Hoar Frost...


"Hoar Frost"
12 x 12
Acrylic on Acrylic paper

Tried to capture a bit of the feeling of the hoar frost from yesterday's walk... I have another attempt going... Might try to make the next one a bit more neutral... Just to see if I can!

thoughts I just gotta share...
I think the Canadian National Anthem is the best of all anthems. I love my country...but don't love our anthem... It's too hard to sing!

Frosty Morning....



Frosty Morning Walk on the Trail....

My friend Meg and I braved the bitter cold temps and were rewarded with a fairy land of frost. We could hardly talk for stopping and saying "oooooooh" and "aaaaaaaah". Photos never do this kind of scenery justice. The frozen nose hair was another added bonus.

The Idea of Trees....


"The Idea of Trees"
6 x 6
Acrylic on Acrylic paper
$50 (unframed)

Finished a few of these small ones today... A few days of thought and rest does wonders for finishing up unresolved paintings. It sometimes surprises me though...the paintings that I thought had such promise, end up to be not so great... And the ones that I am not that excited about end up being better than I'd imagined....

I'm thinking that it might be because of expectations.

Paintings that I judge to have 'promise'... I unconsciously tighten up on.... And the paintings that are boring to begin with... with some bold maneuvers... can become the paintings I like best. Hmmmmmm

Had a lot more fun painting today.... Had the reds, yellows and violets going.
Think Valentines. :) I love making valentines.

prime the pump


warm up... 6 x 6...acrylic on acrylic paper

I'm finding it a bit tough to get back in to the swing of things here at home. I spent the morning putting things away in the studio and then just started slapping paint on 6 small squares of paper, with a limited palette.

One thing I've learned in my 13 plus years of painting is that you just have to jump in and do it...don't wait until you have that "perfect" idea. Just put your brush to paper and paint. That's what makes the ideas come...the doing it. I can already tell that tomorrows painting session will be better than today's. (For one thing I'll be sure to pick more uplifting colors!)

I'm priming the pump with these little painted doodles....and before too long...the ideas will be flowing! I count on it.

grief and gratitude


Mom...headed off to college in 1948


Mom and Dad in 1949

I'm familiar with the various stages of grief you supposedly go through......but that seems like such a clinical way to describe the emotional upheaval that takes place when someone you love dies. It's a surreal experience.... Very foggy.

I'm sitting here in the kitchen of the house that my mom and dad built... on Platte Lake in a gorgeous area of Northern Michigan... I'm trying to compose some sort of memorial to my mom, a handout of sorts to be available at her "celebration of life" party on the 17th... a challenging task.

I keep crying because of the loss I feel.... then laugh and smile at the memories as I sort through photos and memorabilia. What a roller coaster of emotion...

But the prevailing feeling I'm having is gratitude. A profound sense of gratitude, for having the parents that I had.

I'm a lucky lucky girl.

A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Funeral Home....


"It's a Spring Thing"
(sold)

Many of you know that I've been away from home since last April, helping out my mom and her husband of two years. She was diagnosed with Acute Mylogenous Leukemia, and then a week later, she suffered a major stroke....paralyzing her right side.

Adding into that mix, my husband had lost his job in March...we decided to put our house up for sale (real estate in the Detroit area...hahahaha)

My mom's husband suffered a mild stroke in the summer...

I had to put my 13 year old dog...my fuzzy companion, Ivan... to sleep in November....

The chemo quit working for my mom in November, she declined and passed away on the 31st of December...

Good riddance 2009......




So.... my sister and I are driving to the funeral home, and my cell phone rings. It was the gentleman that had purchased one of my two paintings in the "Think Small 09" show at Lawrence Street Gallery. He had decided that he wanted the other painting in the show too.

I've decided that this is a sure sign that things will be looking up for me and mine!

I'm looking forward to an art and fun filled 2010!

Think Small 09.....

Two of my paintings were accepted into Lawrence Street Gallery's "Think Small 09" juried show. All works measure under 12 inches in any direction.

A really manageable size to gift wrap! (hint hint) :)

The opening is tomorrow evening, and I won't be able to be there, unfortunately... I'm still up north helping out my mom. If you can, you should check it out... there are always some surprising and exquisitely lovely small works....



"Earn Your Stripes"
6 x 6 (11 x 10 framed)
acrylic gesso and colored pencil on yupo paper
$75


"Partners In Climb"
6 x 6 (11 x 10 framed)
Acrylic gesso and colored pencil on yupo paper
$75
(this photo makes me laugh... my two big thumb prints on the outside edges of the image are matted out of the framed painting... LOL... gotta get another photo of this one! How professional I am....geesh!)

Michigan Holly...



"Michigan Holly"
8 x 8
oil pastel and watercolor on paper

Michigan landscape in November has mostly neutral tones...umbers, dark green pine ...sienna oak leaves... Then there is flash of brilliant red orange berries and bright green moss. An oasis for color starved eyes! This is another small one inspired by my daily walks in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore park.

I'll be taking a break from the park walks since deer hunting season has begun with a literal "bang" this morning and will continue for 2 weeks. And no more wearing my reindeer hat for a while! :)

Thoughts on Walks


"Thoughts on Walks"
watercolor and colored pencil on paper
8 x 8 inches

Those of you that know me... know that I've been helping out my mom as she deals with acute myelogenous leukemia, and the stroke she suffered because of it. I've been here in Honor, Michigan for just over 8 months (with a few quick trips home). I really feel lucky to be in the position to be able to do this for her. It is a gift to be able to help out where it's needed and appreciated.

Though, obviously there are some challenging parts to helping out a sick parent. One thing that's kept me somewhat sane and calm are my walks in the "Sleeping Bear Dune National Lake Shore" park. I can walk from the house straight down a dirt road that leads to Lake Michigan.... On some days I won't see another soul for the hour and a half it takes me. Imagine that! The most beautiful forest that leads to the dunes and then the lake in all it's magnificence enjoyed in complete solitude (other than the wildlife...and occasionally Ranger Jim). I listen to my Ipod... and have a notebook and pen for the wonderful insights that seem to pop into my head during these long walks. I really feel quite lucky.

The watercolor was painted from memory...and then the word stream that seems to ramble out of my head, was added with colored pencil. I can't even really read it, since I chose a pencil close in value and tone to the painting.

"Lights, Camera, Action!" Completed....



"Lights, Camera, Action!"
12 x 12
Acrylic on canvas

After a nights sleep... I woke up with a bit of a plan. I subdued some of the areas with white. and added a few dashes of pink to brighten up it's outlook. Calling this one finished.

I'm enjoying my birthday today... I love cake. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. oinky oink.

Lights Camera Action...Work in Progress


Lights Camera Action (Work in Progress... gonna sleep on it)
12 x 12
Acrylic on canvas

Felt oh so good to be slapping paint around today... Got out a canvas with some paint already on it and just started painting. I was working on 7 paintings at once... my favorite way to work! This one needs some areas simplified... but I need to think on it a little bit.

Enjoyed the most glorious sunny fall day today... Heading out for a walk right now, to enjoy the last little bit of it.

Aspire...and your art can too match your sofa...


"Aspire" work in progress...
24 x 24
acrylic and pencil on canvas

About this painting: The gold sections are Daniel Smith's gold gesso (which is addicting to use...but really hard to use 'well' I think) and will eventually be covered in gold leaf... we'll see how that goes...LOL

"Real Art Doesn't Match the Sofa"
I don't know where this phrase came from... probably from a frustrated artist.... I can almost hear the conversation as they are looking at the completed and commissioned floral painting...

patron (holding her couch arm sleeve thingie): "shouldn't that rose be a more lipsticky mauve rather than the purpley mauve you've painted?
artist: "If i change the color then that rose will not fit in with the rest of the painting."
patron: "Well, see here in the fabric...it really is a more lipsticky mauve."
artist:"But that color wouldn't look right against the greens that you provided with the paint chips."
patron:"I really thought that the rose would match this lipsticky mauve color in my sofa..."
artist:"Real art does't match the sofa."

Yup... I can imagine where the phrase came from... But, I think it puts up a barrier....
It makes the average person feel intimidated... It's as if artwork coordinating with furnishings is soooo not cool...
And I completely disagree....

Furnishing a home is an art... A room is a composition.... I would not place a piece of art in a spot that didn't look good.... If the pattern on my sofa looked awful with a fabulous painting above it... I would move the painting, or the sofa.

I know I'm being literal with this saying... and that's probably not what the author meant...
But we shouldn't be flippant and roll our eyes at someones "unsophisticated" tastes... It's never good to make someone feel dumb...

As artists need to try to educate and lead... (Especially here in the US... where art education is so sadly pushed to the bottom of our schools' curriculum.) We need to try to entice our friends and family into our artistic circles... to show them what we see and feel, with approachable language and an open and welcoming attitude.

"Real Art is for Everyone"



Website Work Woes and other stories...


"Thought Process"
11 x 10
Acrylic on Paper
not for sale at this time

For the last 10 days I have been working on revamping my website. Hours and hours were spent on it... It had hundreds of pages under the "paintings" category, with subheadings that included~
  • Taking the High Road Series
  • Landscape
  • Faces and Figures
  • Animals
  • Gouache Ink Resist (including a demo section)
  • still life
  • abstract
  • My Year of Paintings Series...
So Friday morning... I excitedly push the "publish" button and we are off and running, for a couple of minutes... then the "serious error with SiteBuilder" screen comes up.... AAAAGGGGHHH!!!!
I want to throw up.

Luckily, I had saved most everything on an external hard-drive (I had learned that hard lesson a couple of years ago) So I spent more hours importing files into the fresh (uninstalled then reinstalled) SiteBuilder...and re-doing the links ( they didn't work when I put the pages back in) And stopped with just my current work posted. Someday I might add some of the stuff back in... but for now I'm calling it "good enough".

So... you are probably asking..."Why doesn't she hire this done so she can just paint???" Here's why~
  • the expense
  • the flexibility of adding pages when new work is done...immediately
  • I would drive a designer/programmer crazy with my indecision and waffling. (I drive myself crazy)
  • I don't want to hunt for or interview website designers.
  • my very strong 'self reliant' tendencies.
  • and...."I can do it myself" said the little red hen. (rolling my eyes here)
I'm not saying that these reasons are good reasons... but they are my reasons.
I drive me crazy.

Distractions and Diversions... and some juried show advice



"Distractions and Diversions"
12 x 12
acrylic on canvas (framed)
$250

Was delighted to hear that "Distractions and Diversions" received a prize in the Crystal Lake Art Center's All Media Show! The reception is the 11th, and I'll be there with bells on. :)

I submitted 2 paintings... the second one ("It's Complicated") got "declined"... which was a lot easier to shrug off since I won a prize with the other one... LOL
I'm usually quite philosophical about entering shows and try to remember the following~

I consider it a success if I:
  • fill out the form correctly
  • have color corrected, great photographs of the painting
  • select the best 2-3 available paintings that look good together
  • get all the labels in the right places
  • get the jpg's the correct size
  • get the jpg's labeled correctly
  • have everything in or postmarked by the deadline
  • just having the "ca-hones" to enter a juried show at all!
After that... It's out of my hands.... so fogetahboutit!

Having been a juror before, I know what a difficult job it is. Jurors are most often artists themselves.... They know how each person will feel when they get their results. It ain't easy to curate a show. Remember, the juror will be judged by every person that entered! They are either brilliant or a horses patoot, depending on how they filled out your jury results form!

So....My sage advice....

Try not to get too amped if you get in, let alone receive a prize...
so then on the flip side...

When the inevitable "declined" letters come... you can be Scarlett O'Hara~
"After all.... tomorrow is another day!"

What gets me started....


"Circumventing Obstacles" (work in progress)
15 x 15
mixed media on watercolor paper

So where do you start when you are going to make a painting?
Well for me, it sort of goes like this....

I start usually with an idea. And then I keep the idea in my head as I sketch and doodle either right on the paper with pastel pencil or in my sketch book. I try to remember to write the idea or title on the back of the painting. I'm working on so many paintings at a time that I might forget what my intent was if it takes me a while to get back to it.

"Circumventing Obstacles" has started pretty much that way... With one slight difference... On my walk yesterday morning, I found this gorgeous lichen (see photo below) growing on a branch that fell into the driveway. I just loved the colors of it and decided that those colors would suit my intent for this painting... So my palette was chosen by nature.... so far.

I try to never box myself in with these early impulsive decisions.... If the painting works within this palette, great! But if I decide to go in a different color direction, that's ok too....The main thing is to just start somewhere! Put that brush to paper and GO!

How exciting!


"Distractions and Diversions 2"
12 x 12
Acrylic on canvas (sold)

I was really thrilled to find out that this painting won the "Peoples Choice" award at the Artcenter Traverse City's juried show last month! How about that! I was REALLY tickled because I know nobody in the area...strangers voted me in! (Other than you, Judy)

The really strange thing is that no one from the ArtCenter let me know that I'd won...LOL (My husband just happened to read it on their website.) We all need these little boosts.... so I'm sure glad he happened to see it.

Last week was chemo week with my mom... So I wasn't able to paint. Hopefully tomorrow...
It's really hard on us artists when we can't eek out our painting time.

Gwen Frostic...


Gwen Frostic 1906-2001

I have been visiting Platte Lake, in Honor Michigan since 1978... (my college roommate had a cottage). My parents bought a lot on the lake in the early 80's and built, first a cottage...and then their home....And now I'm living in the cottage as I help my mom recover from a stroke....I've been in this area a lot...

And now the "hang my artistic head in shame" part of the story......

Gwen Frostic's woodland studio, about 20 minutes from my parent's house, has been a popular tourist destination for all that time, and I had never (horrified and embarrassed gasp) made the effort to go and visit. On Tuesday I rectified that situation. Gwen's wood block prints are delightful and you can watch the printing presses in action from the shop balcony. Now that I've finally been there, I can highly recommend it.

I found this interview with Gwen when searching for more information about her... an interesting lady.

This Way Is Up......



"This Way Is Up"
15 x 15 inches
Acrylic on Watercolor paper (300#)
$400 unframed

Detail images below....








Again with the wonky ladder and 2 support imagery.... I can't seem to stop. :)

And on a completely unrelated note.....

I had written to Polly Hammett, (she has a great video from CCP called "Design with the Figure") asking her where she purchased the moldable foam stamps. I was delighted to get a very kind response from her today.

This material is a sort of foam product that when heated becomes soft. You can then press any number of things (fern, mesh, lace, leaves, your face...well, not really sure about that last one) ...then the foam cools and wha-la! A nifty stamp to add texture to any painting that needs "a little something there." Polly demonstrates this technique brilliantly in her video.

Polly said in her email:
"I heat mine on a hot coffee pot burner untill it gives just a little, then quickly push it on a raised surface....Lace, leaves ect.
It is like making magic!"

I'm going to get some of this foam so I can make some magic too!