With a brush of health, Encinitas artist unveils first exhibit

North County Times – Escondido,CA,USA
Creativity has the power to heal, said Lindsay Duff, owner of
the Open Door Wellness Center and Art Gallery in Encinitas. For
three decades, Duff has …

With its power to transcend borders and time, art has been a spiritual and healing medium for cultures since the beginning of human history. Each artwork, for its creator, is a therapeutic process that enhances one’s sense of self.

“Creativity has the power to heal,” said Lindsay Duff, owner of the Open Door Wellness Center and Art Gallery in Encinitas. For three decades, Duff has employed the use of painting to bring balance to the lives of those who seek her, and now she has her first exhibition.

A certified expressive arts therapist, Duff utilizes the process of creating artwork to release the blocks to personal development. “I support people in their efforts to be self-expressive,” she said. The benefits can be immense. “It relieves stress and reconnects each part of ourselves —- the mind, body and spirit.”

Energy and light are themes that lie at the heart of Duff’s paintings, a collection that will be unveiled for the very first time Saturday at the Wellness Center.

“I am so very excited about it. It is such a sense of accomplishment,” Duff said. “I’ve been working towards this for a very long time, and all of a sudden it’s manifesting.”

The seeds of the exhibition arose from what was supposed to be her dream home. After buying land and building a house in Valley Center, the coastal native was homesick for the ocean.

“I had my own art studio there, it was amazing. But I spent all my time those first six months driving to Encinitas to be near the water,” she said. “I thought this was crazy. I just settled into the house and started painting. Having all this time alone, I spent my days painting and I really loved it.”

After two years in Valley Center she returned to Encinitas. Perhaps her adoration of the seaside lies in the enormous power of the ocean?

“One of the most important things about watercolors is how water is used in the process. To me, everything comes from energy. Water is a conduit for energy. So, when I’m painting and the colors are vibrant, it is because you’re using water,” Duff said. “Watercolor allows a lot of light to show in your work. For me, that’s really the energy itself is the light.”

Another layer of her painting is the deeper meaning to life.

“There has always been some aspect of the spiritual in my artwork,” Duff said, adding that the size of canvas is irrelevant. Her artistic power arises from the environment.

“I’ve always had a spiritual interest in life and the ability to see beauty in everything, not just in nature, but the people that I meet. My art really represents a connection to my higher self. There’s a message in it, that’s for sure.”

When Duff returned to Encinitas, her healing talents were being employed by the Lemon Grass Wellness Center, yet she yearned for more.

“I wanted a sacred place for my work,” she remembered.

Three years ago, fate arrived and in the same building she received her expressive arts therapy training. At the same time she sought to strike out on her own, the space became available.

“In everything I have ever done, there is a synchronicity that occurs that I’m not even aware of until I look back and realize everything fell into place,” Duff said.

Her business moniker mirrors how she approaches the creative process, for novice or professional.

“When you’re painting, there is an opening of the doorway to the wisdom we’ve accumulated over a lifetime. Art gives me a feeling of joy, happiness and well-being that we all are seeking,” Duff said.

Duff has returned to the city she served as arts commissioner in 1999, and her role has remained constant.

“Anything that I’m doing that has to do with inspiration of people’s lives gives me great satisfaction,” she said.

A window into not only her paintings, but into the lives she has touched over 30 years lies at the heart of this exhibit.

“I see a painting in everything.”

The Lindsay Duff art collection

When: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., May 19; noon to 6 p.m. May 20

Where: The Open Door Wellness Center and Art Gallery, 1054 Second St., Suite B, Encinitas

Admission: Free

Info: (760) 942-4422

Web: www.lindsayduff.com, www.opendoorwellness.com