KRISTIN ZETHREN, PhD
This is part of a series that imagines some unconscious aspects of therapy–the experience of being in treatment, and the experience of giving treatment. For me this piece is about the psychologist patiently listening to a client who is intellectualizing instead of sharing, a classic example of ego defense. She parries his barrage of X’s with her own tic tac toe O’s.
TX: Sutra
(Acrylic, then Oil, on Canvas, 72” x 48”)
The painting, however, seems to be a Rorschach for anyone who has seen it. For instance, art historians might recognize, as a quote, the famous sculpture of the Buddhist priest Koya Shonin from a temple in Kyoto. For them, he might be chanting sutras, and the woman listening. The LACPA community can have a field day with interpretation. For this reason, I like the kind of ambiguity in art that maintains a little mystery. It is, after all, the viewers who take over when the work of art is shown; they make it their own, based on their worldview, experience, taste, and imagination.