Artist Claire Bigbee made a short trip to Snug Harbor Farm in Kennebunk to get some flowers for her open studio in the spring and was fascinated by the peacocks. She loves to paint birds and thought it a fun challenge and something different for her show. So with that, she looked up the symbolic meaning of a peacock.
The peacock is a possessor of some of the most admired human characteristics and symbolizes integrity and the beauty we can achieve when we endeavor to show our true colors. In history, myth, legend, and lore, the peacock symbolism carry portents of nobility, holiness, guidance, protection, and watchfulness. Contemplate the powers of the peacock when you need more vibrancy and vitality in your experience. The peacock can also help you on your spiritual path and breath new life into your walk of faith.
“I was reading my art journal,” shares Bigbee, “and this kept coming to mind while I was working on this painting. So get out of your way and access the source of your creativity.”
With this came the realization that children make art with no artist statement.
“They are in a particulate place, and their art is not predetermined. Our culture is articulate, analyzing, and knowing. We force experience, pushing us as adults away from the willingness to be in the unknown,” says Bigbee. “Being still settles the movie running in my head; in yoga, it shuts off the mind chatter. I like to call it the mind storm. Practicing yoga through meditation allows me to see what’s behind the curtain of my thoughts. It allows me to reveal what’s inside; it opens a pathway to follow my inner guidance. The essence of mystery in life can be conceived not by reason but through intuition.”
Another influence on this painting was when she visited the Van Gogh Boston Exhibit.
“I visited the Van Gogh Immersive Experience in Boston with fellow artists Ingunn Joergensen and Diane Carr. The animation and music of his paintings and drawings projected onto massive walls surrounded me in his flower paintings,” explains Bigbee. “It was exhilarating to see his brushwork on a large scale. The buttercup flowers as a stencil covering the peacock add another element to draw.”
For Bigbee, the peacock paintings manifest hearing those inner messages or intuitions.
“The phrase get going and see what happens guided me through this painting. So I titled it Sparkle on, Darlings, which permits me to be myself.”
Details for Claire Bigbee’s show follow this link.
To read more about this talented woman, click the link below.
Claire Bigbee
To see our present collection from this artist, click the link below.
Claire Bigbee