24th Presence Almanac by Elliott Desai

PRESENCE ALMANAC 24TH

by Elliott Desai

FOR THE A DVA NC E M E N T OF ARTS & CULTURE Are you familiar with the belief that all Beings come from the same life force? The same “one energy”?

Everything is infinitely changing, so sustaining my self-esteem has become the main priority.

And on a molecular level - everything we witness and everyone we perceive are made of atoms?

A self-esteem free of worry, free of fitting in, and free of concerns about the timeline I’m on.

Yes? Then you’ll understand this perspective I write about each morning to enter a peaceful state of mind:

I’m becoming free of resistance to what is.

I am the sunshine, the sunshine is me. I am the birds chirping, the birds chirping are me. I am the wind, the wind is me. I am this space, this space is me. I am this moment, this moment is me. I’m grateful for another new day. I’m grateful to be alive and breathing. I’m grateful to go with the flow of life, I’m grateful for my unique path, I’m grateful for divine opportunities, and I’m grateful for the creativity expressing itself through me. I am joy. I am bliss. Life is beautiful, life is abundant, and it’s fascinating that we’re experiencing anything at all!

And collectively, no one needs to form opinions about past experiences... they are as they happen, and judgment only opens up negativity. Instead, we can bring attention to this present moment and focus on simply being. Without resistance, we can experience days that reflect a flourishing perspective about life. There’s only intention! And my actions are aimed to be in collaboration with intelligent, creative people. I’m behaving from a state of joy, a state of play, a state of acceptance and a state of optimism.

Instead of attaching to form, I’m releasing my instinct to judge life’s situations or make an identity out of mind-made thoughts and emotions.

And I believe that everyone’s unique path is aligned with a genuine curiosity for living.

Our experiences are affected by “the impermanence of all things” and this life is meant to be played with humor and humaneness... with freedom and lightness.

So why make “struggling” part of who we are? Why identify with having annoyances, frustrations, or difficulties? Does it benefit us to feel this way about our experiences?

You’re perpetually right now, and right now is the only moment affecting how you live your life.

The 24th Presence Almanac begins in Portugal as I traveled with my family to welcome in the new year.

What’s meant for you will not pass you by, and what’s no longer yours will leave you.

The coastlines between Lisbon and Lagos are reminiscent of California, and the layered geography of Porto appeared historical yet futuristic.

Combatting that truth is the only thing creating “problems.” So release the woes! Release resistance. Conscious presence dissolves mind-made pain.

*** *** 2024 begins with reading “The Power of Now” — a guide to spiritual enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle. As I turn the pages, it’s kismet to see themes that also make up this Presence Almanac. It’s like a wink from the universe about our emerging consciousness of the natural world. I began observing the moon phases in 2020, then read stoic philosophy by Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and Epictetus in 2021, and eventually learned more about Buddhism and Taoism from books by Alan W. Watts throughout 2022 and 2023. The universe is experiencing itself through each of us, and our lives unfold according to this expression of “one energy.” As a result, our ability to realize dreams and visualizations is directly linked to our perceptions and beliefs about ourselves. We’re Human Beings human being, and when you recognize presence as the only reality, you witness now as only a reflection of yourself. So I identify with abundance. And by shifting our attention towards appreciating artwork, we’re creating space to consistently exist in this moment.

*** ***

When I returned to Los Angeles, I attended exhibitions at many local galleries, and as you can imagine, I’ve seen many beautiful views and hundreds of artworks in the first two weeks of this year. Here are my favorites from: TJ Rinoski, Alex Cohen, Scott Brodie, Jenny Brillhart, and Ruben Baghdasaryan in A Room with a View at Vardan Gallery Anastasia Komar’s von Neumann’s Dream and Aryana Minai’s Soft Waters Heard Here at Shulamit Nazarian Louise Lawler’s GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS at Sprüth Magers Gallery Alejandro Cardenas’s Porta-MANTIS ™ at Anat Ebgi Leidy Churchman’s Heart Drop at Matthew Marks Gallery Abigail McCallum’s Pyrogenesis at MEY Gallery Thomas Trum’s Autobahn at The Hole Omar Mendoza’s My Colors and Kate Klingbeil’s Nervous System at Steve Turner Wes Lang, Spencer Lewis and Chip Hughes in Piano sale going on somewhere at Michael Benevento JOJO ABOT’s A GOD OF HER OWN MAKING at L.A. Louver

Now sit back, relax, and focus your attention on the choices and techniques of these artists. Credits are included in the footnotes, and more information about these shows and portfolios are listed in the appendix. Published JANUARY 25, 2024 | FULL MOON Sincerely, Elliott Desai

PORTUGAL

Belem, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Lisbon, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Lisbon, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Lagos, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Porto Covo, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Aljezur, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Aljezur,Portugal Lagos, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Lagos, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Lagos, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Sagres, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Sintra, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Sintra, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Porto, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Porto, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Porto, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

Porto, Portugal

Photo by Elliott Desai

HANCOCK PARK

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Vardan Gallery

FAIRFAX

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Shulamit Nazarian

Courtesy of Shulamit Nazarian

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Shulamit Nazarian

MID-WILSHIRE

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Sprüth Magers Gallery

EAST HOLLYWOOD

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Anat Ebgi

WEST HOLLYWOOD

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Matthew Marks Gallery

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of MEY Gallery

H O L LY W O O D

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of The Hole

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Steve Turner

RAMPART VILLAGE

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of Michael Benevento

V E N I C E

Photo by Elliott Desai Courtesy of L.A. Louver

HANCOCK PARK

MID-WILSHIRE

A Room with a View November 30, 2023 - February 10, 2024

Louise Lawler GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS November 10, 2023 - February 10, 2024 spruethmagers.com/artists/louise-lawler

TJ Rinoski instagram.com/tj_rinoski Alex Cohen alexcohenart.com

Sprüth Magers Gallery

Scott Brodie scottbrodie.com

6810 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038

Jenny Brillhart jbrillhart.com

vardangallery.com

Ruben Baghdasaryan ruben.studio

EAST HOLLYWOOD

Vardan Gallery

Alejandro Cardenas Porta-MANTIS ™ January 11 - March 2, 2024 anatebgi.com/artists/alejandro-cardenas

6810 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038 vardangallery.com

FAIRFAX Anastasia Komar von Neumann’s Dream January 6 - February 10, 2024 shulamitnazarian.com/exhibitions/78anastasia-komar-von-neumann-s-dream Aryana Minai Soft Waters Heard Here January 6 - February 10, 2024 shulamitnazarian.com/exhibitions/76aryana-minai-soft-waters-heard-here

Anat Ebgi 4859 Fountain Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90029 anatebgi.com

WEST HOLLYWOOD Leidy Churchman Heart Drop November 18, 2023–January 13, 2024 matthewmarks.com/artists/leidy-churchman

Shulamit Nazarian, Los Angeles

Matthew Marks Gallery

616 N La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036

1062 N Orange Grove Ave, West Hollywood, CA 90046

shulamitnazarian.com

matthewmarks.com

WEST HOLLYWOOD

RAMPART VILLAGE

Abigail McCallum Pyrogenesis January 9 - February 13, 2024 meygallery.com/abigail-mccallum

Piano sale going on somewhere November 17, 2023 - January 27, 2024 Wes Lang weslang.com

MEY Gallery

Spencer Lewis spencerrusselllewis.com

8967 Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069

Chip Hughes chip-hughes.com

meygallery.com

HOLLYWOOD Thomas Trum Autobahn January 6 - February 17, 2024 thehole.com/artists/thomas-trum

The Hole 844 N La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038 thehole.com

Omar Mendoza My Colors January 6 - February 3, 2024 steveturner.la/exhibition/my-colors Kate Klingbeil Nervous System January 6 - February 3, 2024 steveturner.la/artists/kate-klingbeil

Steve Turner 6830 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038 steveturner.la

Michael Benevento 3712 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90004 beneventolosangeles.com

VENICE JOJO ABOT A GOD OF HER OWN MAKING January 17 - March 3, 2024 jojoabot.com

L.A. Louver 45 N Venice Blvd, Venice, CA 90291 lalouver.com

PORTUGAL Lisbon • Aljezur Porto Covo • Lagos • Sagres Sintra • Porto

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