Thought Path Forest Mind
by Venka Payne
Venka Payne, Forest, watercolor on paper, 20 x 30 inches, 2011. Courtesy of the artist.
Thought Path Forest Mind
Venka Payne | MAR 2024 | Issue 31
(I)
There is a path
I tend to follow
through the depths
of my mind
It is narrow and winding
but even this dim evening
can be seen
As the crow flies
it seems a curving line
through the middle
of deep green
textured space
Come a little lower
here I am
cold wet silvery ribbons
around bare feet and ankles
limber body exudes
a swaying freeness
an Old Growth Forest
in my mind’s eye
(II)
We can’t all just go
to the places
where it still rains
you know
some must stay
and observe
and tend to the dying
I will stay
I will die
with the Forest I love
The thought of that
is the last of my comforts
and of my sorrows
The Forest holds me
The only thing
I ever wanted
was to save you
we sigh together
(III)
The thoughts in my mind
travel this paper
with this pen
scratching out ink
in erratic motions
like squirrels
up and down old bark
on a dry summer day.
And this soft wet brush
caresses water paint paper
bringing spring green
to a parched white landscape
Acrylamide Forests
of my sight
come to life
before my eyes
I write this painting
paint this poem
peruse this path
traverse this timeless
Forest Mind
Artist Statement
I seek to share, expand, and create Forest Multiverses inside the bodies of viewers and readers. My work is inspired by the remnants of Ancient Forests of the Pacific Northwest. The viewer is led deeper into an Old Growth Forest through painting and poem portals. The Earth is in crisis. The Forests I paint are older and wiser than any of us humans. The Forests are trying to tell us how important they are to our physical, emotional, and aesthetic survival. I am one of the translators of Forest language, image, and voice, and I seek to reintegrate Forest and human connection. Through accessing the Forest Mind, I seek the worldwide restoration of kinship and spiritual rejuvenation that comes from Ancient Forests and connects us all at the roots. I hope my work inspires the preservation of Old Forests, and the reforestation of the world.
Venka Payne lives in the Columbia River Gorge, in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, and takes inspiration from the fragments of Ancient Forest that still exist there. Writing and painting have always been intertwined in her process, but it was painting that she first identified as her mode of expression, and considered to be her work. Venka paints with transparent watercolors on cotton watercolor paper. The work itself involves watching, waiting, and layering: water and paint. When the paintings are finished, she mounts them onto professional wood panels. Then to protect them, she waxes and/ or varnishes them. Venka’s purpose in this life is to convey her love for Ancient Forests and bring that love into people’s homes and lives. This is a constant theme for both her writing and art. Please receive her gratitude for connecting with her work in this way.