Speed of Life

"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration.“ — Republican President Abraham Lincoln,  Message to Congress, December 3, 1861 Labor Day, 1942 by Charles Henry Alston,  the first African American supervisor for the WPA Federal Art Project Today, in honor of Labor Day in the United States,  Denise  Oliver Velez posted a moving tribute to  work and workers  on the  Daily Kos.   Inspired by the words, images and music that Velez put together, I have spent much of this Labor Day in deep consideration of the struggle and sacrifice of the brave laborers who worked together to build this country.  Peter Clothier on his site,  Vote Obama 2012 , has also been considering the meaning of this holiday. Clothier writes: "How much thought, I wonder,...

We were not meant to survive. We were meant to live. - W.S. Merwin Gregg Chadwick A Balance of Shadows 72”x96” oil on linen A Balance of Shadows was begun in 2004 as a visual poem reflecting the tensions of our era. Today, May 24, 2012, I laid a thin transparent layer of lapis lazuli across a section of the sky. Sourced in Afghanistan, this precious stone, when ground into pigment, creates a radiant blue that has been considered auspicious in both east and west. The word depicted in Japanese script in the upper left section of the painting is satori .  The word satori is a Japanese Buddhist term for enlightenment or "understanding". In the Zen Buddhist tradition, satori refers to the experience of kensho . Kensho when used in Zen traditions refers to "seeing into one's true nature." Ken means "seeing," sho means "nature" or "essence." Satori and kensho are commonly translated as enlightenment, a word...

Dear Friends, I am honored to invite you to register for the next  One Hour/One Painting Art Meditation Session  which will be led by the  distinguished art writer Peter Clothier  at 6:30pm on May 24th, 2012 in my studio at the Santa Monica Airport.  Peter has recently hosted One Hour/ One Painting sessions at the Diebenkorn: The Ocean Park Series exhibit at the Orange County Museum of Art and at the LA Louver Gallery.  When describing Peter Clothier's sessions, I am often asked what to expect. In short, Peter will guide a small group of people through an exercise in 'concentrated looking' over the course of one hour's time. He will do this by taking us, as individuals in a group, on a visual and contemplative tour of my large, six by eight foot, painting  A Balance of Shadows . We will experience color, shape, space and image in a concentrated yet calm and meditative manner using our eyes and minds.  I see this as an 'exercise i...

by Gregg Chadwick Peter Clothier's Mind Work explores the history and spiritual dimensions of his inspiring life. Clothier is known for insightful writing on the arts and artists which adds luminosity to the events depicted in  Mind Work . The volume delves deeply into a life well lived and inspires us to consider our own lives in a spirit of humility and acceptance.   The book is  structured into a series of essays that reflect an admiration for Montaigne's writings. In this spirit, each chapter of  Mind Work  dwells upon a singular idea and illuminates this idea with episodes drawn from Clothier's experiences.   Mind Work  deftly weaves Peter's family history into essays rich with metaphysical questioning. Looming behind much of Clothier's life is the recurring struggle to both live up to his father's dreams for him and to overcome them. In one pivotal chapter, Clothier and his wife Ellie encounter, for the first time, Michelangelo's sculp...

"June 09, 2010 — What if we could make a difference by doing something simple? A bunch of us walked into a bookstore in downtown Washington, DC, sat down and started chanting OM. Here's what happened." BuddhaFest "Om" Flashmob in a Washington DC Bookstore Produced by Cory Wilson DC's First Buddhist Film Festival runs from June 17th until June 20th. SCHEDULE All events at the Katzen Arts Center at American University unless otherwise noted on the schedule. A few events will be held across the street at the Kay Spiritual Life Center. Location 4400 Massachusetts Ave, Washington, DC, 20016 THURSDAY - JUNE 17 6:30 PM | Opening Reception: Featuring contemporary Asian refreshments from Mie N Yu of Georgetown and an opening ceremony led by Tibetan Drupon Tinley Ningpo. 8:00 PM | Opening Film: Cherry Blossoms FRIDAY - JUNE 18 4:30 PM | FREE SCREENING: Fire Under the Snow 7:00 PM | Program: Tara Brach and Lama Surya Das Living Buddha - Awakening in...

Peter Clothier Reads at the Standard by Paige Wery's Torchlight (March 23, 2010) Artillery Magazine hosted an intimate event with art writer Peter Clothier last night at the Standard Hotel in Hollywood. Peter began the evening by reading a bit from his new book Persist and then in an honest vulnerability spoke of his personal and artistic challenges to a supportive audience. Peter encouraged the group to face the inhibiting lies that keep us from reaching our full potential in art and life. Peter explained that his personal lie began at his birth when he was delivered with an umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. A skilled, quick thinking nurse cut the cord but Peter spent much of his life held back by the illusion that "I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't be alive." Peter Clothier has left that illusion behind. In Persist and on his continuing book tour, Peter provides vital clues and encouragement learned through meditation and community to his readers. Congrat...

A Reading by Peter Clothier Date/Time: Tuesday March 23 at 7 pm Location: The Standard, Hollywood Please join Peter Clothier from 7 to 10 PM in the Cactus Lounge for this public event Hosted Wine bar for the first hour Artillery Magazine presents a special book reading and signing of Persist: In Praise of the Creative Spirit in a World Gone Mad with Commerce , by writer Peter Clothier. Peter Clothier's Persist: In Praise of the Creative Spirit in a World Gone Mad with Commerce arrives at the perfect time. As the art world tries to reinvent itself in the current economic malaise, Clothier's book inspires us to see the soul and spirit inherent in the creative process. Money may not be the root of all evil but it is the root of a lot of bad art. Peter Clothier challenges artists, writers, actors and filmmakers to value artistic process as a goal in itself rather than a path to wealth and power. Most of all, Clothier urges us to keep on creating - to never give up. The world woul...

Peter Clothier's new review of my work captures the soul and spirit of my art. "There is an other-worldly quality to Gregg Chadwick's paintings, a sense of liberation from the bonds of gravity that define our physical existence. They celebrate the dedication of the monks they portray and convey some of the quiet joy that freedom from earthly needs invests in them. And yet, too, there is an elegiac tone, a kind of nostalgia for a manifestation of the purely spiritual that most of us can never hope to attain. The paintings are truly captivating in that they invite us irresistibly into their spaces and hold the attention there in their swirl of light and color, suggesting inexhaustible depths of experience for the eye to explore." -Peter Clothier Please read the full review here on Peter's site: Monks by Peter Clothier Peter Clothier has a long and distinguished career as an art writer, novelist and poet. His work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times , Artscene, ART...

Peter Clothier's Persist: In Praise of the Creative Spirit in a World Gone Mad with Commerce arrives at the perfect time. As the art world tries to reinvent itself in the current economic malaise, Clothier's book inspires us to see the soul and spirit inherent in the creative process. Money may not be the root of all evil but it is the root of a lot of bad art. Peter Clothier challenges artists, writers, actors and filmmakers to value artistic process as a goal in itself rather than a path to wealth and power. Most of all, Clothier urges us to keep on creating - to never give up. The world would be a lesser place without the arts. A beautiful, inspiring book. Highly recommended. Available from the publisher at: Peter Clothier's Persist from Parami Press And from Amazon: Peter Clothier's Persist Peter Clothier's blog The Buddha Diaries is continually informative and entertaining. Peter Clothier has a series of upcoming events in Los Angeles. See below: