I'm super stoked to be a part of this
Steemit community.

When I see something amazing--
and I know amazing (I know @quinneaker),
I like to jump on it.

Steemit is incredibly supportive of the arts,
smack in the middle of where my strengths lie,
so I'm all over it in photography,
sound, henna, collage, cuisine,
gardening and the magnanimous art of life itself.


I've been collaborating in
community life for many years now,
and see the great benefit of
coming together for common purpose.
Collaboration tends to make one take a
humble step back and look at the self.


How does what I have to offer fit in to the bigger picture?
How do I contribute without stepping on the toes of others.
How will my expression reflect the whole?

So many questions come up, and when capable of looking within,
grand new perspectives and new awarenesses reveal themselves.

Art is created and
transformed with every addition,
as is life with every step of the journey
in constant change.

@ophelifu and I have been playing games.
She sent me this cyanotype:


(How to make a cyanotype: @opheliafu/catching-the-sun-creating-my-cyanotype-prints)


As I often see things within things,
such as faces in chipping paint,
images in the branches of trees,
hobbits in the fire,
ducks in popcorn.
This bird turned sideways
became half of a butterfly in my mind's eye.

So I digitally turned it sideways and enhanced the color:

Then I duplicated it, flipped it over,
and changed the color to pink:

I stacked the blue image and the pink image,
made them somewhat transparent to see them both clearly,
and aligned them to mimic the wings of a butterfly.

I then printed the image.


I utilized this old book from my studio shelf to.
make a blue color pencil rub around edges.

Then I took out my trusty sharpie marker and
drew on some of the details of the butterfly,
as well as some enhancements around the border.

Then I sent it back to @opheliafu.
This is what she did:
@opheliafu/art-ping-pong-collaborations-between-everlove-and-opheliafu

Here is our final piece:

Releasing art to one another comes with
great anticipation
in the realms of infinite possibility.
You never know what you're going to end up with
in letting go.

As is the art of life~
Releasing that which you have created,
to allow new perspectives and
transformation to become a reality.
From the depths of nothingness,
the unknown reveals itself anew.

This is one of two pieces we have done together so far.
Here is the other collaborative piece we did:
@opheliafu/collaborate-combine-and-create-everlove-and-opheliafu

My life is enriched by
sharing my passion,
and also by tuning into the
passion of others.
Creating a life of great beauty is extremely rewarding,
and doing it with others is an incredible honor.

I would like to do more collaborative art.
Here is yesterday's post and how you can get in on the action.

@everlove/collaborativeartjourney-challenge-no-1-midnight-sky-earning-my-way-to-steemfest-through-rt

A bonus blessing:
@opheliafu is donating all the rewards from our collaborative art
posts to me for my trip to SteemFest.
I can already tell am going to be so delighted to meet her in person
and give her a big hug.
I will also be meeting other artists and friends
I have made here on Steemit.
I am grateful for this opportunity to build a strong community.
Community is of great importance to me
(I live it everyday at the @gardenofeden),
as I feel when we come together anything is possible.
For now, all my collaboration art posts
will support my journey to Amsterdam.
I would be delighted to do some collaboration with you.

Infinite Blessings Along The Way!!!