day 3 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Saints
      • Day 4 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Spiritual Directors
      • Day 5 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Icon
      • Day 6 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Sacrament
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        Earth as the Original Liturgy
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  • Books
    • Sacred Time:
      Embracing an Intentional Way of Life
    • The Wisdom of Wild Grace: Poems
    • Earth, Our Original Monastery:
      Cultivating Wonder and Gratitude through Intimacy with Nature
    • Dreaming of Stones: Poems
    • The Soul's Slow Ripening:
      12 Celtic Practices for Seeking the Sacred
    • The Wisdom of the Body:
      A Contemplative Journey to Wholeness for Women
    • Illuminating the Way:
      Embracing the Wisdom of Monks and Mystics
    • The Soul of a Pilgrim:
      Eight Practices for the Journey Within
    • Eyes of the Heart:
      Photography as a Christian Contemplative Practice
    • The Artist's Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom
    • Desert Mothers and Fathers: Early Christian Wisdom Sayings Annotated & Explained
    • Lectio Divina–The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer
    • Water, Wind, Earth & Fire: The Christian Practice of Praying with the Elements
    • Awakening the Creative Spirit:
      Bringing the Arts to Spiritual Direction
    • Lectio Divina: Contemplative Awakening & Awareness
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      • Monk in the World art series by Kristin Noelle
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      • Sacred Time art series by Alexi Francis
      • Mary block print art series by Kreg Yingst
  • Programs
    • Walk the Ancient Paths: Pilgrimage
      • Monk in the World (Ireland)
      • Writing on the Wild Edges (Ireland)
      • Poetry and the Sacred Garden of the World (Ireland)
      • Vienna Monk in the World (Austria)
      • Hildegard of Bingen (Germany)
    • Live Programs and Spiritual Retreats
      • Awakening the Creative Spirit: Experiential Education for Spiritual Directors in the Expressive Arts (Northwest)
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      • Lift Every Voice: Contemplative Writers of Color
      • The Way of the Hermit:
        A Spiritual Survival Guide for Dark Times
        with Kayleen Asbo, PhD
      • The Spiral Way:
        Celtic Spirituality and the Creative Imagination
      • Journey with the Desert Mothers and Fathers (Lent 2021)
      • Sacred Time: Embracing an Intentional Way of Life (Spring 2021)
    • Self-Study Online Spiritual Retreats
      • Creative Flourishing in the Heart of the Desert:
        An Online Retreat with St. Hildegard of Bingen
      • Dreaming of the Sea:
        A women’s discernment journey through the story of the Selkie
      • Earth, Our Original Monastery
        A Companion Retreat to the Book (SELF-STUDY)
      • Exile and Coming Home:
        An Archetypal Journey through the Scriptures
      • Eyes of the Heart:
        Photography as Contemplative Practice
        (Companion retreat to the book)
      • Honoring Saints and Ancestors:
        Online Retreat for the Season of Remembrance
      • Lectio Divina:
        The Sacred Art of Reading the World
      • A Midwinter God:
        Making a Conscious Underworld Journey
      • Sacred Rhythms of Sky, Sun, Sea & Stone:
        A Creative Retreat with the Elements (SELF-STUDY)
      • Sacred Seasons:
        A Yearlong Journey through the Celtic Wheel of the Year
      • The Soul of a Pilgrim:
        Eight Practices for the Journey Within
        (a companion retreat to the book)
      • The Soul's Slow Ripening: 12 Celtic Practices for Seekers of the Sacred (a companion retreat to the book)
      • Water, Wind, Earth & Fire
      • Watershed Moments
        in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures
      • Way of the Monk, Path of the Artist:
        A 12-Week Companion Retreat to The Artist's Rule
      • The Wisdom of the Body:
        A 10-Week Online Companion Retreat to the Book
      • The Wisdom of Mary and the Sacred Feminine
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Sacred Artist Interview

Sacred Artist Interview: Marilyn Russell

I first encountered Marilyn Russell virtually when we were each asked to write an article on spirituality and artistic expression for the UCLA Spirituality in Higher Education Newsletter.  Marilyn's article was on "The Empowering of Art & Spirituality." Read her article to gain even more insight into her vision as an artist.  (you can read my article here).

She is a member of the Ojibwe tribe, an artist, a scholar and the Library Director at Haskell Indian Nations University. In her article she shares this beautiful Ojibwa prayer:

"Oh Great Spirit, whose voice I hear in the winds and whose breath gives life to everyone, Hear me. I come to you as one of your many children; I am weak, I am small, I need your wisdom and your strength. Let me walk in beauty, and make my eyes ever behold the red and purple sunsets. Make my hands respect the things you have made, and make my ears sharp so that I may hear your voice. Make me wise, so that I may understand what you have taught my people and the lessons you have hidden in each leaf and each rock.
I ask for wisdom and strength, not to be superior to my sisters and brothers, but to be able to fight my greatest enemy, myself. Make me ever ready to come before you with clean hands and a straight eye. So as life fades away as a fading sunset; my spirit may come to you without shame."

I am delighted she was willing to share her reflections on the connections between spirituality and creativity.

Are you rooted in a particular faith tradition? 

Yes, I am an Episcopalian.

What is your primary art medium? 

Watercolor painting and mixed media collage.

How do you experience the connection between spirituality and creativity? 

I believe that the creative act is an essential part of my inner self.  Since I consider myself a spiritual person, most all of my artwork reflects this spiritual self.  This is connected to my Native American heritage.  As an artist, the images I use are reflective of the symbols and spiritual meanings found in the Native American culture.

What role does spiritual practice have in your art-making? 

I believe that contemplative prayer uses silence as a means to unveil ones true self.  This
unveiling allows one to make art in a meaningful way and communicate a message to others.  Some of my work is about a search for this inner-self, about healing, and about the empowering of the Spirit to communicate.

What sparked your spiritual journey? 

My belief is that there is a place beyond one's self where the Spirit may soar and rise above the mundane.  I initially went through Cursillo in the late 1980's.  This is a movement that through God's grace manages to enable the essential realities of a Christian to come to life in the uniqueness, originality, and creativity of each person.  I later became a certified Spiritual Director though the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation.

What sparked your artistic journey?

I have painted since I was five years old and always knew I would be an artist.  I have always been an artist even when there are lulls in times to paint.  I am always thinking about art and
what I might create.

Do you have a particular process you use when entering into your creative
work?

I often offer up a prayer of silence to the Great Creator and a thank you for His gift of creativity to me.

How does your art-making shape your image of God? 

My art making is a reflection of the beauty that I see in all of God's creation.  Hopefully, I am merely the tool that God uses to tell stories and to make beautiful art.

A whole-hearted thank you to again to Marilyn Russell.  I love her closing image of being the tool God uses to tell stories.  Make sure to visit her website to see more of her images.

(Photos from top to bottom: Chimayo Christ, The Healer, Spirit House, Virgin of Guadalupe, Crown of Thorns, Spirit of Horse Shield)

** Make sure to visit this week’s Poetry Party **

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5 Comments April 2, 2008

Upcoming Programs

The Way of the Hermit:
A Spiritual Survival Guide for Dark Times

January 22-24, 2021
with Kayleen Asbo, PhD

The Spiral Way:
Celtic Spirituality and the Creative Imagination

Hosted by the Rowe Center
February 1-21, 2021
with Christine Valters Paintner, PhD

Recent Reflections

  • Humility + Join us today for live prayer! ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess
  • Hildy Tales 2: Tús maith leath na hoibre – by John Valters Paintner
  • New Book Club for 2021: Lift Every Voice ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess
  • Hildy Tales One: Dia dhuit, is mise Hildy! by John Valters Paintner, Your Online Prior
  • Celebrate the Earth Monastery Prayer Cycle podcast with us!

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