It was not, honestly, my intent to write a story for this piece. The sketch appeared as a doodle, in June of 2022, and sat tucked in my sketchbook for years. I thought most certainly it was one of the most obvious of visual stories, with it’s circular composition and my ever present Seeker following a rather emotional pair of pants with nobody inside them. The hand, so reminiscent of Picasso’s “la Petit Fleur”; Seuss’s pants; and the Dove, my homage to my Catholic enculturation. But alas, my viewers pressed me to the task of interpretation, so I wrote a story. But remember, my interpretation is not the be-all-end-all of my visual offerings. You, my savvy reader, have a spirit within you that will guide you to interpret what I paint in a way that is most helpful for your own journey. Be still and listen for the quietest, kindest, voice inside you, for that is the one that will help you find your way. With that in mind, I present below the Key to the iconography of Screw Loose and Fancy Free - Chasing the Material World, so that you may read the painting for yourself.
The Iconography
Bird and string – the thread to our higher consciousness is through the practice of Faith Hope and Charity.
Three screws – Body, mind, spirit
Running pants – the material world. Also a reference to Theodore Seuss’s What was I Scared of? a story about being afraid of the unknown.
Green eyed flower – the physically manifested Seeker, those who are looking for their life purpose
The Seeker's Spine – the train of thought that advances and recedes our consciousness
Gears – moving parts of the physical world
Golden Key – astrology, through which we can learn how our character interacts with the environment
Water – unleashed emotions which can sometimes bring us to new understandings of our self
But if you must know, my interpretation is HERE.