The ever-popular LL Cool J on the March 2013 cover of ESSENCE Magazine . “What I’m sowing today, I be reaping tomorrow So here’s some joyful bars, to replace your sorrow.” --LL Cool J (from Old School New School ) It was very difficult not to laugh when reading Robbie Ettelson’s satirical rant, “Being Positive is for Chumps,” in last week’s online Acclaim Magazine , against celebrity rappers for their inspiration-oriented tweets. In fact, I’ll admit it. Even though the sarcastic tirade was based in large part on a quote from The River of Winged Dreams , the subtitle of the piece almost sent me rolling on the floor: “If Robbie of Unkut comes across one more inspirational tweet from a rapper he's going to vomit rainbows.” At the same time, I smiled at the realization that the quotes which apparently have threatened to turn Robbie’s tummy inside out were often, for the rappers who shared them, not just quotes at all. They were testimonials to w

          “The Universe said, ‘let me show your soul something            beautiful.’”                  ––Aberjhani (from ELEMENTAL, The Power of                      Illuminated Love) If emergent expressionism lends chromatic form and substance to in-between states of metamorphosis, then transformative impressionism may be described as endowing such stages of transition with metaphorical narrative. These are images by Jaanika Talts in which her literary inclinations are most apparent and they evoke a clear theme, scene, symbol, or principle. The artist’s depictions of mythology’s (as well as history’s and literature’s) Venus and Cupid , The Siren’s Dream , Ophelia , and Salome are a few of the canvases and digital art compositions which borrow cues from classic stories. What makes them uniquely engaging is her own finely-honed perspective, which seems as culturally expansive as it is aesthetically versatile. She is equally comfortable with more contemporary reference

                                         (Photographed self-portrait of the artist Jaanika Talts) Consider Jaanika Talts of Dublin, Ireland, one of those contemporary visual artists empowered by an instinct for classic literary style. As she puts it, “I mostly paint when I feel like I need to write a book (and it happens often) but painting my thoughts and stories on the canvas is so much easier for me.” Visitors to Talts’ Facebook timeline can see for themselves that the literary company she keeps is one of cross-culture diversity.  A range of quotes from such powerhouses as African-American authors Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison to Canada’s as well as Sri Lanka’s Michael Ondaatje and famed American diarist Anais Nin (1903-1977) help to introduce and interpret her generously shared art. The same literary sensibility is apparent in her 2013 calendar, Camouflages . In it, she quotes the following from English novelist D.H. Lawrence (1885-1930): “A woman unsatisfied must

                   Cover of Talking Back to Dr. Phil by love-based psychology advocate David Bedrick . You can catch the previous segment of this 4-part series by Aberjhani by clicking right here . Part 3 starts now : Another principle derived from David Bedrick’s meditations on process-oriented psychology suggests treating “the powers behind difficulties or disturbances as allies instead of enemies.” That could be a tough sell for people dealing with issues such as spouse abuse or drug addiction, but the author makes his case well enough. Moreover, the debatable nature of his love-based manifesto in its entirety is not lost on Bedrick. In his own defense and that of those he would help to heal themselves and their communities, he notes the following: “Like the US Constitution, I do not adhere to majoritarianism, but rather protect marginalized people and forms of expression from being seen as ‘problems’ and subjected to the shame of psychological labeling and cultural