"Shakti" is a part of a big painting I will do. Now it consist from several sketches and this is one of them.

This is not easy to explain in couple words why I chose that field to paint, may be I will write an article. But several definitions could show the main idea. (From Wiki): "Shakti rom Sanskrit shak - "to be able," meaning sacred force or empowerment, is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that are thought to move through the entire universe in Hinduism. Shakti is the concept, or personification, of divine feminine creative power, sometimes referred to as ‘The Great Divine Mother’ in Hinduism. On the earthly plane, Shakti most actively manifests through female embodiment and fertility, though it is also present in males in its potential, unmanifest form.

Not only is the Shakti responsible for creation, it is also the agent of all change. Shakti is cosmic existence as well as liberation, its most significant form being the Kundalini Shakti, a mysterious psychospiritual force.Shakti exists in a state of svātantrya, dependence on no-one, being interdependent with the entire universe.

Hello everybody! Today is +20 in Moscow, so i am thaw out and ready to share with you my experience of painting. This is step-by-step description of my work "Komuso monk" and about 10 pictures you can see under cut. This is the final view.

I was impressed by the dark sky with violet clouds described here annamain.org/index.php/site/comments/new_graphic_with_dark_sky_symphony/

My instruments was 2 aqua-brushes with ink; one with pure black ink, and another with 30% ink in water. I used an aquarel paper A4 and several aqua pencils (Derwent`s and Gretacolor`s Aquamonoliths)

If you don`t like aqua-brushes it would be the same process to use a classical brush #4 or #5… or the size you like.  I recommend to use squirrell brush because it could suck up more water or ink in one time. First of all I made several strokes with pure water to form the light tops of the clouds. Then I made the bottoms of clouds with 30% ink. If you make several strokes on one place of the paper it will be more deep color of ink. It was a bit dark on my balcony when I did it so the picture is not the best. But you can see here how the clouds setuated on the paper: with an angle to horizont. It means the wind.

While the picture still wet make strokes with pure ink. If you lightly touch the wet places with a tip of a brush the paper easily and naturally pull in the ink into the picture. You should pay attention how the dark ink distributes on the clouds to make the best shape.

An aquarel paper with rugged structure has own possibilities to interact with water and ink. So you shoudn`t afraid of water`s drops and only check how the ink spreads on the surface. Use pure ink, 30% ink and pure water to form different colors of clouds.

Here you can see how brush strokes creates a vision of cold dark clouds and wind. There is no needs to finish every cloud with the same strokes. If a wind is strong it tears clouds. Take care to paint clouds in different angles to each others. It makes  picture a natural view because as if you see the scene from the earth.

When I had finished with clouds I painted several culms of a grass at the left corner. I did it with 100% ink over the clouds, so it`s importand to make clouds dry before painting.

The figure of aKomuso Monk was made with pure dark ink too, the same way as the grass. The angle of clouds haven`t the same as the grass because clouds are far away. But the direction of the wind for the earth objects is about the same. So the grass and monk`s clothes  flutters together. In that point you could finish your work as a monochrome picture. I desided to go farther and input several colors.

You can see a blank white paper between ink objects. I started with a pancils to make white holes deeper.

Light apricot and several shadows of blue aquamonolith pencils - this is my choice for that picture.

After drawing I washed out pencil`s strokes with water brush, made picture dry and made a durk dust with the pure ink.  It seemed right to made several strokes with yellow pencil and washed it out the same way. White points was made as a last act… So the picture was completed. May be it will be one of the parts for next big acrilic painting.

I used to live in Siberia for 11 years - from 4 to 17, and then it was cold weather more then 8 months per year in cities I lived next 15 years. But the true is I hardly endure cold weather all of my life! Not only psychologically. All cells of my body rebell againt it! Especially dark and cold wind - it kills me and makes body depression every year. Yes, this is a kind of pleasure to wear warm socks in the everning… from time to time, or for special mood. But it is disgasting for me to be forced to use it. My body feel it as a kind of compulsion to the nature. I hate layers of heavy clothes covers my body as leaves of a cabbage. I always desire to drop it and physically hate to dress in pull-over at home. Even such dresses is beautiful, comfortable and stylish I force myself to suffer it and carefully protect my soul from annoyance and irritation, as protect from illnesses.

This year it`s strange weather in Moscow. I easily lived out the Great Smoke and The Great Heat (+41 degree) in August. It was expected to have a warm long automn, but today is +10 only. My body is shocked by it, I feel myself fell inside the body, shriveled, wanted to sleep all dark time. The warm is over, good bye!
All cells of my body are thirsting for sun, green grass I could lie and starring to heaven, and of couse I desire a sea. May be not for swimming, but even to see it every day would be great… My friends - habitants of the warm islands - said this is too much cold in winter for swimming. But it is not a long time, may be 1-2 months of a bit more cold winds and dark sky…  it`s not a problem if you compare it with 9 months. 
9 months!!! Such perspective of dark and cold made me crazy. I have to think about something else otherwise…
The only thing helps is my plans for creation, my paintings, graphics and books. As it will be cold outside I will stay at home and deducate all of my time to work. And I can nvite my friends to share with them a happy moments of creativity and a cup of chinese Oolong tea.

Hello everybody. I should to say about it ‘Hot news’ but actually this is cold here. This is so cold here in Moscow then my paintings need hours to dry so I have to use fen for it. This picture named "Universe-I" and represents the esoteric idea (also used in Astrology and Philosophy) of the cycle of nature elements: Water-Fire-Earth-Air. Small picture:

  Ideas of movement, how ideal idea could embodys to the solid forms, the process itself - this is my investigation and feelings. Step by step, from quiet statics, so fine and hardly perceptible has it`s own desire to be exist among people. Step by step it percolates through the everyday`s noise to something new, visible. I can feel it before I`ll give my brushes and instruments, choose paper and start to create. Before the first stroke I concentrate to the ideal form, Idea itself, then I must see it through the paper and like under it and then stabilize the image and start to work.

In the Graphics I want to represent the ideal ideas in it`s movement, live and full of information.

Yesterday sky was dark and blue, with lacerated dark-blue clouds aflared with the wind… I opened all windows on my 21-floor balcony and enjoyed that nature`s symphony.

It was a kind of such feeling turnes us to feel deeper so I started to paint. It was dark and I changed the place to the tea-table and made the new picture. The athmosphere of fire, teapot, tea and painting in ink technigue, and mistery clouds in the sky - everything was the reasons to paint the picture with monk-kamuso. This is Japanese Zen sect of mendicant monks trevels around Japan playing sakuhachi flute. (On the 1-st of septebber I was listening sakuhachi on a concert). A monk-kamuso tipically coveres his face with a basket:

In the middle of my work the picture seemed like that:

As I had finished with ink I felt this is something more in the picture. It was the deep storm sea with waves and wind, and colors of sun behind the clouds, So I deside to continue painting. I will publish the result tomorrow because I have to sleep. As a professor  I have to teach students tomorow early morning. Oh my god, I must go to bed and try to  sleep about 5 hours. It`s a pity because this is my favorite time to paint…

I`ve just finished a new one graphics named "Milky Way-I". That time I clearly knew from the first minute what exectly it will be. This is graphic work A4 size (20 x 29 cm) on special paper for aquarel. Made by pencils Derwent, chhinese brush and ink, liners, charkoals and such tools as aqua-brushes. I like that tools and the way I can express my ideas.

And big size:

Later I plan to publish the process of creation so hopes you will be back.

That work I started in Mu-Mu cafe, waiting my friends. It was started from one spiral only and when friends had come I interrupted drawing. But it was something in my mind dreames to be born. So today`s night I finished it.  Small size:

Big size:

Story: That picture I can read as a book. It represents an ancient Indian philosophy term "Illusion Maya". It means the special energy of god used to create for human possibility  of human passions, desires, expectations, selfish plans and events coused by such things. It is the theatre, the stage with actors and play. We want the play interesting and full of passions, and sometimes it capture us and we can live the same life with heroes. But it is the illusion, real illusion, true and bright - Illusion.

If you can have a look under Maya’s covering energy you can see deep happiness, light and power of  existance. There, in silence, you can feel God.

Yesterday I saw several series of the great Indian epos "Mahabharata" and suddenly realized that somewhere deeply inside I am still dreaming about a flute. My experience with block-fluite was terrible, it was from plastic and I can`t feel it. Indian flute bansuri is from bamboo and today I have met the master, who make it here in Moscow. One of his bansuri in the picture:

I have found him by his blog http://bambooway-ru.livejournal.com  and found his way of understanding music, musical instruments and Zen right. I have visited his school Zentaku in one of tea houses of Moscow today morning. So I desided to apply for bansuri to him. As he said it needs a time to feel what bamboo matherial will be the best for that kind of flute. I want my bansuri small and dark as at the picture. Hopes I will receive it soon and try to learn it. 

Actually I want to have small musical instrument to carry it with me in adventurres. It will be the great  enjoyment to play flute on the seashore, to feel how music and sea sounds interlaces and how it connectes with moon and trees and my mood too. Hopes our winter - so long, too much long for me! - would be shorted with bansuri. I will try it by intuition and play improvisations. Anyway I listen music inside so it will be great to play it in reaity.
 

I was extremely lazy at Corfu and so didn`t write several important things. One of them was my crazy swimming on 20 of July. I started from #1 point - it`s Hefira beach. I swam with snorkelling set (mask, flippers, tube).

All trip  took from 11.30 to 17.30.

Point #2 is my favorite rock, so friendly it is that I can`s defy it`s hospitality. I spent hours lying on it`s surface,  listening breath of the sea and heart of the mountings. I`ll write about my spiritual sence later and now only notice - that rock is important and I always come to see it. After who knows what a time I continued my swimming trip.

Point #3 is rocks aroung "La Grotta" bar. If you have a glance to it fron the road up on the mountings it is beautiful place. Nature made something like installation of an artist fron wild rocks, blue-green sea and trees. But fron the sea and under water I saw it wasn`t so exciting. Rocks was unpleasant, sea was poor of life and remind me something like natural waterpool. On the side tha bar  knocked senseless with an ugly music, something like trance rock. It seemed so unnatural then I decided to leave that place. It was no pleasure to swim to Paleokastritsa or be back with the same way. And I made a crazy decision to swim across open water - from point #3 to #4 - Limni beach. I did such trip for the first time so it was a bit crazy… considering my flippers was near break. But I felt the moment exectly for it and then did it. During that swimming I worried about motor boats and mad guy with scooter, it they would scud near me and i have no time to dip. By such thoughts I tryed to swim more quickly and was ot of breath so clearly understand how people could… No, I don`t like to think about. The great lesson was not to be out of breath.

After the crazy swimmimg I gained Limni beach in point #4. It was paradise exactly!

White chalk stones and wild rocks formed fantastic place. I love it from the first view, not only because it was the final point of swimming. It was an essence of sea beauty includes rounds and smooth lines with sharp royalty  of the rocks. Who knows how many time i spent here, may be 2 or 3 hours. It was sweet time of swimming, diving and lying on the hot white stones on the beach and also on sharp rocks in the sea. My bikini came to harm by the sharp stones but it was nothing. Body was safe even I climbed higher to the stones and lay on the sharp sprouts on stones. The same way yogins can lie on nails. If you are in harmony never could make a damage. So I was in harmony here.
 

Under the sea there is  white chalk stones and  the   bottom of the sea itself is a smooth chalk couch. Many small creatures lives here, crabs in shells, small fishes…

And then I felt the moment to leave such paradice and be back. My tagret was point #5 -  small unnamed beach in the rocks situated exectly opposite my favourite stone #2. I love that place and spent here many time, sometines to sunset. Then I force myself to come back, to point #1 and did it. It was my great trip of that visit Corfu. Hopes next year I will do it again… and again! And then may be I will expand my swimmings to all the island. Why not?