Johnnie Belinda, Martinsville, holds a portrait she created. Belinda paints pet portraits based on psychic readings she takes from their photographs or other items. Photo by T.C. Lower.
She is also a psychic who makes portraits of pets and other animals as she does readings from their photographs. Even if you don?t believe in psychic abilities, you may still want to check out her art.
As I sat down with Johnnie Belinda at her home in Martinsville, she explained how she does a reading. Typically, she asks a client to bring in or mail a photograph because she has to physically touch the image. If a photo is unavailable, Belinda needs an object belonging to the animal so she can hold it in her hands. She doesn?t look at the image or any accompanying mail; in fact, she places the picture face down. Right away, she gets sensory information, she said. For example, if the animal is no longer alive, it feels cold. If she sees the color brown, the pet is going to die; if she feels heat, it is sick. She tells me that animals always generate love unless they have been abused.
At this point, Belinda begins to draw what she sees in her visions. As she loosely sketched a picture of my cat as a demonstration, I asked:
TL: How did you begin doing psychic portraits of animals?
JB: I?ve always had an affinity for animals and began taking their pictures from an early age. My mother was irritated because the photos never had family members in them, only their pets. One day, as I was sketching, I saw the death of my dog. Shortly thereafter, my dog died in the exact manner I saw in the vision. I sketched and then painted his portrait on the couch where he was lying when I found him.
TL: What medium do you use for the portraits of your clients? pets?
JB: The portraits are done in watercolor or pastels. I select the medium on the basis of the reading I get for each animal. While working on the portrait, I see images and feel sensations in my body about the animal and their owners. As I paint the animal, I see the colors of their aura and paint the background using those colors. I never change the aura colors since to do so would lose the essence of their being.
TL: How does the owner receive the readings?
JB: I give the initial readings to the client in person or on the phone. I relate the additional readings I pick up during the process of working on the painting when I deliver the finished portrait, usually within two weeks.
TL: How much does an animal portrait cost?
JB: It varies, depending on the size the client wants, but I charge a reasonable rate, up to $250 for a life-sized portrait of an animal.
TL: Do you do readings for people as well?
JB: I do client readings twice a week in person or by phone. All of my business is by referral.
TL: Do you do other types of artwork?
JB: Besides the animal portraits, I do contemporary abstract watercolors. I love to express myself through color and form. Lately, I?ve been experimenting with feminist themes. My art has become my passion.
TL: What is the content of the feminist work you?re doing?
JB: I?ve been creating images of women in childbirth and other strong anatomical studies. After all, childbirth is the most power women have. I suppose my art is reflective of my aging process, but it is also a second birth of creativity in the subject matter I?m choosing. I?m realizing my power as a woman as I approach middle age.
As we concluded our interview, Johnnie Belinda gave me a reading of my cat, using his collar rather than a photograph. She accurately described his Garfield-like personality and other details about his health. Abruptly, the reading turned in a personal direction as my vibrations overpowered her vision. Although the content of that reading will remain private, I will say that it was very entertaining.
T. C. Lower is an author and freelance writer living in Bloomington, Ind. She can be contacted via email: tlower@bloomington.in.us.
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