Podcast Host CJMiller sits down with SUNY Old Westbury Assistant Professor and Mixed Media Artist Fred Fleisher to discuss symbolism in art.

Fred talks about creating art that deals with duality issues and the perceived separateness of each other. The imaginative artist shares his process and expanding practice in maintaining presence and flow when creating his 2-dimensional paintings and sculptural installations. Fred incorporates humor, cynicism, and satire into his work by combining symbolistic elements from our everyday social fabric. In essence, the artist uses humor in art to "get through the day" and deal with society's current challenges.

His process includes surrounding himself with a studio full of iconic "parts," entering a flow state and combining different elements to express himself. He discovers an idea for something, works it out, and then allows some freewheeling while sketching the image.

Fred uses his phone and iPad to set up his rough composition. From there, he goes to his canvas, where the idea progresses and emerges. "I allow energy to unfold and see what happens when I put disparate things together," he said.

His creations include assemblage art as well as 2-dimensional surfaces. Fred sources " Spiritual Moderns: Twentieth-Century American Artists and Religion" by Erica Doss and "The Spiritual Artist" by Christopher J. Miller as inspired sources.

In conversation, Fred ponders whether symbolism can stop us from spiritually communicating something more significant, while CJ ponders the opposite. As CJ prepares for an upcoming show, he struggles with not adding symbolic elements.

CJ shares how many of us try to qualify our spiritual worth by whether our art is successful. We are not trying to validate our worth when we create art. Both agree that we shouldn't let our perceived identities stop us from connecting to Spirit.

CJ and Fred also discussed the writing process. CJ encourages writers to get their thoughts down quickly and edit later. Fred references "The War of Art" by Steven Pressfield.

According to Fred, creating art is a way to stop the mind chatter, the thoughts of duality, and practice presence. The podcast concludes with Fred sharing how communication, both verbally and through art, is the key to personal growth. For more information and samples of Fred's work, visit https://www.fredfleisher.net.

Fred Fleisher is originally from Pennsylvania and has lived in the New York metropolitan area for over twenty-five years. After enlisting in the Army, he earned an MFA from Queens College, CUNY, a BFA in Painting & Drawing, and a BS in Art Education from Penn State University. Both nationally and internationally, Galleries have represented his work, and he has had recent solo exhibitions in Brooklyn and New York City. He has been included in several exhibitions and numerous group exhibitions while working with curators in the art world. He also organizes and curates exhibitions and is an Assistant Professor at SUNY Old Westbury.

For more information on CJ and his art retreats, visit www.spiritualartisttoday.com. His book, "The Spiritual Artist," is available on Amazon.