(graphic courtesy of  Global March for Peace and Unity  on Facebook) “A vision of humanity as a unified force for peace had come alive in the form of millions of living breathing souls and an ideal of international democracy had been realized on a small but unprecedented scale.  History was not only made––history was tremendously honored.” – from The American Poet Who Went Home Again (Aberjhani) During this Easter Holy Week 2013, I find myself thinking about the challenges that Peace faces in our world and wonder why humanity seems to insist more on its destruction than its empowerment. From the recent murder of a 13-month-old baby in Brunswick, Georgia (allegedly by a 15-year-old boy), to the nearly two dozen wars (plus two dozen more conflicts of a similar nature) currently devouring human sanity from sunrise to sunrise, the suicidal lust for the annihilation of life on every scale is scarier than any vampire flick around. Is there anything mor

                   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