ENSO

The circle is Jung's archetype of wholeness.
In some cultures it is a symbol of time . . .
a reference to eternity, and also
to an ongoing series of fresh beginnings.

ENSO is a term borrowed from the Japanese word
for circles drawn or painted in the Zen tradition.
Circles of enlightenment.
Marks that record one's being here now.
In this moment as it is.
For the TIME/BEING.

I made the circles in these photographs with medical supplies.
They are part of an ongoing process essential to
my physical care after surgery for colorectal cancer.

Images made every three days for a period of one year.
One hundred and twenty-two ENSOs
to mark the rhythm of my existence.

ENSO calendar.
Zen in the art of ostomy maintenance.


Carol Chase Bjerke
2012