Ayeka Series (2012)

I began by focusing my attention on this Hebrew word that I wrote out. “A’yeka” means “Where are you?” and is the first statement that God directs towards a human in the book of Genesis. What is interesting about this statement, is that in Hebrew, there is another word that is more commonly used to ask where someone or something is – ma’tai. Scholars interpret the word a’yeka as a spiritual question, particularly because it was asked when Adam was hiding after eating from the Tree of Knowledge. In this sense, “where are you?” is not a question of physical location, but of spiritual and emotional presence. 

I completed each piece on 4.5 inch (11.4 cm) square watercolor paper. I intentionally chose this small size in order to maintain my focus and to enable me to complete the image within an hour. After sitting quietly focused on the word, I waited until a particular color, shape or form came to mind. I then brushed clear water on the paper and began adding the initial colors. The paints would swirl and lose their defined form. Continuing in this way, I eventually created imagery that seemed to emerge from the lines and shapes on the paper. I reflected further on each image by writing a haiku.