In Search of the River Beneath the River
stop motion video, chalk pastel on paper,
2020.
“Each woman has potential access to Rio Abajo Rio, this river beneath the river. She arrives there through deep meditation, dance, writing, painting, prayermaking, singing, drumming, active imagination, or any activity which requires an intense altered consciousness. A woman arrives in this world-between-worlds through yearning and by seeking something she can see just out of the corner of her eye. She arrives there by deeply creative acts, through intentional solitude, and by practice of any of the arts.” ― Clarissa Pinkola Estés
In this video I attempt to channel, summon, and access the Rio Abajo Rio. This deep intuitive wellspring serves as a reminder of the inner invisible seed of potential waiting for every woman to access. The spark, the inner light, the untamed, raw, wilderness of the spirit inside. At times it is a meditation of the physical body as a container, simultaneously a journey through the muslces and the nerve cells, and all at once a reminder of the invisible spirit that exists within.... a flowing river of energy beneath the river of the body ....
This stop motion video created with Chalk Pastel utilizes mark making and erasure to build and destroy the imagery. It is backlit with natural lighting which in turn allows for an organic conversation between the camera lens and the changing light permeating through the window. This video is a part of a series that is inspired by the Tibetan Buddhist practice of creating and destroying Sand Mandalas. This is a visual and auditory exploration and practice of non attachment. I translated the visual movement and imagery into a piano soundtrack to create an audio visual meditative experience. I hope that the viewer and listener will slow down their breathing, sit comfortably, and be present without thought or judgement; and in doing so, begin a journey of opening up and listening to the intuitive sound of rio abajo rio (the river beneath the river) inside themselves.