A week's worth of paintings

This week I've spent my days finishing up several paintings that had been languishing around the studio for months.  It's not like me to leave paintings unfinished, but with these, I kept getting things I was hot to start and finish - my self portraits, primarily - and interrupted myself with those.  Once I realized I had 6 paintings unfinished, I decided this would be the week I'd finish them.  Yay.

Here they are:

In the Woods was the one I finished today.  Sometimes my models want to pose in the woods just for the heck of it.  This woman seemed to love being out there feeling the air on her skin and exploring Nature.  This picture reminds me of the Mary Cassatt painting which the Virginia Museum owns. The composition with both reaching up for the tree branch, as well as the look of wonder in each of their eyes.  I love her joy!

This picture of Kate is one I did for the documentary Roberta Oster Sachs is working on about my work.  She wanted to have shots of me working with a model so Kate boldly agreed to be photographed being photographed and to have her painting in the movie as well.  It took me a long time to get around to finishing it, but, finally, here it is!  She's a beautiful woman, and it was interesting hearing her talk about how it was for her to model and be photographed and painted.  I think her participation will add to the documentary in lovely, wonderful ways.

I was wonderfully surprised in the middle of doing taxes one weekend to receive a phone call from CA from a man who'd seen my work online and was interested in commissioning me to do a couple of pieces for him.  He loved what he saw online but wanted larger images, so I took on the exercise of re-painting my sand, sea, and sky studies in oils, significantly larger.  The studies were small - 9"x6" - in pastel, so I wasn't sure how well I'd do blowing them up in another medium.  I started working on them about a month ago.  The first one went really well.  I put the paint on the palette and started applying it to the canvas with a nice, big brush.  I realized right away that that wasn't going to work for me, so I put on some latex gloves and scooped up globs of paint with my hands and smeared it on the canvas.  What joy and pleasure!  This is the picture that resulted:  Friday Morning Calm. 

After I finished that one, I started on the next one.  The gentleman who commissioned me to do the paintings had said he was planning to meditate in front of them and that he liked the energy differential between the two - Friday Morning Calm being very Zen-like and the other a bit more full of energy.  When I began painting the second one, I riffed on the idea of energy and went to town smearing paint and feeling the absolute pleasure of paint in my hands - like finger painting as a kid. I felt so happy!  I called Glenn to let him know I was done and sent him images of each.  (Ah, the ease of the internet!)  I was a little bit disappointed and a little bit glad when he said that Evoking the Beach (the second piece) wasn't what he had in mind.  Oh goodie- that meant I'd be able to keep it!  This month it's hanging at Glen Allen Cultural Arts Center in a show my mom and I are doing called At the Beach.  That works too!

So I began another piece for the commission, this time truer to the original.  I'd done the original piece when I got home from the beach one time as a color study, without looking at anything beach-like.  I actually hang it the other way around, but my client wanted the blue at the top, so I did it that way instead!  The picture went through several iterations before I got to the one we both liked a lot.  The picture on the left is the original pastel.  The right hand one is the new oil.  I tried doing a wobbly horizon line, but it just didn't work in oils.  I copied what I'd done in pastel as well as I could, but neither of us liked it particularly.  I was blessed in that the client wanted me to create something I loved, so I put away the original and went to town, getting into the Zen of the painting, and came up with a piece I really love now.  I hope he will too!  It's quite different doing a piece on commission than doing it just for myself because it's what's inside me that needs to come out.  This way there are two voices in my head - not just mine!  At its best, it's a terrific collaboration.  It certainly was this time around!

A friend of mine gave me some roses last weekend which reminded me of my grandmother's garden when I was a child.  I was captivated by the smell and the beauty of them so I rushed out to the studio first thing Monday to paint them in watercolor.  It isn't a medium I normally work in, so it was challenging, but it felt like the right medium to try to capture the delicate beauty of the rose petals and the beauty of the glass vase they were in.

This piece, Crone, is one I started months ago as a "blow out" piece - that means I just need to paint without any references and do whatever I feel like, letting it be ugly or harsh or whatever.  That painting was very different than this one.  After having that one around the studio for months, I decided one day to work it a bit more, so I got out a mirror and turned it into a self portrait - more or less.  My hair is nothing like this, but the face has my features.  I find when I do a self portrait from life, people tell me I look way older than I look in real life.  I'm not sure I highlight my most beautiful features, but it's the best, most accurate representation of myself I can manage. 

This is another piece based on photos I took at the beach on one of our trips.  It's called Silent Sound.  It's the sound just south of Avon, NC just after the sun went down and the glow was still on the water, but it was dusky, almost dark with ripples on the water and rose in the sky.

Now that I have just gone through all those pictures, I realize I'm going to have to get off my case - I so often feel like I don't get anything done during my days in the studio - perhaps because I'm enjoying it so deeply - and I feel dissatisfied.  Time to lighten up and feel good about this week!  And time to go in to dinner and to see my darlin' who's now home from work!  Have a great weekend!

Emotions of the Ocean, Wednesday, Avon OBX

Wednesday started out cloudy and overcast but didn't stay that way for too long.

I got very intrigued by the clouds.  Right on the horizon line, there was a bank of clouds then above that, there were two different types of clouds, one wispy, the other puffy.  I don't know the names for the types of clouds, so can't be specific - any Weather Channel junkies out there who can help me?!

Here's the whole scene at about the same time as the image above.  The sky was bluer Wed than it had been Mon and Tues when it tended towards dark, sandy green.

Later in the day the sky got lighter and brighter as did the ocean.  The waves were a little bit choppier too.

Look how the water changed completely - it got dark as could be!  That what made these pictures so much fun!  I might think I was drawing the same picture twice, but when I finished and compared them, I could see how utterly different they actually were!

Tomorrow's post I will continue with the pictures I did at the OBX each day so you, like I, can experience the changing emotions of the ocean.

(If you're interested in purchasing any of these, please contact me.  Unframed, they will sell for $165.  Framed (acid-free materials, beautiful hand-made frame (framed by Chris and me)) they will sell for $275.  I will also be making prints which will be $35.) 

Emotions of the Ocean, Friday, Avon OBX

Friday was our last full day at the Outer Banks.  It began with the owner of the cottage calling the house to ask if it would be possible to have some workmen come for a couple of hours a bit later to install the shower doors in the master bathroom.  She was lovely and apologetic but said they didn't have a choice.  I was stunned speechless - we had plans for the day that didn't include workmen banging around and in and out for a bit.  Once I gathered my ability to speak again, I told her it would be a major imposition and asked if there were anyway to NOT have them come, I would appreciate it greatly.  Thankfully she understood because she loves her time at the beach also so she back off of her request.  Thank you, owner!  We appreciate you even more now!

After I got up I went to Spa Koru to do some yoga.  One of the perks of renting this house is a week's membership at the spa.  I did yoga three times during the week.  It was a wonderful benefit!  After that I went to talk to the owner of Studio 12 to talk about teaching classes there this summer.  She was terrific and we're having conversations about how to get me down there to teach and when.  Sounds like fun to me!

When I finally got home from all that, it was almost 1 and I was ready for breakfast!  But first I had to do a drawing.  Then another one.  Then another.  Knowing it was my last day there made me all the more avid to draw as much as I could.  Who knows when we'll ever have the chance to stay in such a fabulous home again!  

These three pictures ended up being more alike than other days' of work.  Interesting that the ocean was less variable than previously.  It remained densely clouded and windy.  

As the day drew to a close, Chris was watching out of the back windows to see how the sound was looking to try to gauge what the sunset might be like.  He decided it looked like it would be great, so we hopped in the car and headed down to the Canadian Hole (where windsurfers and kiteboarders launch) on the Sound to watch that glory.  He was so right!  The clouds cleared just enough to offer us sunset perfection.  Here are some of the pictures I took.  I've already painted one of them!

As the day drew to a close, Chris was watching out of the back windows to see how the sound was looking to try to gauge what the sunset might be like.  He decided it looked like it would be great, so we hopped in the car and headed down to the Canadian Hole (where windsurfers and kiteboarders launch) on the Sound to watch that glory.  He was so right!  The clouds cleared just enough to offer us sunset perfection.  Here are some of the pictures I took.  I've already painted one of them!

It was such a blessing to spend time at the Outer Banks.  I feel refreshed, renewed, and reinvigorated and ready to create more artworks.  I don't know what they'll be of, but this week has shown me that it's in my blood, in my psyche, and in my soul.  This is how I process the world and what I find before me.  I don't seem to have any other choice!

Emotions of the Ocean, Thursday, Avon OBX

Thursday we were out and about a lot.  We drove down South and stopped by galleries and shops in Avon.  It was quite an ironic day.  I had come to the beach intended to VACATE.  Take a break!  Quit pushing so darn hard because I was tired!  But, like a moth to flame or a duck to water, I am drawn to art and to creating.  So where did I go?  To galleries!  of course!  Each gallery we went in, Chris would off-handedly mention that I was an artist also.  At one place, Studio 12, in Avon, the owner asked immediately if I'd be interested in showing my work there.  But of course!  I asked if he'd like to see it, figuring he wouldn't want to get himself into trouble by agreeing to show my work before he'd even seen it!  I showed him my fruits and beach scenes.  He suggested I speak with his wife the next day about the possibility of offering classes there.  Sounded good to me!

We went into a couple other galleries as well and talked about doing the same.  It looks like I'll probably be offering classes in the Outer Banks this summer!  I'll post details here as soon as everything is confirmed.  

I learned that what I've been espousing for years -  Follow Your Bliss and the Money will Follow - actually means what it says.  Follow your BLISS!  Recently I've been working very, very hard, feeling pressured to make a living doing what I love and learning to not love it quite so much anymore.  It isn't fun to push and push and push and to feel driven to succeed.  I was starting to feel resistant to standing in front of the easel.  Going on vacation was perfect - the beauty all around me thrilled me and inspired me to wake up and paint!  I couldn't wait to get to the easel!  I would have done more pictures, but I was worried about running out of paper.  It was then that I realized that I've been turning my love into my duty out of fear of not making enough money.  What I learned Thursday was that just being myself and doing what brings me pleasure and joy works much better.  Now I'll have several places to sell my artwork and to teach classes - I'll even get to go to the beach in the summer - what a concept!  A very, very good lesson.

When we returned from our explorations, I took time to draw another picture before we headed out to chase the sunset.  It looked like it was going to be a good one.  It seems like when there are some clouds, but not opaque cover, the sunsets are best.  As you can see from this picture, the cloud cover was pretty dense, but we wanted to get out there anyway.  Below are some of the pictures I took that evening.

I love seeing the rays of light breaking through the clouds.  It looks like an image from the Old Testament or something equally awe-inspiring.

There were a couple of windsurfers out on the sound when we got there.  It was fun seeing them silhouetted against the darkening sky.

The sun behind the clouds almost created a silver lining.  Not quite, but I thought this shot was equally dramatic!

That night we were blessed with a very dramatic full moon rising over the ocean.  I rested my camera on the balcony railing so I could get a long exposure so the clouds would show up.  It was quite an artful day!

Tomorrow I will continue with the pictures I did at the OBX each day so you, like I, can experience the changing emotions of the ocean.

(If you're interested in purchasing any of these, please contact me.  Unframed, they will sell for $165.  Framed (acid-free materials, beautiful hand-made frame (framed by Chris and me)) they will sell for $275.  I will also be making prints which will be $35.) 

Emotions of the Ocean, Tuesday, Avon OBX

Tuesday I awoke, full of excitement, with the sun glaring from behind the sun-blocking curtains.  I could tell it was a bright sunny day, so even before I wrote my morning pages, I popped out of bed, ran into the living room, and started drawing.  I think I said good morning to Chris before I applied pastel to paper!  I hope I was that polite, at least!  It was 7:30, I believe, and the sun had just come up enough to cast a radiant white light onto the ocean, all but blinding me in its glory.  It was impossible to see any details where it shone except where the waves cast a shadow.  The area around it was more visible, thus the blue.

After doing picture #1, I kissed Chris good morning then went back to bed to write my morning pages so I could get centered for the day.  By the time I was done with them, the ocean had changed completely.  The sky was now somewhat cloudy and the water appeared dark sandy-green.  I couldn't take time to eat breakfast!  I had to draw another scene first!

After breakfast, the clouds had filled the sky, leaving it almost completely overcast and the water even darker.  I was intrigued by the idea of trying to render the overcast sky and still differentiate enough to make it interesting.

And now it looks like Monday again with windy, overcast skies, choppy turbulent seas, and a barely-visible horizon line.  And all that after such a blaringly bright 7:30 AM!

The next couple days' of posts I will continue with the pictures I did at the OBX each day so you, like I, can experience the changing emotions of the ocean.

(If you're interested in purchasing any of these, please contact me.  Unframed, they will sell for $165.  Framed (acid-free materials, beautiful hand-made frame (framed by Chris and me)) they will sell for $275.  I will also be making prints which will be $35.) 

Emotions of the Ocean, Monday, Avon OBX

Yikes!  I can't believe it's been so long since my last blog post.  I have a lot to catch up on.  Before catching up, though, I'm going to get current.  Last week Chris and I went to the Outer Banks of North Carolina on vacation.  It's where we go to fill our souls and release our anxiety and tension.  We were very blessed this last time to find a cottage, Canary Sings, which was discounted substantially so we were able to stay on the ocean affordably.  The cottage is actually much more beautiful than the pictures indicate.  It is behind a good-sized dune, but from the upstairs window, we could see the ocean very clearly.  Here's a picture taken from inside the living room.

Though I hadn't intended to paint or draw while I was at the beach (I was on vacation, after all, and art is now my full time job!), I felt so inspired by the view that I could not WAIT to set up my easel and draw the scene moment by moment!  I prepared my sanded paper, tearing or cutting it into 9"x6" pieces, put up my new easels, and set to work.

The first day I did 6 paintings.  Every time I looked out the window, the view was different, and I got so excited I had to get up from whatever I was doing and draw it!  It was really fun drawing it because that way I could compare the colors and sky and sea concretely.  I was amazed at how much it changed in a short time.  Chris suggested a great way to think about it - he said it's like emotions - they come and go, passing quickly from one to the other, as silly to take personally as the changing weather, and similarly harmless (sometimes they're not so harmless, as when someone takes their anger out on you - likewise the ocean as when there's a hurricane).

 Here's the first day's worth of images (Monday, March 5)

The sky was very misty.  It was difficult to see the horizon or any details in the sea.

This one is fairly similar to the photograph I attached at the start of the blog post: cloudy, a bit stormy, grey and green.

Later the weather cleared up.  It was still cloudy, but the sky was showing patches of blue, and I could see the waves much more clearly.  Obviously, this picture is more close up than the others!

Just a little while later, everything was different.  There were clouds, yes, but the water was much darker, the clouds much thinner, and the sky was now that gorgeous cerulean blue.  What a contrast to the early morning fog!

So many colors in the waves!

Can you believe this was the same day as the first picture??  Clear blue sky with just a couple of grey-ish clouds, blue water, calm and relative stillness.  Amazing!

The next few days' of posts will be the pictures I did at the OBX each day so you, like I, can experience the changing emotions of the ocean.

(If you're interested in purchasing any of these, please contact me.  Unframed, they will sell for $165.  Framed (acid-free materials, beautiful hand-made frame (framed by Chris and me)) they will sell for $275.  I will also be making prints which will be $35.)

Contemplations on a Beach Vacation

This was written Dec 16 before I left for a week at the Outer Banks, NC.

I'm going to the Beach Sunday.  My soul is already there.  I've already slowed my senses down to take in the vast nothingness of the waves and water and sand and sky.  I want to take my camera and paints and pads and pens and I don't want to take anything. I want hours of nothingness, staring into the repetitive roll of wave after wave assuring me that my life is not my own - I came from the stars and will return there.  Meanwhile I have choice and love and patience to explore. I  have my senses to show me the creativity of the Universe.  I hesitate to mention God, but I believe in God.  I believe in a God who is my best friend, my closest confident, my greatest comfort, my biggest cheerleader, my adviser and quiet witness to all that I do and all that I am.  He is the parent I've longed for and have always had within me.  Even as a child, I felt cradled by his presence, never alone and scared - alone and anxious, unsure what to do or how to handle a given situation, but solidly knowing I am not alone.  When I listen, God is immediately there for me, telling me what I need to know or what to do next.  I draw my inspiration from listening to God.  I follow leadings from God and, on perfect days, I allow myself to open up to God's creativity and channel that.  My best art comes directly from God.  My desire to change women's body consciousness comes from God.  My blessings come from God.  And I also believe my challenges come from God, giving me opportunities to love more deeply and with greater awareness of the frailty of our humanity.

I often wish I cold overcome my humanity and embody more God-like qualities.  I wish I had an open door forgiveness policy.  I wish I could immediately glean the lessons being offered in challenging situations.  I wish my heart were as big as God's.  I wish I could incorporate God-consciousness into everything I do, say, think or feel.

That is why I am going to the beach on Sunday - to be a hermit, away from the pulls of my human life, to a place where I can more easily focus on what really matters to me.  I want to drop everything and become conscious of my breath, of the pull of my eyelids towards sleep, of the yearnings of my body for specific nutrients, of my soul for the roar of the ocean, the moon rising over the water, the crash of the surf as it and I play tag, me screeching as it gets me, it roaring in fake scariness as it plunges towards me then just as quickly pulls away.

I breathe deeply, settling into the slow goodness of it all.

Art Opening this Friday in Petersburg

Occasionally I will show artwork other than my female nudes.  Last month I had my color studies on display at the Bon Air Library in Chesterfield.  This month I am showing my Ocean Scenes from the OBX (Outer Banks of North Carolina) at the Petersburg Regional Art Center.  The center is a great old building built in 1858.  It was formerly a department store and a furniture store before becoming the art center. It has four floors and a basement. Three floors and the basement have studios. There are two large art galleries.

Each month on the second Friday they have a Grand Opening where around 100 artists show their work in a juried show and the residents of the center open their studios for folks to peruse. In addition, they have a very long hallway where individual artists can have small shows of their works for the month.  That is where my work is hanging. 

The pieces are all pastels.  Most are 6"x9", framed in beautiful Chris-made frames to 14"x17".  They're perfect for a small wall.  I have reduced the prices of the small pieces to $250 or $295 (depending on the frame) because I'm ready to let them go.  I would be delighted if you decided you would enjoy having one of my pieces in your home. 

I'll be at the Center Friday from 7 - 10 PM and look forward to seeing you there if you can make it!  Click on the link for directions.