Woman Seated

I was able to work on Woman Seated again today and to get a second (and often third and fourth) layer on the entire piece.  I can see that I still have some work to do on it - her feet and left leg look too chalky right now, and her left arm is too yellow - but I'm very excited with how luminous she looks overall.

I'd read a lot and heard a lot about glazing, and I thought I understood the concept, but this piece is bringing it home much more substantially than ever before.  In my last piece, Woman in the Mirror, I put a sienna-based coat first then glazed over that.  I liked how it worked.  This time, though, the colors underneath were so strong, they are strongly affecting how the piece is turning out.  They're informing the whole thing in much more interesting ways.  I think it looks more realistic and more interesting and vital.  I will certainly have to play with this method a lot more.  It's exciting to me!

I'm not done, but I have a feeling that Andrew and Chris will like this better than they did before.  I hope I'll pass muster!

This piece is called Woman Seated.  I thought I had finished it and felt excited about the vigorous palette knife strokes and the bold colors.  Then my husband and older son independently looked at the piece and told me that I was not done!  In no uncertain terms.  The model is one of my son's friends, so he was very clear, "Mom, I'm not going to let you leave her looking like that.  She's much pretty than that.  No way.  You made her look way too masculine.  You have to make her look better."  OK OK OK OK!

So she sat around the studio for a couple of weeks, looking at me, saying the same things Andrew had.  Today I wasn't expecting to have a chance to paint because my mom just got out of the hospital so I figured I'd go over there and help her out.  We spoke on the phone, though, and she's doing OK, so she told me to go ahead and stay home.  Time to paint!

I didn't have a new canvas to work on so I figured that must mean it's time to work on Woman Seated again.  I decided to try putting in more accurate coloration, but using glazes so that the previous colors would show through.  I was curious to see how that would look.  I'm pretty thrilled so far actually.  It's obvious, I think, which parts I worked on today.  I love how her skin looks translucent as the bold colors from before show through.  It makes her skin glow.  I don't have time to work more on it now because it's Chris's birthday, but I think I'll have some time to get back to it tomorrow.  

I'm blessed to have two such discerning critics in the house to help me be more patient when I think I'm done but am not!  Thanks, Andrew and Chris!

Periods, periods, and more periods

Two more women responded to my query asking what it was like to get their periods.  Each of them is around 50-years-old, so perhaps my generational theory isn't accurate.  Here are their responses:

I wasn't going to reply to your request for 'first period' stories, because I really don't have one.  But I read today that you've been finding generational differences in the stories, with older women having a much more difficult/emotional and embarrassing time of it.  In my case (I'm 49 1/2), however, it was a non-issue!  I honestly cannot remember when it happened, or any details about it.  I vividly remember my Catholic grade school class being separated - boys going into one room and girls in the other - and seeing "The Film" and the corresponding book that went with it.  Of course we giggled and made fun of it amongst ourselves.  The only thing I remember about my first period is that it came a bit later than many of my friends, and I'd wondered when I would get mine too.  My mom and I could talk about everything, so I believe that I was 'prepared' for the event when it happened.  At least I knew what it was about, and who to go to (Mom!) when it did start.

Interestingly, I found myself talking with two of my nieces about that topic when they were 13 and 12 years old.  The older one hadn't started her period yet, and she was dreading it.  She DID NOT WANT to get it.  My other niece, who was a year younger, was already carrying an "emergency" pad around in her purse.  She and her mom (my sister) had spoken about it a lot, and her mom had given her a special pouch for the pad.  She was quite proud of it, and was excitedly ready for her first period to start - she couldn't wait!

*************

I was happy! 

It was my little secret and it was ALL mine. Nobody could control it! Not even I.

Hats and Woman in the Mirror

A few weeks ago I photographed a most lovely lady.  (But then, if you've read this blog more than once before, you probably know that I think all my "ladies" are lovely!)  We had an interesting quandary - she was completely willing to show her face and have us all know who she is, but her company has a "morals clause" which states that she may be fired if she does anything which might embarrass the company.  She had some concerns that appearing nude in paintings might be construed to be embarrassing for the company so she chose to have me photograph her "faceless".  What a shame!  She's quite wonderful looking!

Despite that restriction, or perhaps because of it (restrictions are something to push against so often create situations I wouldn't have considered before, and thus very interesting pictures), we got some wonderful pictures.  She brought some fabulous hats with huge brims which were made by Ignatius Hats from Petersburg, VA.  The hat to the right is by them - don't you just LOVE IT??!!  The two she had were amazing - perfect for wearing to the races which is exactly what she got them for.  They were great for these photos too - they cover her face but leave her looking coy or playful or demure or mysterious (depending on the particular picture).  I plan to begin that picture next.

The one I did first is of her torso in the mirror with strong light thrown across her belly.  I love the drama of the shadows and the light and the startling element of her blond white hair.  The piece is 16"x20", unusually small for me, but I didn't have a larger canvas ready to go at the time because Chris, bless him, was hard at work on his masterpiece, the frame for "Don't Mess With Me".  This piece is called "Woman in the Mirror."

Raqs Illuminaire!

Chris and I just returned from a wonderful, fascinating performance at the Byrd Theater.  It was called Raqs Illuminaire and was a belly dance extravaganza!  There were 10 different performances by about 20 performers.  I don't really know anything about belly dancing, so I can't go into technical details whatsoever, but I can say that we enjoyed it thoroughly.

My previous experience with belly dancing was pretty awesome - at the blessing way (a sort of spiritual baby shower) before Dylan's birth, a friend of mine belly danced for the assembled group.  This might seem like an odd gift unless you know (which I hadn't) that belly dancing was created to help women give birth!  The gyrations in the dance form are perfect for laboring women to help relieve pain and to work through the contractions.  Amazingly, when I was giving birth to Dylan, even though I'd been throwing up and having other intestinal issues the whole 12 hours previously, I was able to move my body in belly-dance-like movements, and it actually alleviated the pain!  I would gyrate and by the time I reach 180 degrees, the pain was beginning to subside.  I was astonished.  It made labor completely manageable.  I became a convert then and there!  But that was over 18 years ago, and I haven't done anything with it besides think about it every once in a while.

But now belly dancing is coming into my consciousness more and more lately.  My friend Peggy O'Neill has been talking to me about it for years.  She teaches it in town frequently and, in fact, I think is who taught my friend so long ago.  Then there's Linda Hollett, an artist friend of mine who has studied it for over 20  years.  Alice Warner, the wife of another artist friend, has also danced her entire adult life, I believe. 

After my show, Sacred Flesh, in October, two more belly dancers contacted me - Dawn Flores is a very cool woman who teaches Goddess Dancing at Unity at Byrd Park.  She asked me to come to the class so I could see what's going on around town.  It was a terrific class, very empowering and fun.

Khalima is the other woman who got in touch.  She asked me to teach a class at her studio, Illumination, on Naked Self Portraiture, so that's the genesis of that course.  She also sponsored the Red Tent Evening which took place at the last new moon.  And she's who produced the show, Raqs Luminaire today.

And then there's Heather Addley (who's quite an outstanding photographer herself!) who modeled for me the other day.  She came to the studio with her 2-year-old daughter.  I photographed them both.  It was a delightful session.  Seeing Heather with her daughter reminded me of my days as the mother of young kids.  At one point, both of them were nude, and Heather was nursing her daughter while holding her little bottom with a hand to keep her from falling off her lap and pulling Heather's breast with her!  The way Harper climbed all over her while Heather continued the flow of conversation uninterrupted was so familiar to me from my kids!  Then, for the moments when Harper was occupied, Heather would switch gears immediately and tune into her self and her body.  She moved with a belly dancers sensuousness, hand movements, gyrations - the whole thing.  It was gorgeous!  The images we got from that session were so exciting to me.  Chris is already making canvases for me to paint a couple of them.  Heather has a wonderful Birth Goddess figure, reminiscent of Venus von Willendorf and the Earth Mother she evokes.  Of course I'll post the images as I work on them!


But back to Raqs Luminaire!  Here's the description of it from the website along with a list of the performers who were in it:

Luminaire is a beautiful and genre-defying production produced by Khalima and explores the intersection of belly dance, music, theatre and magic. A process and exploration for not only the viewers, but for the performers themselves.

We welcome to the show local and regional performers of bellydance fusion and music.

Joining us on stage will be:
Khalima
LeVar
Sekhemti
The Rogue Bellydance Collective
Dana
Spoon
Somnium
Genevieve
Leyla Nissa
Hadara
Samiksha
Ayame

Tina Batya on violin

That was one thing that impressed me today - though belly dance is quite a sensual dance form, this performance was certainly not about sex, as people sometimes tend to think belly dancing is.  Sensuality and love of the body, definitely.  There were gorgeous women of every size up there on stage moving their bodies, feeling the gifts God gave them.  One who impressed me the most was a large African American woman who moved with such grace and sensuality, I couldn't take my eyes off of her.  There was also a petite woman who was perhaps of Indian heritage who was quite a master.  She balanced a bowl on her head as she shook and turned and twirled the rest of her body.  She was quite skilled!  The first dance featured Leyla Nissa as a woman giving birth aided by her attendants, Hadara and Khalima.  Leyla Nissa had her own real baby in a sling on her belly whom she "birthed" during the dance.  That was a lovely way to start the performance to remind or teach people that that was the origin of the dance form.

Khalima and the only man in the show, LeVar Carter, did a fascinating piece about death at the end.  Each had on an elaborate mask at the beginning which reminded me of Egyptian lore.  They did some lovely dance together, replete with yoga and contact improvisation moves.  Then there was Spoon who came on stage dressed in black with green neon lights outlining her body and light sabers!   All in all, it was a wonderful afternoon.

I left feeling like maybe I should go take belly dancing so I can become more confident in how I move my body.  These women shone!  Their confidence and joy in movement was apparent.  I want me somma that!

Two more menstruation stories plus an - uh - interesting photo!

Here are a couple of stories from younger women.  I think they're around 21 or so.  I notice that these two seemed to have an easier time sharing with their mothers than we older women did.  I hope that means we're making progress!

This is really cool.  I've heard so many different stories of first
periods from friends, it's an event that I think every woman
distinctly remembers!
My first wasn't as bad as the scene in the movie 'Carrie' but I think
it was still kind of horrible.
 
My family really likes to camp, so when I was twelve we went camping
in the summer.  I think it was in southern Illinois but I'm not sure.
We spent a wonderful couple of days hiking and reading and playing
bluegrass music, which I was embarrassed of, at that age.  Then one
day I started to feel sick.  It was really hot and I was dizzy and
achy.  I remember stumbling out of the tent and walking to the
outhouse with the sensation of blacking out - my mom and I get low
blood sugar so I figured that was why.  My parents didn't notice
because they were playing music with another couple.  I went inside
the stall and sat there for maybe ten minutes not sure if I would
throw up.  Sweating, dizzy, etc.  Then I noticed a weird brown
stickiness in my underpants.  My mom had told me many times about
periods.  I knew what to expect - red blood.  This was not that.  I
freaked out but thought maybe it's ok and she just didn't mention it
before.  So after another ten minutes and trying to deal with it with
toilet paper, I staggered out of the bathroom, over to my parents.
They were still playing bluegrass.  'Mom,' I said sickly, 'hey, can I
talk to you?'. She smiled and said brightly 'Sure!  This is our
daughter Sally.  Sally, these are some nice people who have been
playing music with us!  Why don't you get your fiddle?'. I gritted my
teeth.  'Can I talk to you alone?'. I finally pulled her away and told
her of my problem.  She was overjoyed, despite my pain.  My parents
were quite proud of the fact that I was now a woman.  However we
didn't have any supplies because my mom had just finished her cycle.
So I made do with toilet paper until we could drive the twenty miles
to the nearest drugstore.  Thus began a long struggle between the
monthlies and me.  Later that year, I had a period that lasted twenty
days and bled through two pads and a pair of pants onto a chair in the
school library, and for which I had to be put on the contraceptive
pill in seventh grade to make my cycles more regular, but that's
another story... Now we're cool though!  It's pretty regular and my
diva cup means I never have to think about it.

And a story from a second young woman:

I was fourteen so I had been hoping for my period for a while. My friends always said I was lucky when I told them I hadn't gotten it yet, but being in high school without having it felt weird, and I was ready to look older; I was often mistaken for an eleven or twelve year old.

I woke up one day at my dad's house and saw what I knew must be my period from what my mom had told me. I didn't feel like telling my dad or stepmom right then so I made do with toilet paper on the way to school and then bought a pad from a machine in the bathroom. I felt so self-conscious buying the pad, which seems really silly now. On the drive home from school with my mom I told her that I had gotten it. She was excited, which was nice, but I didn't really feel like talking about it more than to acknowledge it. Later we went out to lunch and she bought me a pair of earrings to commemorate my entrance into womanhood. I had been waiting for so long that I just remember feeling relieved, and I'd heard all of my friends talking about it as well as having received instruction from my mom and my school so I had a pretty good idea of how everything worked. It was a positive experience but really not a big deal - just the start of something I had known was coming for a long time.

And, sorry - I found this picture while I was looking for the previous two pictures and just couldn't keep from sharing it!   It's quite creative if a bit gross!