Leslie N. Polk

peace, Colleague #2

peace Colleague #2 is a mixed media collage on canvas, part of a larger series called peace, Colleague. The series consists of ekphrastic collages as pluralistic responses to the Genesis 1 creation narrative. It highlights contemplative reflection for personal and collective wellness, based on personal explorations of Southern Hoodoo, Afro-Zen Buddhism, and other wisdom-faith traditions. The series considers philosophies of mystery and Divine unknowability, the concept of goodness as it relates to balance and reciprocity, and asks viewers what we are contributing, and how, for the greater good of the cosmos.

peace Colleague #2 specifically addresses the culmination of the project, exploring the Genesis 1 passage through process theology, theo and eco poetics. Scholars include but are not limited to Catherine Keller, Sarah J. Cervenak, and Melanie Harris. In doing so, I raise and hope to address some of the following questions: What does biblical and theological silence around indigeneity miss about the ecopoetics of life? What does the text say or not say about science and quantum physics–that is sound, cosmology, and energy vibrations? What can the creativity of the formless abyss teach us about goodness? How and why is giving contextual meaning important to the holistic well-being of creation–while also remaining cognizant of how mystery can change, unfold, and then re-inform one’s meaning-making process.