By portraying the interconnectedness of space and objects, Greg Thatcher’s drawings of ancient yew trees in England, create peace and expansion for the viewer, mirroring the inner experience of transcending in meditation.
In 1991 I received a grant from the Iowa Arts Council, to travel to England on a print making collaboration with Stephen Whittle, in his printmaking studio in Skelmersdale, Lancashire. I was interested in working with Stephen because he was an excellent print maker, and also because there was a purpose-built Dome for group practice of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme in the Maharishi European Sidhland*.
When we arrived, I started researching subject matter for drawings. This involved among other things travelling and looking at travel brochures from across the country. I found a leaflet from St. Mary’s churchyard in Painswick, Gloucestershire. It had a photograph of one of the many yew tree avenues surrounding the church.
Looking at the picture, I found that my attention was drawn through the avenues of yew trees into the deep space in the background. This created a feeling of expansion and deep peace. This experience was intriguing and reminded me of my experience of how my mind and body settle down during Transcendental Meditation. I thought that I could possibly use this spacial idea in my work, which would draw the viewer into the deep space of the picture, and thereby into their own subtle state of awareness. This is transcending: taking the mind from the gross to more subtle values.
The concept of space as a metaphor for consciousness
In art, space is a metaphor for consciousness. This is a concept that the art faculty developed in the early years of Maharishi International University. Space is the most subtle of the five elements and the one that pervades everything in creation. I think of space as the container that binds, or holds creation together. Space exists within the subtlest aspects of nature: from the finest atoms to the more manifest objects that make up our entire universe. In art, we teach there are two types of space: positive space, i.e., an object or objects; and negative space, or that which is in-between objects. Space is unseen, it cannot be touched, tasted, or felt. It becomes visible only in its relationship to objects.
Space and the relationship with its objects
Space is actually a force created through the relationship it has with objects. Space as a force, either strengthens, or weakens the object(s) due to its relationship or distance between objects. If the space between objects is too much, the relationship between the objects becomes weak. If the space between the objects is too close, the object feels confined, or closed in. In art, the key is to create a balanced relationship between the object and the negative space around it so that they support and strengthen each other. At every level of creation space plays a role to allow manifestation to exist. If space is removed from the five elements, everything in creation would collapse to a point. In this way, we can see that space is absolutely essential to the structure of manifest nature.
Successful artwork mirrors the fundamental balance, harmony and interconnectedness of nature. This is art’s power as a vehicle to lead the viewer into a state of inner silence, or Self-referral consciousness. This is what I call the magic of art: how a 2D/flat artwork can transport us into our inner Self. How does this happen? The artist must encourage the viewer to open himself/herself up to the work and be drawn into the work on the level of the heart and emotions. This allows the viewer to experience the underlying rhythmic balance and coherence inherent in the work. If the rhythms in the work are balanced, the viewer’s attention, or consciousness will flow throughout the work. This flow nourishes and uplifts the viewer’s awareness. This explains why beautiful music, profound artwork, and natural settings can inspire us as humans to have deeper spiritual experiences.
Expressing the yew trees’ story
I have been returning to Painswick over the last 29 years to continue my work on my yew tree series. Plein air work done over a long period of time on one piece creates a deep silent reciprocal relationship between the artist and subject matter. I find that I become a vehicle, or a ‘means’ to express and tell the yew trees’ story. My focused awareness while drawing becomes the basic language between the trees and me. In this state, I discover a visual language appropriate to express the communication between animate (outer) and inanimate (inner) values. Actually, animate and inanimate cease to exist in a transcendental state of oneness.
The reality between the two is of a shared energy, love, or Being. There is no differentiation, just a flow between the trees and me. Experiencing this flow is very delicate, almost imperceptible. It is a recognition of life in its most basic form. This is what Maharishi Mahesh Yogi calls “Being” or “Isness”. Here, I have the possibility to glimpse the underlying energy and unity that exists within everything. Maharishi Vedic Science calls this most basic level of life, bliss consciousness, the Unified Field of all the laws of Nature. It is the unbounded inner Self, where everything in creation in infinitely correlated with everything else.
Greg Thatcher received his B.F.A. from the University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada 1973 and his M.A. in painting, printmaking and drawing from University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 1978. He recently had a one-person exhibition, ‘The Sacred Yews’, in the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden, Iowa, January–April 2020, and an invitational touring exhibition ‘Line’ with the Blanden Memorial Art Museum, Ft. Dodge, Iowa, January–March 2019. He has exhibited his work in Canada, USA, England and France with one-person exhibitions at universities, art centers, and museums in Canada and USA.
For full details about Greg and his work, please visit www.gregthatchergallery.com
*Maharishi European Sidhaland (MES) in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, UK: Inspired by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of Transcendental Meditation, the MES comprises a community of practitioners of Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme, who enjoy group meditations twice daily in a custom-built Dome to generate an influence of peace and coherence for the nation. They also established the Maharishi Free School, which has pioneered Consciousness-Based Education across the world.
Maharishi Golden Dome, Lancashire, UK: www.goldendome.org.uk
Maharishi Free School, Lancashire, UK: www.maharishischool.com
Maharishi International University, Iowa, USA: www.miu.edu
Stephen Whittle Etchings: www.whittleetchings.com