My week with Barbara Bash and Bob Wing in a Brush & Sword Workshop at The Crossings

Today was a peaceful low key day attending my Brush & Sword workshop with Barbara Bash and Bob Wing. We spent the entire first day learning how to hold our brushes and then how to direct the flow of the brush across the page. We drew straight lines across the paper (news print) all morning with only water - learning as I said first how to hold it - then about the Tan Tien or Hara (our center) and then a Tai Chi move in which we simply turned our bodies placing 70% of our weight on the side we were turning to and 30% on the other and then back again - moving the body from the Tan Tien. Then we sat down and moved in our chairs in the same way, directing our brushes using our centers to direct the flow. We then learned how to make our bones heavy so that we could properly create the relaxation in the arm with the brush. All morning we drew that one straight line focusing on the feel of it on the paper and moving it with our energy projected from the Tan Tien. In the afternoon we finally got a small wee bit of ink in our water so that our lines finally could be seen and we then learned how to begin and how to end a stroke. In between all of this we heard Aikido philosophy about holding our space - the idea of no resistance and well as the effect of a gesture on creating movement in another! Day two brought more drawing of straight lines and talk about gestures. Right before lunch we selected our bokken! That is a wooden sword (Samurai style) Yea! I was surprised at how heavy it felt - balanced and just right in my hands. We haven't used them for anything yet - perhaps today.  In the afternoon we learned about pictographs and then we started painting pictographs instead of straight lines. And finally later yesterday afternoon we made our own "big" brush. Using a 12" piece of bamboo, a dowel, twine, and an 8" horsehair bundle - and epoxy! Pretty cool! I can't wait to try using it! BIG ink BIG paper - LOL!!! It was interesting making the pictograms - still using my chi for moving the brush while sitting erect my brush and spine parallel, each stroke beginning and ending with a small fold. I found that I would forget all about holding it correctly - getting too involved in the art form instead of the technique. I hope today I can move back to that focused place using my whole body in drawing the lines. This morning we spent almost 2 hours working outdoors with our bokken's (wooden sword) learning how to hold it - how to take it out of the scabbard (if it had one) and how to swing it out as well as put it back in without taking eyes of the opponent. As with all things from Japan - it was formal - beginning with a bow and greeting and ending with the same. We returned to our classroom and gathered on the floor in a circle - each of us with out new brush made yesterday and left to dry overnight. In the center of our circle was a stack of large pieces butcher paper about 48 inches square each. I had gone outside to get four rocks to hold down the corners of the paper we would be working on. Next to the paper was a bucket of black ink (tempera paint) and several empty buckets for holding brushes when we were finished. Our brushes were still bound and so all of us took the bindings off the bristles together and released the brushes. Next, when it was my turn, I approached a large pillow and knelt down on it in front of the paper. I placed my brush at my side. My intent was to honor - Heaven - Earth- and Humankind in a conscious act of one stroke calligraphy. Heaven - Kneeling before the paper I acknowledged my connection to the divine and my mind had the thought that my desire was to allow what is - to be - in my work. And I bowed. Earth - I took up my brush, just made and unbound, and dipped it in the ink, swirling it around getting it very wet. Holding it up a bit, I allowed ink to drip off some before beginning. Then in one movement I took my brush to the paper and in one slow, focused stroke pulled my brush around the paper and make the shape of a circle. When finished, I place my brush in an empty bucket. Humankind - I sat back on my heels and observed what I had done, without judgment - only observed and acknowledged. And I bowed. I then took my paper, folded it in two and placed it in the stack with the papers of those who went before me. I placed a new paper for the next person on the floor in front of me, replacing the four rocks as well, then rose and went back to my place in the circle. All of us did this in turn. It was an initiation of sorts - we consecrated our brushes as well as making our very first "big brush" strokes with our very own brushes, made with our own hands. This morning we work some more with our swords. We learned how to swing down over our head at the opponent - and also how to defend with a slice to the abdomen. We worked in teams and practiced for an hour or so. Then we went inside and prepared to do additional brush work with the brushes we had made. This time we got to add a speck of red color to represent the human element. AND - we got to keep the work!!  After lunch we all watched the movie Hero - I brought it from home - if you haven't seen it - it is great. If you saw Crouching Tiger and liked it - you will love this as well. In our afternoon session we started out with our swords again. This time using the sword to connect with "heaven" bring down the energy by holding up the sword and rotating it and then coming down in a straight line to in front of our chest and then "seating" the power. Accompanying this we were to use our voices with our choice of sounds. We each went off to a place in the woods and practiced alone!! Then we went inside to meet the BIG brush!!! Wow!! What a trip - that baby is heavy! We each took our turn - standing before the paper - bowing - walking to the can holding the brush and picking it up for the first time. Awesome! the brush (bristles) are at least 24" long - it felt incredible to pick it up and take it quickly to the paper black paint dripping as you moved. I loved it - and was very pleased with what came out of me on the paper. And what was best was how it felt - my whole body making a mark on that paper in one single stroke. Today we met and worked with our bokkens. Bob asked us to go once more out to a pot in the woods and connect heaven and earth with our bokkens and our voices. Yesterday I was unable to find my voice - was too self-conscious - too many folks driving by that I know. In the car coming home last night however, I visualized what I was doing with the bokken and sang out my voice quite well. So this morning - I threw away all self-conscious behavior recognizing this was not for anyone but me and moved the blade thru the air and down, grounding the energy to Earth. Wow! When I rejoined the group - Bob smiled and said I have a feeling you are going to be borrowing a lot of this!!! I smiled really big! The rest of the morning was made doing Big Brush one more time. My stroke today was so cool!!! I had no idea where it was going to go but as I went back to add my red paint which is my personal marking of the work - it found a perfect place and I spiraled the red paint in drops over what would be the "belly" of the stroke!!!!   To see a slideshow of all the pictures ~ Click here!     Brush & Sword