Guest Artist: Meryl Ann Butler

Meryl Ann's exuberance for life comes out in her happy demeanor and colorful art style. It was a joy to have her in St. Louis for a week during August,painting the Flowering of Love Labyrinth. Meryl Ann has been a professional artist, educator and writer since 1974 and a labyrinth builder since 1992. She was one of the founding members of the Labyrinth Society (see www.labyrinthsociety.org).

In 1998 Meryl Ann created a 48-foot-diameter Chartres-style labyrinth for the ARE/Edgar Cayce Foundation in Virginia Beach. Overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, it is open 24 hours a day.

I remember the many trips that Meryl Ann made as a speaker for ARE. For example, she was the expert on the subject of creativity for the Edgar Cayce New Millennium cable television/video series. More than that, her life and art have been featured in more than 50 publications. She has had a significant international presence in art and peace projects such as the First U.S.-Soviet Children's Peace Quilt Exchange Project, which she designed in 1987-88. Twice she traveled to the former USSR as a citizen diplomat, speaking to artists and educators.

Meryl Ann's work is included in public and private collections around the world, including His Holiness (the late) Swami Satchidananda, the Hon. Nelson Mandela, Dr. Caroline Myss, Dr. Norman Shealy, Dr. Gladys McGarey, Dr. Barbara King, Dr. Patch Adams, the Association for Research and Enlightenment/Edgar Cayce Foundation and the University of Peace in Costa Rica. Whew! You could be added to this list, owning an original work of labyrinth art.

The Flowering of Love Labyrinth

Our photos were quick snapshots, to be replaced soon by better ones. Not only are the colors much more vibrant than in the photo, the labyrinth also glows in the dark! And yes, if you know Meryl Ann, there is a little glitter as well.

Here are Meryl Ann's own words describing her intent:
"As interactive fine art, [the labyrinth] offers an invitation to all those who are dancing with the mysteries of love in all of its forms, including anyone wanting to:
...Enhance a romantic partnership or loving friendship
...Heal relationships with loved ones
...Open the channels for receiving the abundant flow of love
...Create an extraordinary environment for ritual, such as weddings and baptisms
...Expand the personal journey on the road to opening heart spaces
...Empower 'the greatest love of all..learning to love yourself'"

Meryl Ann tells us that she had this design in her mind for years, based on archetypal imagery and numerological symbolism. Consider the number 13, the number associated with the Divine Feminine (13 lunar months in a year, the moon being a feminine symbol).The paths are 13 inches wide. The letter "M" is the 13th letter in the alphabet, forming words such as mom, mother, mammary, and Mary, as in the greatest feminine symbol of all, the Virgin Mary. The sacred feminine is associated with the attributes of the right brain, such as nurturing, creativity, inclusivity, and compassion.

The labyrinth has three circuits (concentric paths), three being the number for the soul, the Trinity, and relationship. The canvas is 12 feet across, with the heart center being 52 x 52 inches. Two factors of 52 are 4 and 13 (4 x 13 = 52). Four is the number of foundation, stability, and of the world (four corners, four directions, four elements).

Throughout the pattern there are 65 roses in varying stages of blooming (just like all of us). They are shaded as if the light source emerges from a subtle glow in the center. Each rose is embellished with magical touches of opalescence. (It is Meryl Ann, after all.) The number 65 is 5 x 13. Five is the number of life, nature, and of the hand that creates. Each of the seven turns is adorned with an appropriate rainbow color, beginning with red on the first turn and ending with violet at the final turn before entering the center.

Turn off the lights for a big surprise. The labyrinth is still visible. In Meryl Ann's words, "Walking this labyrinth furnishes an opportunity for a kinesthetic, whole body experience of the symbolism of the blooming heart. The soul receives a wordless understanding from the soles of the feet, which are 'under the standing.'"

Meryl Ann believes that healing through art happens by conscious intention, and therefore she focuses upon uplifting thoughts of well-being as she paints. She believes that the consciousness of thought and the vibration of love and joy pass through her paintbrush into the canvas, becoming a reservoir from which those who walk the labyrinth draw the tone of their unique experience.

This is a one-of-a-kind labyrinth. As the first in our series, it is a response to an infamous comment made by a very visible commercial labyrinth seller that he intended to "take the art of out labyrinth making." I believe what he really meant was to take the human hand out of labyrinth making. It is rare to find talented artists such as Meryl Ann or our own Judy Hopen. Machines don't need to have years of experience. Unfortunately, printers can never infuse the labyrinth with the kind of spirit that Meryl Ann and Judy do.

The price of this unique work of art is $1,950. We will ship it first to Meryl Ann to inscribe it and sign it specifically to you, or to the person you designate. You may choose to put it on the wall, rather than the floor. Meryl Ann is available to make similar masterpieces, either of this design or of a new design. Please contact Robert (email) regarding purchasing this labyrinth or commissioning another labyrinth by Meryl Ann Butler. Watch our webpage for the next labyrinth work of art, projected to be done in time for the Labyrinth Society gathering in October. Meryl Ann is available for commissions of other art work, as well. She makes incredible wearable art, for example. You can reach her directly at merylannb@aol.com.