Lin­da Dayan Frimer’s Lumi­nous is a com­plex and intrigu­ing work that mix­es mem­oir, spir­i­tu­al­ism, and med­i­ta­tions on art and col­or with reflec­tions on Judaism and her own fam­i­ly’s roots through gen­er­a­tions going back to Romania.

One sub­ject that unites her work is trees and their heal­ing abil­i­ty. Some paint­ings beg com­par­i­son with Emi­ly Car­r’s famous forests, but Frimer’s light-filled spaces and Post-Impres­sion­ist/­Fau­vist palette will hit a stronger emo­tion­al chord with many peo­ple. She uses acrylics, oils, and water­col­ors, and col­lages pho­tographs into mixed-media can­vas­es. Some of her paint­ings are quite rep­re­sen­ta­tion­al, oth­ers almost abstract, while still oth­ers explore mys­tic images and juxtapositions.

A notable aspect of the book is the words of advice to aspir­ing artists and spir­i­tu­al seek­ers that are announced on the page with a grace­ful, sim­ple out­line of a dove.… In fact, the read­er is invit­ed to join in, to tear a piece of paper and exam­ine it, to paint a brush­stroke, to put two marks of dif­fer­ent col­ors side by side. Although it is her jour­ney, we are urged to have one as well.