“Resting Rhomboid” ~ Naked Wellness
(Patrons saw this first, July 3, 2022.)
Illness. Injury. Isolation. Impact. Intimacy. Illustrated.

Our relationship to the landscape of our own bodies is too often tempered by judgment of a harsh inner critic followed by our assumptions about the inevitable criticism of others. Add structural damage and a dose of perfectionism to that equation and you become a person who refuses to own a single full length mirror.

Systemic nerve damage has a multifaceted impact on movement and muscle memory. Other parts begin to compensate for the ones that are impaired. Gradually, those compensatory parts begin to suffer from added wear and stress. In a very chicken-or-egg-first kind of way, it can be quite difficult to decipher the actual origin of each new consequential injury.

To put it simply… Things get really out of whack.
Successful physical rehabilitation has no place for Hollywood-esque comparisons, deceptive blinders, hopeful illusions, or shame.

The need to rehabilitate the landscape forces a closer look at what is working, what isn’t, and what needs to be done to improve general operations and functionality. For fourteen years I have been adjusting to multiple modes and rotating cycles of pain management and physical therapy to address this broad and diverse assortment of seemingly random developments.

There is an intimacy that evolves in taking the time to know the body this way. Taking the time to be still and lovingly ask my One-and-Only body, “What do you need right now?” is not a skill that is cultivated in our society.

Occasionally, in the midst of maintenance and attention to these interconnected details, Grace steps in and allows me to see the beauty which resides in my scars and perfectly imperfect parts.

Creating a new rewards tier about this intimate journey and its impact on my creative process, I was naively going to call it IntimateArt4U. Which, I was bluntly told, glaringly implies an entirely different sort of content.

Though I feel called to share these reflections and what I’ve learned in the last fourteen years about the discipline it takes to nourish the inner landscape in this modern world; the raw nature of images born on this journey may NOT be something some of my patrons will actually want to see. Rest assured, other than the images in the introductory public post, you won’t have to see them if you don’t select the support level associated with this content.

In this new Naked Wellness Tier you should know:
Patron support at this level supports the Art For Arachnoiditis Project website, organic supplies and maintenance of the Creative Wellness Garden, and expenses for other charitable projects at my studio.
This tier will contain adult content that can only be unlocked at this tier
Benefits

Patrons subscribed at this level will have exclusive access to one monthly post containing my original visual art (i.e. drawing/painting/photography/collage), and/or written work, research and resources, and any other content which supports this intimate level of the healing process, conceptual journey, and awakening that may be coming through that month.
Access to all content posted at lesser payment tiers
As always, the option to unsubscribe at any time
Click “see all five levels” to choose this on the rewards page

“While the motivation for stripping down to one’s birthday suit can vary, the result holds true for all: the naked body is a celebration of what nature gave us (or how damn hard a woman worked to get what she has now), and nudity increasingly signifies strength more than vulnerability, choice rather than subjugation, a victory of female perspective over the male gaze.” from How Posing Nude Became the Ultimate Celebrity Power Move by NATALIE FINN July 2017
[Embedded links and additional details are included in the original post here:
https://www.patreon.com/posts/resting-rhomboid-68621403%5D

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