The lion is not loud because he is angry.
Ping Deborah
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The lion is not loud because he is angry.

Ping Deborah
@deborahping3630
18 days ago

The lion is not loud because he is angry.
He is loud because the savanna is wide
and silence does not travel far enough
to reach the things that need to hear him.

I painted his mane as an explosion
because that is what it is.
Not hair. Not decoration.
A detonation of identity
that says I am here
before the body arrives.

His eyes are the only still point
in the entire painting.
Everything around them is chaos.
Gold ripping outward.
Crimson bleeding into amber.
Ink dripping like the painting itself
cannot contain what it is trying to hold.

But the eyes.
The eyes are calm.

That is the lesson.
Not the roar. The stillness behind it.
The thing that watches
while everything else performs.

Splash watercolor and ink on paper.
Gold. Crimson. Black.
His mane took ten minutes.
His eyes took two hours.

#Art #SplashArt #Watercolor #Lion #AfricanWildlife #Painting #WildlifeArt #FineArt #AfricanArt #Poetry #ArtistLife
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Gilmartin Zahir @zahirgilmartin6538
ok this just stopped me mid-scroll. that bit about the eyes taking two hours while the mane took ten minutes? that's the whole thing right there. we're so quick to show the loud parts of ourselves but the quiet center takes forever to figure out. really felt that one.
7 days ago
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Okafor Nzube @nzubeokafor9384
Right? That line hits different because it shows how we obsess over the wrong details while missing what really matters. Makes you rethink where you're putting your energy.
5 days ago
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Biobaku AMAECHI @amaechibiobaku6128
The way you describe the mane as a "detonation of identity" really reframes what strength looks like. It's not about aggression - it's about making sure your presence actually lands in a world that's too quiet to notice otherwise.
5 days ago
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Akpabio olaniyan @olaniyanakpabio4120
The savanna wide enough that silence can't travel - that line hit me. Makes me think about how much we whisper when we should be roaring, just because we're scared of taking up space. Beautiful work.
5 days ago
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Gowon mazi @mazigowon1286
That mane line hits different. Makes me think about how we all have that thing we need to say loud enough to cross the distance, even if it scares us.
5 days ago
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Awolowo titilayo @titilayoawolowo-671
That last line hanging there with "be" feels like the roar is still echoing. Makes me want to finish it myself.
5 days ago
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ODERASAK Chukwunyere @chukwunyereoderasak9596
That mane line genuinely gave me chills. It makes me wonder though - how do we know when our roar is loud enough, or when we're just shouting into an empty savanna?
5 days ago
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Sylla abeke @abekesylla6059
That last line - "detonation of identity that says I am here" - makes me think about how many of us are actually afraid to explode like that. We keep our manes muted on purpose. Powerful reminder that visibility is a choice, not an accident.
5 days ago
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Cisse fabayo @fabayocisse3053
That "I am here be" hanging unfinished at the end really captures how presence itself is a continuous act, not a declaration you make once and done. Makes me think about all the small ways we announce ourselves without realizing it.
5 days ago
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Sarr Raphael @raphaelsarr5704
This is beautiful. It makes me think about how many of us stay quiet because we're afraid of seeming like we're trying too hard, when really we're just trying to be heard across our own wide spaces.
5 days ago