Batiks- excerpt from Biography
In 1971 I joined the Gurdgieff Community in Warwick NY under the auspices of Dr Nyland. ( Gurdjieff was a Spiritual philosopher and Mystic with a profound mission to wake humanity from it’s sleep ) and was there till 1995.
Also in 1971 I became a mother to my son Reuben (who today resides in NYC is a Dr of clinical Psychology does research at Columbia medical, has a private practice and is married to his wife Anna who too is a Dr in Clinical psychology and in 2017 I became a grandma to Ira their adorable Capricorn Monkey son ) I am going to say a little about my son because his situation growing up was different then most, and a bit unique.
When I arrived at the Gurdjeiff group I was a single mother and still pregnant. I rented a room for a couple of months but as I got closer to delivery I stayed with my sister and her husband for a short time and after I delivered I looked for a place to live.
Barry Sax and his wife Carla ( part of the Gurdjeiff community ) were renting a very big house in Florida NY and they had a room for rent and I and my baby rented from them. They were nice and upbeat. Carla among others things was a Batik artist and I learned batik from her. Barry was a electrician but also new a lot about alternative medicine and opened my life to homeopathy. I rented there for a year then another opportunity opened up at Victor Sirlson’s ( a member of the Gurdjieff community, and one of the Movements teachers ) Victor had just bought a house and was renting the upstairs and I rented from him.
It had two bedrooms so Reuben had his own room now. I was there for a year or two. After that an opportunity opened up to manage the Guesthouse for the Gurdjieff group. The Guest House was were people could stay if they were coming up from the city to come to a work day at the Barn. I got free room and board and a small salary.
I ran the Guesthouse for a number of years.. In the beginning I was managing this with my friend Jeffery Flanagan. Also for a period of time we got called to Brewster to take care of Mrs. Nyland Mr. Nyland’s wife. Mrs. Nyland or Ilonka Karasz. was a famous artist best known for her covers of the New Yorker Magazine from 1925 to 1987) She was a figure bigger then life, built and designed her home, designed her own furniture, had amazing gardens up in Brewster NY. She was a force to reckon with. Many people were terrified of her. She was quite on in age an a bit bedridden ( but no less powerful) so different people from the group would go up there for a time and be with her.
So there I was with my son in this amazing home and I was a bit terrified my son might break something make a mess, be to loud after all he was still a very young child.. However on the contrary it was me who was the klutz he never broke anything, put anything out of place , or raised his voice however I broke a couple of things. It was an amazing experience to be with such an artistic giant.
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Gurdjieff’s work attempted to create a bridge between man as a Survivor and man as a Conscious Spiritual Being. This was done through the various levels of his work: the business or right livihood,— the impartial observation of yourself through the creation of an I,—- the meetings discussing these observations,—– the Movements or Spiritual Dances,—- Music and the work days. I would call the business and the work days the
heart of the Work and the other steps the Mind and the Soul of the Work ( though not sure if that is the way it goes ). Right Livelihood means that what you do ( your source of income ) is not a mindless mechanical decision but an attempt to come from a place inside of you that you feel connected to, giving a person a chance to blossom into
something rather then acting mechanically and becoming a machine. You could explore any avenue, wherever your aptitude takes you, construction, electrician, pottery, jewelry etc. I was interested in the arts and had developed an interest in the art of Batik ( a textile craft ) and started Chardavogne Batik, which I did for many years and the craft blossomed . Mr Nyland supported the Activities in whatever way he could.. Also I did a lot of work in the food business, the group had a bakery called Amity Bakery I worked there doing a lunch business and baking too. I made many meals for the Guesthouse and Barn, worked as a professional chef in a 5 star restaurant in Sugarloaf NY called the Sugarloaf Inn, did waitress work in a variety of restaurants and did a lot of cooking being a mom.. So I managed the Guesthouse, worked at the bakery ( which was physically connected to the guesthouse ) and worked at becoming a batik artist while raising my son. Also at times I would choreograph a dance or instruct some Belly Dance Classes.
I have always felt a deep connection to Gurdjieff’s work as he attempted to create a bridge between man as a survivor man as a spiritual being which he did through the various levels of his work .The friendships I made in the group are deep and are with me to this day I was a student there from 1971 to 1990.