Buffalo Totem Painting "Sacredness" and the Symbolic Meaning

When thinking on the symbolic meaning of the Buffalo Totem, I immediately get a feeling of reverence that comes over me. The Buffalo carries with it an older wisdom of another time, to me representing a perfectly flowing circle of life. It is commonly known to be symbolic for abundance, but it goes a bit deeper. 

"Sacredness" Buffalo Totem Contemporary Folk Art Painting by Jeanne Fry

The Buffalo teaches us about honor...honoring Self, Others, and the Divine. Within this scope, the importance of living authentically and making our choices from the heart combined with gratefulness for all that surrounds us, will give us the ability to manifest what we want and need.

Being in balance with ourselves and the Earth, and  treating each living thing with deep respect can put us in a beautiful direct flow of the abundance of the Universe.

What a gorgeous animal totem to work with !

"Sacredness" Buffalo Totem Contemporary Folk Art Painting by Jeanne Fry

The Original Painting has sold.
It is available as an Art Print, which you can find here
Sacredness of the Buffalo Art Prints in our Artfire Shop 

Creating of the Blessing Bowl

This weekend we created the Blessing Bowl. I had very specific intention when I started designing this bowl. After spending the last several weeks (or shall we say months), watching those around us suffering with anxiety and stress over the economy, their jobs, and the usual triggers of worry....I thought of what I could create to be uplifting. Uplifting beyond the work that we usually do that is meant to be empowering.

 

Blessing Bowl created from Gourd by John and Jeanne Fry

So the creating began with a focused cleaning,cutting, sanding, drilling,  and more cleaning  of the Gourd. When it was prepared for it's transformation, careful thought and intention was in place while the design work began. Thoughtful time was spent while hand painting each small design on Gratefulness and Positive thoughts.

Blessing Bowl by John and Jeanne Fry

The initial layers of paint of Burnt Umber and Raw Sienna were done to create an aged look, to symbolize our past - lessons learned, experiences had, stories from our elders, that have helped make us who we are today.

The vibrant colors in the design work contrast the aged look, representing the Present, our Vitality, the Moment.

As I painted through the night, my thoughts were that the bowl would be filled with Affirmations and the things we are Grateful for...a kind of storing place for those times when we feel down or discouraged. I imagined the bowl filled with pieces of happiness, so that when we need that occasional pick me up, we pull one of the meaningful little pieces of paper out to remind us of what we have in life.

My hope is that whoever becomes the keeper of the Blessing Bowl, they fill it full of slips of paper that represent the treasures they hold in their heart.

The above Blessing Bowl is no longer available, but you can view more of our gourd bowls in our Artfire Studio

You can find more of our work on our website at
http://www.consciousartstudios.com/