Tea for Creatives: Tiziana DellaRovere ~ Mystic, Artist, Author

Written by Possibiliteas. Posted in Blog

Italian author, artist, mystical poet, and teacher Tiziana DellaRovere is the creator of The Canticle of the Black Madonna, an original two-hour opera depicting the effects of war on veterans, their families and the environment. Tiziana’s libretto—the story, the dialogue and poetry that is sung, draws on classical elements such as the Greek Chorus and Jungian archetypes.

The Canticle of the Black Madonna follows a fictional American soldier returning home to his wife in coastal Louisiana in 2010, who faces a radically-changed economy and a loss of their traditional way of life in the aftermath of the gulf oil spill. Through a rich combination of modern and ancient music, The Canticle ultimately reveals the healing power of a primal force of divine love, represented by the Black Madonna, which transforms them both forever, and touches all who witness it.

Her paintings come from personal mystical visions and are alive with the spirituality that inspired them. The evocative imagery feels as if it emerges from the canvas into the very heart of the viewer. Tiziana’s paintings are held in private collections and have been reproduced in her books and are also sold as prints on canvas. Her work has been published by Celestial Arts Publishing.

In addition to her work as a creative artist, Tiziana has a broad background in Law, Art, Psychology, and Spirituality. She has dedicated over 30-years of her career to developing and practicing a psycho-spiritual methodology, the “Descent,” which is used for healing wounds of the deep psyche. She is the founder of Adorata, the Adorata School of Enlovement. She conducts private sessions, trainings, retreats, and workshops around the world.

What transpired to bring about the writing and production of the Canticle of the Black Madonna?
I was creating a collaboration piece with my partner, the composer Ethan Gans-Morse, who asked me to write a poem to set to music. I was inspired to write a litany to the Black Madonna. The Black Madonna is an important part of my family lineage in Italy. I myself have visited several sanctuaries dedicated to the Black Madonna in Italy. But as I wrote the poem, the Black Madonna inspired a story of healing the wounds of the world, which eventually evolved into a full two-hour opera. The opera is filled with Jungian archetypes, romantic passion, and above all the power of love to heal the deepest sorrow affecting the world today, the consequences of war and environmental devastation.

I’m very proud of the extraordinary production we’re premiering in Portland in September. This is a great example of how a creative inspiration came from the depths of my soul and ultimately became a massive project involving over 100 people and affecting potentially thousands of veterans, their families and civilians alike.

Define creativity. What does it mean to you?
Creativity is a spring of inspiration, an urge to express, which comes directly from the core essence of my being. It requires me to be silent and attuned to the creative desires of my soul, and then to come into action and make that creative impulse into a reality in the external world through my work.

The Divine expresses in the physical world through our own creative talents. To cultivate our talents and express them is our responsibility and our birthright. It’s a way of caring for our soul and the soul of humanity. In this way, creativity is an act of service to the world that can be joyful and liberating, and can make us feel at one with who we truly are.

How do you navigate the creative process in your work?
The first impulse—the idea that surges from the depth of my being—happens when my linear mind is not engaged, so it’s an intuitive, surprising, and mystical process. My art is never separate from the meaning of the message I want to convey. For me, form is always at the service of essence and meaning. My personal path is to contribute beauty and goodness to humanity from a space of truth, which means acknowledging the difficulty—the shadow, the suffering—and moving through these challenges to discover the nugget of gold that comes from confronting and transforming them through love.

Because I have a tremendous abundance of creative inspiration, I have to choose the one idea that I feel absolutely wants to be birthed and made into a concrete project. Then, I get to work and spend many hours, months, or—in the case of the opera The Canticle of the Black Madonna, years—refining and giving birth to that idea. This process requires persistence, discipline, the ability to overcome frustration, and to trust in the meandering nature of the journey. It is in this stage that I perfect my skills, whether writing, painting, or poetry.

Then, when I feel satisfied and the work is finished, the most difficult part starts: putting it out into the world. That’s when I have to deal with the business world. For example, after I wrote the opera with my partner—Composer Ethan Gans-Morse—we had to produce the opera, which included auditioning, fundraising, marketing, etc. After I write the book, I need to pitch it, promote it, and put it out into the world. If I don’t do this step, which is also very creative in a unique way, then my gift to the world is not complete.

Describe the biggest creative obstacle you’ve faced? How did you work through it?
For me, the biggest obstacle is that I have so many ideas, so many creative impulses, that sometimes it’s painful to choose where to put my attention and energy to fit everything in a 24-hour day.

How do I resolve this? Certain projects fade away on their own; they were only intended to be part of my own personal process. Others remain urgent and vibrant and those are the ones I pursue and make them the artwork I share with others. I surrender and let the process run its own course and show me what is important and long-lasting.

Describe the role spirituality plays in the creative process.
Creativity is a process of alchemy. For me, creativity comes from the Sacred Union of the masculine and feminine, my own inner male and inner female. My feminine allows me to go deep inside and feel the creative surges coming from my soul. Then, my masculine puts them into action in the physical world. When the two are in perfect alignment, I create through a harmonious Divine Union of stillness and action from an essence that is universal and carries a truth that transcends my own individuality. When I succeed in this perfect alignment I produce my best work. Then the art creates itself through me.

Artist, author, counselor…you fulfill so many creative roles. Where do you find inspiration to sustain your own creative process?
Even though I express creatively through many different modes, all of them are coherent and harmonious with each other… My inspiration is life – any part of life, from the big traumas to the simple, everyday experiences.

Do you have any rituals that sustain your creative process?
Yes, I do. To begin with, I light a candle on my altar and I come into stillness. Usually I do this first thing in the morning or late at night. Then I immerse myself in a meditation I created called the Adorata Meditation. It brings the love of Divine Mother up from the earth and the love of Divine Father down from the heavens to merge in Sacred Union in my heart. And then I sit quietly and listen.

The other ritual that’s very important to me is to walk in the woods, in nature, listen to the sounds, experience the smells, look at the colors and textures, and feel the aliveness coursing through my body. Then creative inspiration comes to me easily.

Since you are involved in so many modes of creating, do you have a favorite artistic medium in which you spend most of your time?
It depends. Right now, I spend most of my time writing because I’m writing a novel about the themes of the opera. Later in the year, I’ll probably spend a lot of time painting illuminated borders for my book Adorata: The Path of Enlovement, about the mystical teachings of Divine Mother. My favorite medium is whichever best expresses what I have to convey for a particular project.

I also want to make the point that creativity is not just about writing a book or painting a picture or composing the music for an opera. It is an attitude of feeling free to express uniquely what comes from your individual self.  Cooking a wonderful meal, creating a business, raising a child can be a magnificent act of creativity.

What is your favorite way to enjoy tea?
For me, drinking tea is a way to deeply relax and nurture myself with the flavor, the texture, and the taste of an herbal infusion. It’s a communion with Mother Nature and her healing, restorative power. My favorite way to enjoy a cup of tea is to slowly sip it while I sit on a lounge chair in my garden, watching my koi fish swirling around in my pond.

Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Tickets for the opera “The Canticle of the Black Madonna” are now on sale. The opera premieres September 5^th and 6th at the Newmark Theatre in Portland, Oregon. This will be a truly unforgettable experience. If you’ve never been to an opera, this is going to be a totally new, amazing experience. Please treat yourself to a few minutes of videos and audio excerpts on our website and you’ll see this is a very special project:

www.CBMopera.com

Explore Tiziana’s artwork and the spiritual teachings: www.adorata.org

Divine Mother Virtues teleseminar

Tags: activist, Adorata, artist, author, creative minds, creative process, creativity, inspiration, music, mystic, opera, poet, soul, tea, tea for creatives, Tiziana DellaRovere, vocalist

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