Exhibit brightens, calms Civic Center gallery

By: Shannon Wingard - For the North County Times | Monday, March 26, 2007 9:55 PM PDT ∞

ENCINITAS ---- When Diane Langager walks by the rainbow display of acrylic chakra paintings in the Civic Center Art Gallery, she said one of Encinitas artist Jo-Ann Julien's creations "draws her in."ÝÝÝÝÝ

"It just fills my heart," she said of the green floral painting.

As a senior planner in the Encinitas engineering office, located in the same building as the gallery, Langager said just seeing the painting is "a break in the day."

That reaction is the purpose behind Julien's healing arts exhibit, which will be displayed in the gallery through the end of March.

Each month the works of an Encinitas artist are displayed at the gallery and can be viewed by the public from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Those interested in having works shown there need to submit an application, which is available at the Civic Center, 505 S. Vulcan Ave.Ý

Julien said her art has ancient Hindu and Yoga influences, and most specifically focuses on the seven colors of chakras, which are centers of energy in the body.

She said she combined various aspects of her life ---- a master's degree in psychological counseling, her experience as a master of yoga and reiki, and work as a government healthcare adviser ---- to create the pieces.

"I packed all of that together and said this is what I wanted to put out there," she said. Ý

Since chakras are belief of eastern philosophy, Julien said she wanted to convey them in a tangible way for those in the western society who aren't familiar with them. To do so, she used her intuition to depict a visual, tangible image of the chakras' spiral energy.

She said that image became flowers. Ý

"When you look at them, there is an energizing quality," she said.

For the artist who also has 37 paintings on exhibit at Scripps La Jolla, she said she believes that positive art can have a healing effect on people.

"I would really like to have an impact on a person's health or well being," she said.

She said each chakra has its own color and symbol, and those are expressed in her paintings. In fact, the green chakra series symbolizes healing, the blue means peaceful or calming, and the orange is intended to stimulate and rejuvenate.

Naimeh Tanha, who arranged the display and is executive director of StudioVivace.com, said there are a lot of benefits to hanging this type of art.

She said art benefits people, because it can cause an emotional reaction that allows people to connect with it.

"You don't want it to come from the brain; you want it to come from here," she said, tapping at her chest.

Tanha said she represents a variety of artists, including Julien, who make healing art and that she believes the pieces can have a calming or energizing effect on people.

"That's the beauty of art," she said. "If it stimulates something, that's the right art for you."

Sharing local art with the public is part of the reason why the Civic Center Art Gallery was established in 2001, said Jim Gilliam, arts administrator.

Since Encinitas has "upwards of 200 artists," he said the goal of the gallery is to highlight a variety of local artists' works.

He said the gallery accepts applications from artists who create two or three dimensional pieces, and the artists keep any proceeds from the works that are sold. ÝÝÝÝÝ

"We want to get the word out that this is an opportunity for all of them," he said.

For information about the Civic Center Art Gallery, contact Jim Gilliam, arts administrator, at jgilliam@ci.encinitas.ca.us.Ý

Original submission from "Shannon Wingard" :

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