“With Our Thoughts We Make the World”

T6DH

The 6 Directions of Healing

Embracing the Power of Indigenous Medicine
Through Art

Welcome to my Temple

I am drawn to nature whether it be oceans, forests, or wildlands, I have always felt a deep sense of calm and belonging when I sit still in nature. After years of Dharma practice, including long walks in the forests surrounding The Land of Medicine Buddha in Soquel, California, I realized my palace of refuge lives inside of me. The entrance is just down a sandy path to a beach or along a rivers edge. If you listen to the the Banyan trees, you can hear the heartbeat of their network.

Maria Medina-Schechter, MMS,
Onsite installation, The Whirling Dervishes, Santa Cruz, Ca 2021.

Home

These vacant shells were once homes to sea creatures. Either grown into or borrowed for a day or two, these shells and many other forms found in nature find new homes and narratives in my work - MMS

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Significance of Sea Shells in Cultures

Since the ancestors of the Australian aboriginal people crossed what are now the Timor and Arafura Seas to reach Australia about 40,000 years ago the ocean has participated in the development of human society (Lourandos, 1997). Unsurprisingly, human interaction with the ocean over this long period profoundly influenced the development of culture. Within culture, it is convenient to include the other elements – aesthetic, religious, and spiritual – that are regarded as aspects of the nonphysical ecosystem services that humans derive from the environment around them. This does not decry the difference between all these aspects, but rather defines a convenient umbrella term to encompass them all. On this basis, I investigate the present-day implications of the interactions between human culture and the ocean, which is under siege as cultural products, cultural practices, and cultural influences continue to mine our oceans.

Maria Medina-Schechter, MMS,
Mobius Loop, 7x7in., shells, gold leaf, resin and ink, 2021.

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Creating Oceanic Art

Feeling inspired by the ocean is how I visually articulate what I see and feel about each object. I do not wish to take things from the ocean but rather recycle, reuse and renew these sacred objects that find their way me.

click here to view how water informs my work.

Maria Medina-Schechter, MMS,
The Blue Pearl, 7x4in., pearls, conch shell, precious stones, blue inks, wood and resin, 2021.

The West Side, Santa Cruz, CA 2015