We are a people who build castles in the air, then live in them. James Allen died at age 48, before he could see his ideas truly fly. For ever and for ever when I move. He hardly mentions women. This wonder filled process is a nebulous experience to describe. “Master yourself,” he said, “then you can master your world. Needless to say, however, there are an almost infinite number of skills, so genius can vary greatly. As you put it together, piece by piece, thinking you have the pattern in mind, but finding the real excitement comes when you turn the quilt over. The bonus and the curse of our modern world is instant access to information, trivia and imaging. The use of the word “man” was meant to imply all mankind with a tacit nod to members of the fairer sex. No one has seen through our eyes or walked in our shoes so our experiences color our work to give it individuality. (Alfred, Lord Tennyson). Isn’t email fantastic? Palm telephones with internet access are currently one of the fastest growing areas of the communications industry, and we are pleased to be in the forefront. But looking at the “geniuses” declared in the public arena, one is struck at the variety. One that was particularly mentioned was “Me and My Art” (see above) where we publish a photo (perhaps an unusual or amusing one) of yourself, and one or two of your recent works. James Allen was contemporary with my paternal Grandfather, Samuel John Ireland who was born in Barnstaple, Devon just a few miles from Ilfracombe. For persistence, you need passion, and for passion you need temperament. I say temperament. Right mind, right energy and true determination are the keys. His ideas, told mostly through metaphor, can be summed up thus: “The mind isRead More If you control the cause- you can control the effect. It’s easy to “practice” skills that you have a passion for doing. Her book Key to Yourself published in 1952 is the book I turn to again and again when I need reinforcement as an artist and as an individual. Self-employed, self-anointed and self-starting, we know that the building of character and achieving the right mental habits are as important for the serious artist as learning to draw and paint. I was privileged to visit both places and the Cornwall coast with a group of painters last May. Were he alive today he might be surprised at the number of artists and other independent thinkers who “just do it.”, PS: “Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. We are all unique and if we are expressing ourselves with truly personal work it is unique as well. Your vision is the promise of what you shall one day be; your ideal is the prophecy of what you shall unveil.” (James Allen), Esoterica: At the same time there are many of us who believe we are creatures inhibited by outside conditions. Many of us have taught ourselves techniques to throw off depression, self-defeat, dry periods, criticism. AS A MAN THINKETH: Table of Contents HOME SPIRITUAL FREEDOM LIBRARY AS A MAN THINKETH BY JAMES ALLEN AUTHOR OF "FROM POVERTY TO POWER," "ALL THESE THINGS ADDED," "OUT FROM THE HEART," ETC--Mind is the Master--power that moulds and makes And Man is Mind, and evermore he takes The tool of Thought, and, shaping what he wills, First picking out a pattern, or designing your own, then picking out the right colors and material. Honesty and childlike purity are our stock in trade. What I would never have dreamed of learning about just 2 years ago that I have found here.”, (RG note) One of the most popular features of The Painter’s Keys site, The Resource of Art Quotations is now available on palm devices. Yeats, author Brenda Maddox deals with the self-starting and independent thinking woman poets, writers and painters that came in and out of Yeats’s life. Allen’s idea was that we are our own creative power. It takes a long time to make a quilt, just like building character. He makes the case that men with unwholesome thoughts are not fit for prosperity, creativity, success, or even happiness. A worldwide community of artists receive these letters for inspiration, discussion, friendship and connectivity. True creativity must be, I think, heaven on earth. “Rocket girl”Leanne Cadden, Victoria, BC, Canada, Yet all experience is an arch wherethro’ (PDA) This service has been facilitated by subscriber Ruth Temple of San Francisco, California. And while experience shows us that there are lots of unsavory folks who become presidents of corporations, or even rich artists, he has a message that many artists will intuitively know to be true. Clearly Gandhi and Rockefeller are quite different in their “genius.” And of course, there are some kinds of genius that many do not like to acknowledge, such as Mao’s, Stalin’s, Marquis De Sade’s, and Theordore Kaczynski’s genius on the dark side of human nature. Thought is the seed for action. Involvement in the process of painting brings me satisfaction: experimenting, ruminating, spending time with the subject.