Project Overview

The Journey of the In-Between is a painting series and story that will then be printed into a book in both hardback and paperback. This book is intended for children and adults alike. It will consist of 18 to 20 paintings, 4' x 4' and 4' x 5' in size. These paintings will be pages of the book that will be 8.5" x 11" in size. These paintings and the accompanying written story will be based on the teachings of The Tibetan Book of the Dead, which is considered a handbook of living and dying in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Once the series is finished, the paintings will also be turned into an exhibition so viewers can "walk" through the pages of the book and read the story alongside the art. The goal is to have this exhibition travel to hospitals, hospice, centers, spiritual centers, and art galleries.

Who We Are

Kyra

My name is Kyra Coates, and I am an artist, writer, and long-time student of Tibetan Buddhism. My art has principally focused around emotional and psychological experiences of feminine power. You can see more of my art at www.kyracoatesart.com.

Recently I was diagnosed with early cognitive decline leading to Alzheimer's disease. I'm 39 years old, so this came as a huge shock. Ironically, for years I worked on the side as a caregiver in hospice and for the elderly. I helped many people die, in particular, many people with Alzheimer's and dementia. I realized from these experiences that, as the brain degrades, we are left with our emotional imprints. These can be intense trauma's or simply peace for those who lived a life open to change and wonder. Either way, I would see people's personalities "disappear" along with their memories, as our personalities are really just a composite story made up of all our experiences throughout life (with a bit of hereditary impulses thrown in there). It was with these hospice clients I began to wonder. What existed there behind these stories, when the mind is gone? With my current diagnoses of facing Alzheimer's myself, this question is more poignant then ever.  Together with my partner Robert Cooper (who was too camera shy to be in the video), we will dive into this journey with the best of our talents; through art and story.

Robert

My name is Robert Cooper, and I am a long-time student of Tibetan Buddhism. After I had a kundalini awakening, which is a profound spiritual experience, at the age of 19, I became very interested in examining near death experiences by people all over the world.  So I read anything I could find about NDE’s.  Later when I encountered the Tibetan Book of the Dead, I realized just how accurately the Tibetans had used Buddhist mind training to thoroughly document the "bardo", or transition phases during death, as a means to enlightenment, or at least to a better rebirth process.  I also saw how deeply related the NDE’s are; I realized they are a universal process and driven by our own thinking and experiences in this very life.  It seemed like magic. 

Somewhere around age twenty-six, I decided I must explore this bardo realm thoroughly before I die to have any hope of recognizing the nature of mind.  So I began vision questing in the desert.  I would prepare to die for 30 days, then I would take my body to the limits in fasting, exposure to the elements and sacred medicines.  I was driven from my body time and time again to explore these bardo realms and experiences.  I developed a profound trust and confidence in not only my own capabilities but of the accuracy of the The Tibetan Book of the Dead.

It is my sincerest wish to produce a book that is not just visually beautiful, but also accurately depicts in a nonsectarian way the process that was laid out by the great Master Padmasambhava in the 8^th century.

As a father of 4 children, I have sought ways to communicate these deep teachings of Awareness and mind to them in ways they can understand.  It has also been a dream of mine to use the The Tibetan Book of the Dead as an inspiration for the communication of how to awaken in death for more people than just those interested in Tibetan Buddhism.

The Story

The story features four young girls who are sisters. They will be represented by our four daughters. The girls try very hard to be fair and stand up for what is right. But they come to their mother/ mentor (Kyra) sad and frustrated that there is still so much suffering in the world. She teaches them that there can never be true peace until they find it within themselves first. She guides them through a visualization process that connects them to higher states of clarity and peace, until they finally recognize that these states have been within themselves all along. She then tells them it is her time to die. As she begins dying, she teaches them about the "bardos", which are the transition phases everyone experiences after death. She explains these bardos are merely reflections of one's own mind, and that as we journey through them, we have the opportunity to identify with the blazing brilliance of unrestricted wisdom and clarity, which is our true nature. Or, we can be lulled into the comfort of our familiar restrictive emotions of anger, passion, greed, and fear, and be reborn to experience them all over again. As she traverses through these bardos herself, she recognizes her true nature of absolute wisdom, and dissolves into a brilliant "rainbow body", where the flesh itself becomes so clarified by the recognition of truth it dissolves into rainbow light. Witnessing this, the girls themselves realize their own true nature, and are grateful for this final beautiful lesson from their mother/mentor. Our hope is that this can be a tool for others to change the narrative of fear of death to one of something beautiful and liberating.  

The artistic style in this series will be a combination of expressionism, abstract, and realism. We will be purposely excluding any traditional Buddhist symbolism and iconography specifically to maintain a more secular narrative that can speak to a Western audience. There will be mandalas in the paintings, but not shown in a traditionally eastern way. This series is meant to convey the teachings themselves, separate from the religious and cultural association they are typically represented in. 

It is also very important to us that all these characters are female. As in all religions, Buddhism has had a very limited representation of women as teachers and wise figures. Representation matters!

What We Need & What You Get

For this campaign, we are asking to raise $14,000. This covers:

• publishing fees for the book 
• art supplies to create the series 
• the cost of fulfilling all the amazing rewards you crowd-funders will get to enjoy by contributing to our campaign. 
• creative time in making the series and story. 

What YOU get is the opportunity to pre-order your signed copy of this book in either hard cover or soft cover, and/or receive beautiful art at a discounted price! All the art in this series will be available for sale, either as originals or giclee reproductions. These will all be discounted 20% or more from what Kyra would normally sell them for the month of this campaign only! This discount also applies to Kyra's current Feminine Power series of paintings, so if there is a piece you've had your eye on, now is the time to contribute and save some money! If you select art from the current series you will receive your reward by Christmas 2019, so it is also a great gift option. If you select a reward from The Journey of the In-Between, you will receive your reward in December 2020.

Kyra also will be offering to do commissioned art a discounted rate! 

The Impact

Our vision is that The Journey of the In-Between will become a tool people of all ages can use. As both of us are long-time students of Tibetan Buddhism, we recognize that these teachings are often presented with Tibetan cultural symbolism that can be confusing to a westerner. By bringing a human story to these teachings with a simple explanation, as well as a strong visual experience, our hope is that it will serve many for years to come. Art is a powerful tool for connecting with experiences beyond words. We hope this book can speak to all minds and hearts.

Our Background

Kyra has been an artist since she was 18 months old, no exaggeration! She studied at the Corcoran School of Art, and the Maryland Institute, College of Art. She became a full-time professional artist at the age of 21. At that time, she had a profound spiritual experience. She left everything behind and became a nun in a Hindu tradition, and lived that way for 3 years, doing deep spiritual practice and humanitarian work. At age 26, she realized the life of renunciation wasn't in alignment with her deepest spiritual experiences and left that world behind. She went on to study at Naropa University, which is a small Buddhist-inspired University in Boulder, Colorado that was founded by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. It was there she dove deep into the Buddhist teachings, focusing on understanding the psychology of enlightenment. While studying there, she  worked as a caregiver in hospice and with the elderly. She helped many people die along the way, and learned much about human psychology in death. These experiences have deeply informed this project.

Kyra returned professionally in 2014 to the art world with a focus on spiritual and psychological expressions of women's empowerment. She  founded Infuse Gallery. This art gallery partnered with several women-focused nonprofits, and gave those served in the gallery a platform to sell their art. 

Robert is originally from Topeka, Kansas.  Born smack in the middle of the country raised on a ranch he developed a keen connection with the earth and her animals.  A kundalini awakening at age 19 sent him in a profoundly different direction than he had been raised. He left for Naropa University a few years later and received a degree in Religious Studies. 

Robert has studied with his Buddhist Teacher for 21 years, in addition he is an entrepreneur, a father to four young dakini’s, a partner and a friend to all beings. He loves creating mandala chalk art, and will be collaborating with Kyra on the paintings by adding in some of his geometric creations. Kyra and Robert will be co-writing the story together.

Other Ways You Can Help

If you are unable to contribute today we understand. However, you can still support this project by sharing the heck out of it on your social media and with friends!