Home
Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy and celebration. The hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation.
- Unknown
Meet Janet Tam London
I was trained as a counselor, receiving my Master's Degree from Antioch University in 1974. For twenty five years I worked in community colleges, teaching psychology and personal growth classes and counseling. At age 50, I enrolled in an Artist's Way
class, and two things happened: I began creating art using pressed flowers and leaves and later began offering Artist's Way
classes myself because it helped so much to develop my own creativity. Kindness and compassion are very important components of my teaching, and watching women move from darkness into the light as their creative skills blossom is deeply rewarding. For the past ten years I have been selling pressed flower art pictures, prints, cards and home decor items and teaching a variety of creativity classes. I enjoy gardening, NIA dancing, meditation, traveling and spending time with my family and friends.
"As a seasoned workshop facilitator and teacher of almost 30 years I was deeply moved by Janet’s skill as a leader of our Artist’s Way group. Her ability to combine compassionate listening, reflective witnessing of individual’s experiences, and wise sharing of her personal journey with humor, ritual, and enthusiasm for the creative unfolding of our work together gifted me a deep transformative experience of connection with my Artist Within. I highly recommend her!" –Louise M. Pare, Ph.D.
About My Work
When I began my journey into this art form, I was experiencing a mid-life crisis that manifested in depression. As I started gathering and pressing flowers, leaves, even weeds from woods, roadsides, wild and manicured gardens, the life-affirming qualities of nature began to transform the depression into joy and happiness. Through my art I want to share the miraculous beauty of nature and its ability to heal and connect us with a sense of hope and optimism.
I thank God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and for the blue sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is Yes.
-e.e. cummings
About Flower Pressing
Pressing flowers is an art in itself. I use the Microfleur press for most of my pressing. The flowers are laid in the press and heated in a microwave oven for brief spurts. The resulting color is more vibrant than when a traditional flower press is used. Occasionally I use traditional wood presses for delicate flowers and for the greens. The placement of the flower is important as often I want the vibrant centers to show. I paint the greens to keep them from fading.
If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.
-Buddha
Art Shows and Events
5/21/2010: My prints were recently moved from where they were on display for the month of April at the Goodbean Cafe in Jacksonville to their May location at Joyfull Yoga, also in Jacksonville. As it happened, Joyfull Yoga was hosting a benefit event for the Children's Advocacy Center the Saturday after I placed my prints there, and as this is a cause I truly believe in, I offered them a print of my latest original pressed flower mandala, "Authentic Joy." They gladly accepted, and rather than add it to the list of raffle items others had contributed, the owner, Louise LaVergne, decided to auction it separately. Though I only brought it to them a couple of days before, miraculously it wound up framed by the day of the benefit. The great news is that Linda Otto (a teacher of infant massage) won the auction with a bid a little higher than my regular price for this print!
I was unable to attend the event myself, so my webmistress Hannah West represented me there. She says she was 
deeply moved by the executive director's opening speech introducing the Center and its mission, and as she prepared to speak to the audience about my contribution, she realized how many connections, some going back several years, had resulted in my participation in this event, and in how many ways my print was appropriate for this occasion. I created "Authentic Joy" last year as the third of a series of three mandalas; beginning with "Inanna's Descent" and progressing to "Ego Disintegration," "Authentic Joy" symbolizes the healing of a broken life, and I did my best to put into it all the joy of the healing I myself experienced. Hannah said the audience responded very positively to the presentation. Pictured are Hannah with Linda Otto and Marlene Mish, Executive Director of the Children's Advocacy Center.
The benefit was a sucessful one, but the CAC needs ongoing support in their efforts to give abused, neglected and traumatized children another chance at childhood. If you would like to do something to help, here's the link to their website: Children's Advocacy Center of Jackson County. You can also call them at (541) 734-5437.