Samadhi Sunrise

I just put up latest painting of Baba's tomb--"Samadhi Sunrise". There's a special early morning light on Meherabad hill that I tried to capture. At sunrise it's as if nature is mirroring the inner glow and radiance emanating from the Samadi. There's His tomb and the big sky--so I wanted this painting to say "As the world awakens to another glorious day, Meher Baba continues His glorious work of awakening the world. "

Meherazad Afternoon

I just completed my first Meherazad garden scene --"Meherazad Afternoon". The wonderful thing about doing these landscapes of the Baba retreats is that I always feel that I'm actually there while painting them. What a treat and a privelege. In this scene, I wanted to capture the peacefulness, sweetness, and colorful softness of the garden at Meherazad. I think some of these qualities came through in this painting.

Before I start painting, I always stand in front of my easel and inwardly ask Baba to do the painting. Of course, He's the painter, the paint, the painting, the paintbrush and the canvas. Several walkers in the park where I work (near Clearwater, Florida) stopped and wanted to know where that beautuful garden was located. I'm always delighted when that happens--they get a little taste.

Launching indiapaintbrush.com

For the past year, I've been painting images of the Meher Center in Myrtle Beach, SC and Meherabad/Meherazad near Ahmednagar India. Soon I'll include a separate "Meherazad" gallery on my web site and also a gallery I plan to call "Still Life(s) with Baba"--still life paintings that include framed photos of Baba amongst the flowers, fruit, wine bottles or other symbolic objects.



Most of the Meher Center paintings were done outdoors at a nearby park. I was amazed at how often people would stop and ask me where that place was, that it seemed so peaceful or special to them. One woman started crying while looking at one of the Boathouse paintings.



I'll be painting a series of abstract landscapes that include either external or internal views of the Samadhi (see the painting "Sacred Ground"). In the abstracts, I'm hoping to convey the powerful spiritual energy that I imagine radiates down into the earth beneath Baba's tomb or out into the surrounding sky.



I'll be posting thoughts about the paintings as I do them, the creative process, ways of seeing or perceiving the sacred spaces we know as the Meher Center, Meherabad, Meherazad.



What I've been attempting to do is capture with paint the envelope of divine light and love that permeates and surrounds every leaf, stone, brick and board at the Meher retreats.



-joe