In May of 2022, I signed up to Daniel Mirante's 7 week visionary art course. It had always been a dream of mine to study with the teachers at the Visionary Art Academy in Vienna Austria... but the school closed down during the Covid Pandemic. Several of the teachers started offering courses online, and when I saw the course offered by Daniel, I knew it was a YES for me as well as my 43rd birthday gift to myself. I didn't quite know it yet, but this was lining up to be one of the biggest pivotal, life changing moments in my art journey so far. After all, the only classes I had taken before was an oil painting class at 12 years old, one oil painting class at 17, and a design class in my early 20s. This would be the first class where I have studied with a teacher while learning some legit techniques.
In the class we are working from photographs, which is amazing, because I have 18 years of professional photography under my belt. I love creative photography, so I had some fun images to dig up and use as art study pieces for the class. I used a few of them in the image below including the fortune teller and images underneath. I also used some found images on the internet including Gandhi, Ganesh, and the lotus hand mudra. Hanuman is a photo from a friend and the cobra and image on the bottom right is all my imagination.
Here is a sample of my artwork before the class (image below). This is a body of artwork that goes from about 2012 to 2022. I cant even begin to tell you the craziness I actually went through during this period of my life, for real... but that would be an entirely different blog post or maybe even novel haha. Anyways, I have created an oracle deck from most of these paintings during that time. I am currently working on a book and have a friend who would like to publish the deck. This has been a project in process for a few years now, and it looks like help with my oracle book may be on its way (which is what I need to finish).
A lot of the work (above) was inspired by plant medicine journey work as well as images that would enter my screen of awareness at any given time. I had never really studied color theory or figure drawing.... which is easy to see to the trained eye haha. Some artists purposely paint with personality, but the masters can paint perfection and then break the rules on purpose. I love this body of art, and prints will always be available as I know it has also been cherished and loved by many who have come across it.
Anyways, so as you can see, my art is completely changing! I am thankful for all I am learning with Daniel Mirante about the technique called Mischtechnik which seems to have taken the visionary art community by storm. I believe there is an entire renaissance of art exploding into consciousness right now, entirely missed by most unless you are tuned into it! Some ways you can kind of tap in is to search hashtags with #visionaryart.
Sooooo, Lets time travel a little more, shall we? Here is another small sample of my work from before 2012 -- more from 2002 to 2011 ish, so there are major shifts happening for me ever 10 or so years haha! Lifetimes within lifetimes.... what a trip! This body of work (below) was created through my 20's and while me children were young. I was married and my career as a stock photographer had begun. Even though photography was my bread and butter... fine art was always a passion from about 7 years old when I experienced my first go at oil painting.
This coming September I will be taking Daniels next 7 week course, continuing to learn from him. I am excited to see all the art studies that come into creation through this experience. I have been so focused on practicing technique that most of my work afterward is all art studies. I have not got lost in a total creative painting that comes from inner visions with this new style emerging yet. But it is coming, and it will come soon as I see images flash through my mind. I am excited to continue to merge worlds of my photography and artwork - and it has already started to change my photography style. So both mediums are morphing into something new and I hope to create magnificent pieces that many can fall in love with and feel deeply without having words to describe what they are experiencing. That is the goal!! So I must find figure drawing classes, and study color and light as well as create a stable and solid income for myself so I can continue down this beautiful (hard working) path as an artist.
Thank you so much for your interest in my work and life. <3 Much LOVE!!
~Renee Sarasvati