Ocean Body - Secrets Beach
An illustrated beach narrative about becoming a drawing
A few years ago I did this little experiment, where once a week I would write and draw the thoughts that emerged during my solitary early morning beach walks.
For a long time, I’ve been into this idea of drawing headless self-portraits. They aren’t really headless… the space is the vast void from where the drawing fist materializes.
On these walking meditations, I’d become hyper-sensitive to what I see, and hyper-aware of the fact that vision comes from the surface and depth of eyes—eyes projecting into the head—and the body existing directly within everything that immediately surrounds it in the periphery of vision. These shapes and colors tether me to the physical reality of the world, while a great expansive vastness exists inside my head as much as it exists beyond my perception on earth.
How odd it is that while so much of the world in sensed through the skin, and ears, and nose, and especially the eyes — that when I’m drawing in order to document it all, I still cannot see my own head. I can only imagine it, unable to look back into the window.
So I fall in love with color over and again, with the green cliffs re-coloring the spring-water, with tiny ever-running springs sculpting changing pools from seasons of sand.
The soft winds greet. Quiet waters meet the sun, see my skin approaching, and beg me for some. Stepping into water, I remember water does not have it’s own color — just like the thoughts inside my invisible head, striving to find form.
I fall in love standing still watching the distance and the closeness of water and light, held by that very border stripe of sand, low down in this secret place between a wild ocean and jungle ledges.
And I sketched what I could on a folded sheet of copy paper.
And wonder of all the ways I become inside of a drawing.
“Ocean Body - Secrets Beach” by Limor Farber
September 2023. Ballpoint pen on folded copy paper | August 2024. Color
This is the original sketch. The paper was folded into eight little sections which I drew and marked on both sides with random contemplation as I walked the beach.
Later, I scanned the sketch, cleaned it up in Photoshop, and added color by hand.
If you enjoyed this piece, you will probably also like this one from the same time period.
A pre-workday balancing ritual:
Upon waking, whether its with the sunrise or earlier, immediately getting into nature is an incredible habit. Be as quick as possible, no more than the bathroom, and out you go!
Sitting on the earth in the yard and looking at the last visible stars at dawn works. A short walk in the neighborhood works. Into the car and straight to a trailhead or beach works.
No checking the cell is allowed - it will mess everything up. It will be there when you return, while everyone else is waking at the regular hour. Music is fine. Physical activity is fine. Whatever you crave - just do it outdoors at dawn!
In Hawaii, rain can never be a deterrent. One of my most majestic swims was through a dawn mist.
Time yourself. The earlier you wake the more time you will have. Prepare the night before, if you must. See if you can do it every day for a month, even if it’s only for ten minutes. Come back here and let me know what you discovered.
lovelovelove
LOVE THIS and fully resonate! Thank you.