I just recently finished this new piece of artwork and decided to call it THE GATHERING.

It seemed appropriate as it is an image of a gathering of ants on a particular plant, which I honestly don't know the name of. The plant was broken along the main steam and the ants seemed to be feasting on the exposed insides of the plant.

Visually I found this image striking with bold pink leaves against the soft green background. The plant was fuzzy and the dark smooth ants created a contrast against the bright colors. At first glance all the ants pretty much looked the same but as I painted the ants, I noticed they weren't. One ant was a bit smaller and shaped differently. I wondered if the ant was a different species of ant, or maybe the same kind of ant but younger. I don't know how these ants were related or not, yet they all decided to gather and part take on this plant.

 

I started to think about "gathering" and how and why animals gather. Some gather together for protection while they eat, other animals gather to hunt other animals. Other animals like birds gather to migrate long distances, while other animals gather to find a mate. No matter what animal or insect, a gathering was a purpose. Yet for humans, it can get more complex in it's purpose, it's meaning, and even on how we gather. Now we gather virtually on our computer screens, and or on social media.

 

As we approach the US holiday, called Thanksgiving, I started to think about this ritual of gathering to eat food, and how and why we do this. What is the purpose of this gathering? It reminded me of a podcast where I heard Priya Parker the author of The Art of Gathering talk about meaningful gatherings.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppfONdsOkWI

 

If you are not familiar with her work, you can hear her TED talk on Youtube. Check the link below. Highly recommend to listen to as we head into the holiday season and gather...whether it be work colleagues or family or friends. It's not how we gather... but why.