By Brenda Molloy
Fractals are repeating, self-similar patterns that can be found throughout nature – in the branching of trees or the veins in our bodies, in the tributaries that create a river, in the spiral curve of a fern head or a nautilus shell, and in the seed head of a sunflower. The list is inclusive and long.
When I first started creating fractals as an art form, the learning curve was steep, and I struggled. This was back in 2007, but as I worked, it gradually became easier. What I noticed, looking back, was that I could see the struggle coming through in the artwork and I wanted only beauty to be revealed.
One night, early in my learning process, I went to my computer to work on a fractal that I’d been struggling with and as it was very late in the day, I thought I would let go of trying so hard and just play, working intuitively. That was unlike my usual way of working which was to take a vision and work hard to make it a beautiful piece of art. This time, I simply played. I allowed my hands to move the parameters intuitively. I just let go of controlling anything. As I worked, the fractal on my computer screen changed in every manner possible, including its composition, shape, color, and texture. Then, as I had completely given myself over to this process of flow, I was given the most amazing gift – what appeared on my screen was an extremely beautiful fractal. As I looked at the image, it seemed co-created on some level with Source energy, and I wondered, ‘What is this?’. Intuitively I got the answer, “This is named Going Home.”
I am alive at this time and greatly assisted from other realms, bringing in non-tangible information to help others. Some of this information cannot be put into words as there is no language for it, but the geometric colors and shapes create frequency and vibration that can translate into meaningful experiences. There is an underlying mathematical recursive formula involved in fractal patterns. Both fractals and music have mathematical aspects that together created for me another incredible experience – I heard otherworldly, angelic music in my mind (clairaudience). The fractal I was working on had an audible component and it was as if it was letting me know how it sounded, translated into music. I heard it playing for a while even after I left the computer. When I lay down for the night, I fell asleep to the etheric music. The next morning, I was informed that my beloved uncle had passed away. This felt like more than a coincidence. It was a message from the universe, and guidance to rethink my way of creating artwork with fractals.
I came to understand that the fractal information was coming through me, being channeled, and all I had to do was allow the process. If the creative energy wasn’t flowing, I would walk away from the computer. Conversely, I started to get intuitive hits that I should go to the computer now! because something wanted to come through. I would pretty much run to the computer since I couldn’t wait to see what the image would look like. Eventually I realized that the earth’s energies such as are found in solar storms or the moon’s phases, were significant and showed up in my artwork. Even the colors I used represented the energies that were coming in.
Then, at some point I realized that fractals also work with the energy systems of our bodies. They impart information and can assist in healing. Research has shown that fractals in art can have a calming or soothing effect on the body and this is attributed to the fact that fractals are the building blocks of much of the natural world, and being in nature has a healing and calming effect on the human body/mind/spirit. Our bodies naturally understand fractals, according to physicist Richard Taylor who is at the University of Oregon. He has discovered that even focusing on fractals for a minute can elicit alpha-brain wave activity, triggering “relaxed wakefulness.” He said, “Your visual system is in some way hardwired to understand fractals. The stress-reduction is triggered by a physiological resonance that occurs when the fractal structure of the eye matches that of the fractal image being viewed.”
A change in the viewer’s mental state can be elicited, and some people have made comments about this after seeing my artwork. A reiki master attending a gallery showing of my fractals asked me to stand in front of two of my images. She said one was healing her heart and the other was healing her hips. At another time, an energy worker stopped at the door of the gallery because she was amazed at what she described as, “the huge energy pouring off the fractal.” Another woman contacted me in appreciation because her daughter, who is on the Asperger’s Spectrum, calms herself down by watching the short fractal video animations that I have on YouTube.
As I allow the work to unfold without struggling, I have a distinct feeling that it is being co-created and that I am being deeply assisted in bringing through artwork that will help others in ways that are unique to each viewer. When I work, all time stands still and I feel bliss. At times, I feel an energetic presence in the room with me, one that I suspect sensitive sensors could pick up and be read as changes in energy.
The fractal you can see heading this post – which is called “Love All Around” – came now, at this time when I think people need to be uplifted. I feel we are all connected through a universal field of energy, a field of frequencies or vibrations, and the most important vibration of all is the vibration of love. When I am creating a fractal, it will tell me through intuition what it is about and name itself. When the name Love All Around came in, I instantly thought of Celia and how important that phrase is to her.
During the recent social distancing period, I fully immersed myself in my art. I had just released a fractal animation titled Presence, and then, for my next project, I illustrated or, as the author Bronwen Christianos describes it, I illuminated her book, TOWARDS PRESENCE.
(to read Bronwen’s story go to https://winnpost.org/2020/07/03/towards-radiance/)
These projects kept me in a happy, productive space filled with good energies while having to socially isolate. Who am I kidding, even without isolating, I would be spending the same amount of time in my studio, creating. It lights me up! I feel strongly that this is what I came to do now and having this as my life’s work is an extraordinary blessing.
From Celia: Last year I began ending the notes or emails I sent with the three words, “Love All Around.” I enjoyed that there are two different ways to say those words. We can emphasize the word love, LOVE All Around meaning that there is love all around us. Or we can emphasize the word all, Love ALL Around meaning that, as best as we can, it would be good to love everyone. Love is the truth that surrounds us.
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Brenda Molloy has written ART THAT RESONATES: Harmonic Art for the Body/Mind/Soul
And she has created with Bronwen Christianos, TOWARDS RADIANCE.
You can read Brenda’s previous WINN post: https://www.winnpost.org/2018/10/05/making-the-invisible-visible/
You can learn more about her work:
https://www.brendamolloy.com/
You can also go to:
Presence – Video Animation for Download/Streaming https://vimeo.com/ondemand/presence2
Fractal Realms – Video Animation for Download/Streaming https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fractalrealms
YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/BrendaMolloy
Loved these. What an amazing story.