You are tracking across the African Savannah in the midst of the noon day heat. As you brush aside the tall grass in front of you, the strong smells of the African land spring up to embrace your nostrils. The flies are constantly buzzing around you but still you press on: through the tall grassy brush, around the magnificent termite mounds, and passed the solitary bayobaub tree until at last you happen upon your destination. Just around the next bush you come into a clearing. Off to your right there stands a pristine watering hole with herds of antelopes, gazelles, and black onyxs lapping up its refreshing waters. Over to your left a pride of lions lazily roll about on the dusty plains having just gorged themselves on a huge water buffalo. And directly in front of you is an ancient tribal village where children dart back and forth between the brown thatched huts. The sight of these three powerful African images: the picturesque grazing animals, the powerful lions and the playful tribal children may seem like a distant fantasy to you but the artist Cal Massey has successfully captured these distinct and beautiful images in his works of art. When these images are brought together by the artist they are able to transcend the canvas and give the observer a deeper, fuller, and richer understanding of the great African circle of life.

In one of his paintings entitled Kenya Child and Friend, Cal Massey paints a vivid picture of a young Kenyan boy standing poised over a lion cub. The boy is clothed in traditional Kenyan garb that is earth-toned and stands in contrast to his dark skin. In the background of the painting are flat rocks tinted in hues of blue with a bright yellow surface. Beyond the rock stand a few trees with green and gold leaves dotting their dark branches. The sky is painted in a faint earth tone mixed with a light blue so as not to take anything away from the main objects in the painting.

Beyond the physical description of the painting one can seen much more than just earth tone shades and tinted hues. Upon closer inspection one can see the almost mystic energies that surround the boy, the lion, and the land and how they interconnect with one another to help make up the great African circle of life. As the boy stands poised over the lion cub his energies are constantly being re-focused and flow from himself to the lion the symbol of strength in the animal world. The energies of the lion in turn flow from it to the rocks and trees in the background the symbol of Africa itself. In the final link of this great circle the collected energies of the African land rain down upon the boy again and renew him with the spirit and blessings of Africa. In this great circle objects in Massey's painting are more than just painted images. In effect, they are tools used to concentrate and redirect vital energies from one element to another and help complete the great circle of African life.

In another of Cal Massey's painting entitled Uganda Child with Beisa Onyx the artist paints a picture of a small girl crouching in the tall bush grasses just beneath an onyx. The girl is dressed in traditional tribal garb that is earth tone in color and thus accentuates her dark brown skin. The onyx poised above her is painted in a magnificent spectrum of blue on its side with a light brown stripe on its back. Its face forms a tribal-like mask with patches of dark brown over the black eyes and nose and the rest of the face is painted in a dusty white. In the background are tall, thick grasses painted in dark shades of green and accentuated on the edges with a light olive color.

Just as in the first painting there is more that meets the eye here in this painting too. Again there is a flow of energies from one element to another as part of the great circle of African life. It begins with the girl, whose is the embodiment of motherhood, and flows to the green grasses of the land, the symbol of nourishment. Next the energies flow from the land to the onyx, the jewel of the land who is adorned in such magnificent colors. From both the physical perspective of the painting and the objects the author chooses to paint one can sense the closeness of this circle and the directness with which the energies flow from one element to another. Using this approach the artist is able to convey the oneness of the subjects in his painting as they all connect to one another in this great circle of African life.

In both of the artist's paintings Cal Massey uses people, animals, and the land to show us the great circle of African life. However, the artist's choice of specific subjects and landscapes gives us the benefit of seeing two distinct impressions of the same circle. In the first painting, the impression the artist wishes to give us is decidedly masculine. The artist uses the Kenyan boy, who will grow up to be a mighty warrior, with a lion cub, which will become a powerful hunter, and against the background of a rocky outcropping, which symbolizes the strength of the African land. All three of these combine together to create a strong, powerful, and masculine circle of African life. In contrast, the images in the second painting gives us a distinctively feminine image of that same circle. In this, the artist uses the Ugandan girl, who will grow up to be a mother, along with the onyx, which will always be prey, and the lush green grasses, a symbol of the fertility of the African land. These in turn all come together to create a soothing, nurturing, and feminine circle of African life.

In the paintings of Cal Massey the artist paints vivid and colorful pictures that give the observer the sense and feel of being in Africa. The artist's use of subjects and landscapes allows the observer to not only gain a fine appreciation for the different elements of African life but in effect, get a glimpse into the real essence of his works, that is, a pictorial description of the great African circle of life. It is in this great circle that the radiant energies of the human, the animal, and the land flow to and from one another in a constant and steady stream. Though the artist's use of masculine and feminine subjects gives us two distinct impressions of that circle, the result is still the same. In the end you will still find yourself transported to the edge of that clearing with its watering hole and majestic antelopes to the right; and its golden lions rolling on the dusty ground to your left; and in the center that same African village with its brown thatched huts and its dark brown children darting playfully back and forth between them. And in the end you will find that you have done far more than observe a painting, you will find that you have experienced Africa and thus have become a part of the great circle of African life.