“Trajectory”
Character is a rather large concept - how it’s formed, why it matters, and much more. This is the 2024 focus for my faith community, and my focus for creating art. Art about character. Uh…Hm…Wow…Ummm. Diagramming has often been my go to for finding clarity about complex ideas/situations, so I leaned in to see what I might find.
Here’s the diagram, which is by no means complete. I’d love to hear what you would add!
From the process of creating the diagram came this poem:
“Trajectory”
Why think twice?
who cares?
inconsequential
we murmur
noses in the air.
But there it is
in the nuances of decision
a rash move here
a hesitation there
by these we shift the trajectory
of our lives
choice by choice
practicing ourselves into
who we become
in a year
in a decade
in a lifetime.
Decide now what posture
no matter the context
feet planted in courage
toes dug deep in calm
The latest news rushes in
breathlessly gunning to
sweep us off balance
let the frenzy go raging by
be anchored in peace
in the middle of chaos
the clear voice of wisdom
calls steady and true
the plumb line
for choosing in the everyday
raising the floor
of our capacity to do what’s right
under duress
practicing when it’s awkward
uncomfortable
risky
so that
when fire comes for us
as it will
we are ready and resolute
standing tall
voices lifted as
we move out together
joy as our strength
character burned into us
by all we have chosen and
by all that has chosen us.
Behind the Scenes
First, the challenge of how to present the poem visually. Tree rings offered a visual echo of character’s slow growth, so I started folding and cutting paper. Here’s one of the tests. The depth and shadows were intriguing.
Later, while driving down the street minding my own business, the thought “Burn the poem” landed in my mind. Ooh. A deep YES in my spirit jumped forward. Okay, but how? An open flame was too risky. Maybe…a woodburning pen? Hmmm…would that work? I got myself a pen and some luscious printmaking paper and began experimenting.
As I explored making letters and words with the pen, the permanence of the burn marks gave me pause. The paper would never be the same again. So it is with how our character is formed. We all get burned at some point (and rarely just once). It’s simply part of living life on this planet. Our character growth depends on how we choose to engage with that heat and what we allow to be shaped in us.
The growth rings in trees remind me to be patient with the slowness of this character building process. It happens over the course of many seasons and through lots of practice. The rings also offer a hopeful reminder that a tough time doesn’t mean all is lost. It becomes part of our story. One ring of many, with beauty in its own right, even if we can’t see it just yet.
The trail of what didn’t work for the art was long. Very long. I burned/lettered the poem multiple times, each time getting a little closer to the look I sensed would match what the poem was saying. The paper was too thick to trace through, so every burn was a freehand leap off a creative cliff. Burn marks can’t be erased, so concentrating on spelling was critical, as was writing straight. I went through a LOT of paper. In the process, a table surface gained a melted spot, my cutting board has one too, a towel has a new hole burned in it, and I learned to put the air purifier right next to me to pull the smoke away. And to have wet paper towels ready nearby to put out the inevitable fires.
Early process shot - line spacing should be more spacious; ring shape simpler.
A month or two ago, I was so certain about how to execute the art. I developed it over many days and weeks, only to complete it and find a sinking feeling in my heart - it was not right. It was not working. I didn’t even like it any more. The concept of tree rings was still sound, but there had to be a different way to express it. It was sad that so many hours had been invested in and to know it had gone as far as it could. It was time for a heartfelt thank you and an honorable goodbye. All that was learned creating that piece would inform what would come next, and I was grateful for this leg of the process. I had to let it go and pivot to make room for another, better solution.
I started burning the lettering again, this time breaking the poem into three sections. Giving the words this kind of space to breathe was good. I increased the line spacing and made the tree ring shapes rounder, leaving the cut edges of the paper bare instead of burned.
The O’s in the last version were burned through - they looked fabulous, BUT then there was a high profile assassination attempt and holes with burnt edges suddenly held different meaning.
I left the O’s this time, except for the one in “joy”, which I painted gold, for the strength, value, and beauty that character brings to all our relationships and to our communities.
Come see the work in person at Evergreen LA, 1255 San Gabriel Blvd., Rosemead, CA 91770.
What does character mean to you? How do you think it’s formed?
Leave your thoughts below in the comments, or message me privately here.