Life Force Wheel: The Witness & The Artist

Both the Witness and the Artist work with the Skill of Perception, the first of the 4 Skills of the Life Force Wheel. The Skill of Perception involves knowing what one thinks and feels: being alive, feeling, conscious, sentient. It is about sensing what one is experiencing in both one’s inner and outer worlds. This is the most basic skill; one cannot do the other three Skills of the Life Force Wheel without mastering Perception. The Witness is about observing from one’s own perspective. It is the place where one is fully in touch with and experiencing one’s own thoughts and feelings, not shutting them out. It is the place of “beginner’s mind”, of being open to experience moment-by-moment. The Artist is the person who expresses what s/he thinks and feels. The Artist has the craft or skill of formulating what s/he is experiencing into a statement in words, dance, music, visuals, etc. The Artist apprehends energy from the Otherworld and fabricates it into an expression in the physical world. The Witness develops into the Artist when he or she is inspired to express his or her thoughts and feelings. If one thinks in terms of the Skill of Perception having a receptive (“Yin”) and active (“Yang”) form, the Witness would be receptive, being open to perceiving his or her thoughts and feelings; the Artist would be active, expressing his or her thoughts and feelings.

The Witness & The Artist is the second in a series of shows called Life Force Wheel. This year-long, six-show series of art exhibits and multiarts presentation explores the deep Archetypes of human existence. The Life Force Wheel is a spiritual teaching based on ancient, universal wisdom, received through inspiration by modern shamanic practitioner Joan Forest Mage. The Wheel is based on a deep awareness of our unity with all beings and seeks to foster healthy relationships between the individual, human society, nature, and the spirit realm. The six-show series began on December 8, 2013, with the Teacher Archetype and concludes in January 2015 with the True Self Archetype. All shows will be held at Life Force ArtsCenter, 1609 W. Belmont, Chicago.