Acrylic on Canvas No.1 of 6 - "The Guiding Thread So Fine...." Group Show December 2011.
It had been quite a length of time since I had last done any painting and so for this show I jumped out of my recent comfort zone - collage work - to create a set of paintings which conveyed a concept...a flexible storyline to echo the subject line.
Sometimes the thread is very fine...sometimes it isn't necessarily so fine but we are not looking for it and therefore we don't see it...at times the thread is obvious.
This painting is akin to many of my collages in the concepts of colour and arrangement and spirit. There is something more going on here...and all of it is valid.
Wiki says: A bindi (from Sanskrit bindu, meaning "a drop, small particle, dot") is a forehead decoration worn in South Asia (particularly India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Mauritius).[1] and Southeast Asia. Traditionally it is a dot of red color applied in the center of the forehead close to the eyebrows, but it can also consist of a sign or piece of jewelry worn at this location.
Traditionally, the area between the eyebrows (where the bindi is placed) is said to be the sixth chakra, ajna, the seat of "concealed wisdom". According to followers of Hinduism, this chakra is the exit point for kundalini energy. The bindi is said to retain energy and strengthen concentration.[1] It is also said to protect against demons or bad luck. The bindi also represents the third eye.[2]
In modern times, bindis are worn by women of many religious dispositions in South Asia and Southeast Asia, and is not restricted to Hindus. Many Muslim women in Bangladesh and Pakistan wear the bindi as part of makeup. It is also used in festivals such as Holi.[3]
Red represents honor, love and prosperity, hence it was worn traditionally by women to symbolize this.
The red bindi has multiple meanings which are all valid at the same time. This is also a spiritual symbol.
People of East Indian origin make up the tenth largest ethnic group in Canada. Canadians of East Indian origin also make up the second largest non-European ethnic group in the country.
This painting was based on a photograph by Laurence Mouton as seen in a beautiful book titled: India - A Cultural Journey, copyright Putumayo World Culture www.putumayo.com