Fusion3

Fusion3 Show in Saginaw

2009-12-12T17:53:00.000-08:00

Fusion3 delivered 32 original meditation drawing pastels to Saginaw Township Hall in Saginaw, Michigan. The two members of the Art in Public Places committee that met us at the door expressed surprise that so many paintings fit in such a little car. All arrived safely, the two ladies of the committe expertly hung the show in record time. And it looks great!

Saginaw Township has a wonderful art community. They hold the State of the State Exhibition every year for almost 40 years. This show is one of the best in Michigan, drawing artists from all over the state, and even in these economic times, had prise money donations increase with their 2009 show. The award winners are invited to solo shows throughout the year, which is how Fusion3 was invited to show for this month of December.

Since October, we have converted our choir loft studio into a frame shop. Since we do everything together, we could only frame on Sundays when each of us could be there to help. Getting ready for a major show with three artists to share the work is a joy. Everything goes easier. We are however, very glad to have the show framed and hung. And we are especially grateful to be able to get back to our meditation drawing together. It's been far too long. Back to the silent Sundays.

Fusion3 Technique and Process

2009-11-24T20:35:00.000-08:00

We are three women drawn together to draw together.

We sit in a circle around a piece of paper and listen to music. The music is important and is carefully chosen to support a particular function. We do not talk. The most critical aspect of our process is that we never talk about the piece we are working on. There can be no discussion, no planning, no critique or comment about the composition. This is important for several reasons. One is that it is irrelevent. Whatever is discussed will soon be covered up or altered beyond recognition. So why say it. Another reason for no discussion is that what we are doing is not about art. It is about Art beyond art.

Each artist takes turns making marks on the one paper. One may make as many marks as one wishes and then give over the piece to another's turn. Each turn is like starting a new piece with all that went before as the prepared ground. Each turn is a new direction of abstraction. The pace and the silence brings the individual artist directly to the present moment in terms of the two dimensions of the paper. There is no other aspect with which to work. Concepts of design or story are not possible to hold on to once another person takes a turn.

With Fusion Meditation Drawing individual technique is also irrelevant. One or another of the partners will fill in the technical aspects that are needed. The technique becomes the process and expands as the group expands in its awareness and experience.

The compelling question is "what"? What is mine to do? What if I do this? What brings more life...more wholeness to this piece? Questions of "how" are soon erased. How will I do this? How did she do that? How will people like this? How do I like this? How do I fix that? None of that matters in the least, and it does not take long to realize this. This happens when the critic voice quiets in the individual's head. It happens in every group, no matter how diverse, as long as everyone respects the agreement to silence.

In the beginning, we were satisfied with our pieces much more quickly , and we stopped much sooner than we do now. Then we were stopping as soon as a composition presented itself. Our work was revelatory in that we saw ourselves as a group revealed with each piece. After working together for over a year, we began to work past the first revelation of composition. Now we work round and round in silence, open to and watching for the life to intensify or brighten, the harmony to become more finely tuned to a stronger sense of unity. Layer upon layer of pastel was applied over many sessions of work. It was at this point that our work became transformational. Now we are purposefully expressing what is happening in the group as we come out past our individual egos.

After three years, we are reaching new ground with each studio session. Like musicians who play together for a long time, we are creating a visual sound of harmony that resonates with the viewer in a way that most abstract art does not, drawing people to see our work as we are drawn to do it.

What do we mean by "lose control"?

2009-10-15T18:21:00.000-07:00

When we sit down to do a Fusion Meditation Drawing, we can now quickly come to a place where we do not attempt to control anything. It wasn't always that way.

The first of our sittings were competions between two of us, with the other one attemping to fix it. The wonderful thing about our Fusion3 process is that all of these immature thoughts do not get spoken out loud. The silence within which we work covers all this turmoil. After a few turns, what was troubling is set down. Thoughts of competition or resentment bloom and boil in brief and sometimes brilliant blasts, and by the end are like deflated balloons to be dropped or blown up again.

We are discovering that the idea of ownership is seen by our culture as integral in art and is bound up in ego and personality. When we take things personally, thoughts of judgement, such as liking and disliking, seem extremely important. Being validated as an individual becomes the driving force. The purpose of art becomes "Look at ME!" Then the group is a collection of individuals who are all trying to be recognized and stand out as separate either as the leader or the brightest star. This is leadership as control, and is completely different from what we are attempting to do as Fusion3.

Many artists experiment with collaboration. Many artists make group drawings while partying. Two of us have had many experiences of what we called a drawing game. The purpose was entertainment. What happened within the drawing was seen as accidental and was unconscious.

We are discovering that true leadership is the responsibility of each member. It is a willingness to allow something greater to be expressed, something greater than any one person could do alone. Fusion3 is guided by Martin Muller's definition of Maturity which is...

"attempting to control less."

What Is Fusion3?

2009-09-13T17:59:00.000-07:00

We are a group of three women who work synergistically to create pastel paintings. We are collectively known as Fusion3. Together we have developed a process which we call Fusion Meditation Drawing.
The Fusion Meditation Drawing sprung from an open-eyed meditation group that each of us have been practicing for many years. This meditation has no religious affiliation. Our group creates a quiet space to observe ourselves and to come out to what is present around us and each other. During this meditation time, we sometimes talk, telling of our experiences in order to give each other feedback and validation. Fusion drawing is this meditation process with Art.
Rather than express our experience with words, we use the medium of soft pastel.
At the personal level, we create a quiet space so that we can observe the critical voices in our heads and process with them in an unconditional way through the art medium. At the non-personal level, we get a glimpse of a group intuition. The art is done collectively. This allows the individual to "lose control" of the piece. The result is a fusion in our experience. In being quiet and after participation, fear melts away. What remains is Beauty and Love.

Fusion3 Is Validated Again

2009-09-12T05:41:00.000-07:00

Last night Fusion3 received our second public validation at the 49th Annual Thumb Area Artists Exhibition in Romeo, Michigan. It is only the second show we have entered as Fusion3. The first was the State of the Arts Show in Saginaw Michigan. In both shows we not only had all pieces entered jury in, but we also received significant awards. We feel humbled and validated that our process is something for the Art World to consider.