Magic & Transformation in the Forest

There's always a healthy dose of mystery and magic in the forest, but August at 
RavenWood was an enchanted month. First, the amazingly talented Lauren Raine, 
artist, mask maker and ritual performer came to the studio to share her wonderful 
creations. A few folks gathered to see a collection of Lauren's masks and to listen 
to her speak about her work with the archetype of the Goddess and her traveling 
mask project. What an evening! The studio was alive with the charged energy of 
her amazing creations. See her web site here, her beautiful blurb book on her Masks of the Goddess project here and her blog post on her visit, here. 

Lauren now lives in Arizona, but for many years, lived not far north of here in Vermont. We met originally through our blogs, but soon discovered that we have many people in common. It was wonderful to have her here to share her masks and to walk with her in the forest that she had come to know a little in photographs. Lauren's masks are very powerful and travel around the country to be used by performance groups. She is 

quite generous to share her extraordinary creations with groups working with the 

Goddess archetypes, and what transpires because of this generosity is amazing. Do 

follow the link to her web site and go to the "Gallery" and follow links to some 

beautiful images of her masks in performances. 

I enjoyed seeing my paintings behind Lauren and her masks, and wished I might 

be able to make an enormously large forest backdrop for a mask performance... 

I love that idea. 

I took most of August off from the studio enjoying a nice long visit from my 
father and a quick one from my sister and niece. The weather was glorious - 
warm, sunny with low humidity. Though I wasn't in the studio, I completed a 
big project that I have been dreaming all summer - a stone patio in the 
Woodland Garden. With stone from the neighbor's stone pit and several trips to 
the river, a patio took shape.   

Pasha took on the role of the overseer, when not sleeping, that is. 

Eventually, smaller river stones will fill more of the cracks along with mosses and 
some alpine plants. Just a bit of edging stone to do still, and another trip to the river 
for small stones. The transformation of this area from mostly post-construction sandy 
soil to stone patio is quite amazing. I'm looking forward to the softening the mosses 
and plants bring.

Being so busy with guests and outdoor projects kept me out of the forest for a bit, 
but last week, Pasha and I wandered amongst the mosses, giant ferns and a huge 
variety of mushrooms. Days and nights are filled with the droning hum of crickets, 
and though it is loud and inescapable, it seems soothing and grounding to walk in 
the thick of it. 

Truly a magical August at RavenWood - I settled into a peaceful flow, forced myself 
to take weeks off to restore and renew before my teaching year resumed. I did  
a newsfast, was only on the computer for short stints, and spent most of the month 
outside working, or sitting in the filtered sunlight under the big beech, sipping kombucha and allowing the humming cricket sounds to do whatever magic it does. 

A Pause to Drink the Season

"GreenWood", watercolor on paper, 15in X 22in, VClaff 2013

These are joyful, slow days in the forest. Lammas, the first harvest festival in 
the pagan wheel of the year, brings a celebration of flowers to my garden. Deep 
in the forest, the green, filtered light is extraordinary and the mosses gleam with 
the abundance of moisture this season. I watch as light creeps over branches, 
streams through leaves and illuminates one small spot on a tree. In a moment, 
it fades and travels on, finding its way over the canopy and as far beneath as 
the branches allow. Dark and damp and mysterious places remain hidden, even 
while the fields are aglow with goldenrod and all seems revealed. 

"Ghost Tree", watercolor on paper, 15in X 22in, VClaff 2013

In the studio, I feel the mystery seeping into my work with ghostly trees and 
the magical, green light of ferns and mosses. My production has slowed, as 
I have a clearer sense of my process with this new work. I understand what 
is possible with technique and open to the infinite-seeming possibilities of image. 
I love that there seems so much to explore with this work, I can trust that it 
will keep me going. 

"Earthlight", watercolor on paper, 15in X 22in, VClaff 2013

As the weather has cooled to warm and sunny, but not humid, and the flowers 

and bees and butterflies dance in my small clearing, I come to a moment of pause. 

Having made a huge amount of work in the studio, and finished nearly all the 

outside projects, I find myself needing to stop. It feels appropriate for the season, 

like a flowering plant having put all the energy towards the flower, and now that 

it blooms, there is a pause before the energy begins to sink again towards the 

roots. Crickets buzz in the late afternoon, juncos bathe in the stone bowl in the 

woodland garden, and Pasha and I find shady spots to be still and drink in the 

abundance of the year. 

If you'd enjoy a peek at a sampling of the new work all together, visit my art web 

site at www.valerieclaff.com  I've been uploading much of the new work there and 

find it interesting to look at in a group. 

Its a perfect moment for visits from friends and family this week and next - a 

perfect moment to nourish my body with herbs from the garden, berries from 

the forest and the colors, shapes and forms of high summer - a perfect moment 
to pause and reflect and rest in the exuberant embrace of flowers. 

Do you see Pasha in his cool hiding place below?

One small friend just never seems to get enough time outside. 

This is the usual scene just after his pre-dusk curfew.