This artist called PD Jensen...I am a fine artist, muralist and teacher. Being primarily self-taught, I have learned the hard way the principles of drawing and painting to where first, I know many of the issues and struggles of the student, and second, I have been able to distill much of it all down to fairly simple and meaningful approaches.
The joy of teaching cannot come without the joy of drawing and painting. I live and breathe light, shadow and color, and continually practice the art in various media. It's like seeing in terms of the paint. Novalis said that the soul is where the inner and outer world meet. If the eyes are truly the windows to the soul, as da Vinci put it, then the practice of drawing and painting from life is truly a connection to soul. For the student the practice is hopefully just that, at least a connection within, rather than necessarily the achievement of a beautiful painting or drawing--which may or may not come at the moment. Besides drawing, painting and teaching, I enjoy classical piano, writing haiku, painting murals, and I have an affinity for puns. Of the following I am in continual disquiet whether or not to include or exclude; as much as it is a part of me, of who I am, it seems only to serve to separate me from others, yet if people actually want to know about this particular artist, leaving the following out would leave me only two dimensional: On a serious side, I am an informal student of the Austrian School of Economics, which brings us to understand why voluntary actions raise humanity, why involuntary actions lower humanity, and how economics has nothing to do with numbers, equations or formulae. Essentially it is about human action, about human freedom to act and exchange peacefully. In an increasingly crazy world in which the greatest addiction is to political (coercive) solutions, sound economics gives a consistent sense of sanity. However in my experience, there is a world of difference in knowing something and being able to articulate it to others in terms whose meanings people cannot consistently agree upon. Even Confucius said that when words lose their meanings, people lose their freedom. It is the Gordian Knot of our time that economics is plagued with terms that have become so emotionally charged that they cause nothing but distraction from the direction toward understanding, and instead create rather polarized thinking. In my own experience, such discussions almost always digress into emotional arguments rather than even limited common-ground understanding of our world, In 2000, I started a business as Liberty's Artist, hoping to create art that speaks, and points the way, to living in more freedom. One of my first commissioned works was the Faith and Freedom Award. Still so far my only bronze sculpture, this series of ten awards was commissioned by the Acton Institute. The Faith and Freedom Award was established as part of the Acton Institute’s tenth anniversary celebration in 2000. The awards recognized an individual who exemplifies commitment to faith and freedom through outstanding leadership in civic, business, or religious life. For this award, the Acton Institute commissioned this sculpture of Lord Acton, the Institute’s namesake, who held firmly to the two pillars of faith and freedom. So that was a feather in my cap back in the day. My art reflects a struggle with how to belong in this world. My concurrent study of Austrian economics leaves me painfully aware of the world’s addiction to force, violence and governments to solve problems, as well as a reluctance to imagine a world certainly with rules but without rulers. As with fairy tales, my continual desire is to reach through my art beyond the realm of which we are conscious, where imagination and connection may lead the way to an era of freedom and love, and leading from within, rather than seeking leadership from without. My desire and challenge is to connect with people beyond my idea-world and learn from others of a larger world than the tiny universe within my own mind. For me this can be done only by working and collaborating with others, in equal and mutual exchange, and to challenge others to see their own potential as humans, rather than a relatively grim destiny as mere "citizens". I empathize with the suffering we all endure despite the miracles we have created for one another, and I want to bring light to my world through my art, my teaching and in being the best me my heart can muster. |
The Acton Institute's Faith and Freedom Award
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