“There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.” ~ John LennonLast year not long after my TEDx talk posted online, a friend and colleauge from my Golden Threads group of women creatives invited me to show my heART in her gallery. Eden Stein is the hard work and genius behind Secession Art and Design, a studio with a commitment to emerging artists and affordable art work. With ten months to conceptulize my installation, I felt confident something genius would come to me. But as the installation date came closer, so did fear. Fear crept in and had me doubting whether I'm an artist at all, whether my work is good enough for a wall, whether I would embarrass myself by hanging my work or worse yet - embarass Eden, oh and the often question of whether words are actually art. I would go to bed and lay there sleepless wondering where this art would come from.Alas, fear imobolizes creativity so becoming stuck was one option. The other option: Make art. I began cutting the wood, purchased a sander, played with various hanging hardware and painted words. And as I made art, I visualized this installation as a love letter.Silvi Alcivar, a friend and fellow word artist, and I are the first show in Eden's new studio space. I adore both of these women and to honor their work in the world decided I was making art to welcome you to Eden's new store, ushering in an era of healing and abundance. I was making art to capture your eye so you'd walk to the back of the gallery and bask in Silvi's poetry and spirit animals. In this way of loving you, my heART came alive.Opening night at Secession SF was terribly exciting - celebrating with my kids, friends from all parts of life, and the best ever -strangers who recognized my pieces from the street. This became another get love. give love. experience for me. The lesson I hope to open myself to over and over again: loving you is the (only) way. Love on!Dear kids: This is for you. Love Always.Friends, friends, friends! This is how we love. Silvi Alcivar & Me rocking our red shoes.A piece of Silvi's art I bought, my new mantra:

opening night: my love > my fear