Love Letter

"My Wild Spirit: Rima the Bird Girl Becomes a Leopard", acrylic 2012

Dear Virginia,
It's been several years now since I've seen here what you've been up to with your beautiful, creative self. I've missed hearing about your various activities, your accomplishments, your disappointments (only avenues for growth my dear), your meanderings. And although it's been important for you to travel down the road of life to explore and see and hear and taste -- I do miss your presence. But know that I do not feel separate -- I only need to close my eyes, hush my mind, and listen -- and you and your life come to me in a kaleidoscope of colors. Nevertheless I do hope that one day soon you will return to share your adventures with me...and the World.

With All Fondness -- and My Deepest Love

My Mane in the Wind

Je Dessine: Letting Go of Perceptions

"Merman" acrylic

Over the Christmas holidays, while my husband was recovering from his hip replacement surgery, I had the thought to try to paint a picture of him at the beach. He is a religious body boarder and you'll see him in his wetsuit in the Northern California waves throughout the year no matter the weather or temperature. The prospect of him going without this ritual for over three months was depressing for him and I understood this need and his deep desire for that source of exercise, meditation, and natural immersion. So in late January, working from a photograph, I started a painting of him standing on the beach with the waves behind him. But I felt stuck trying to duplicate what I saw in front of my eyes. What I perceived in the photograph and translated to the canvas just didn't look or feel right. I mulled over it with with my teacher Sabrina then left. When I came back the next week I started on it again, but still not happy about what I saw. Sabrina then suggested that I start another canvas and try not to think about what I doing as I painted. We put on my favorite composer Eric Satie's music, and I talked to her non-stop about the time I had spent in New Orleans while I chose colors, outlined a shape, laid down paint. This painting is what I did in that two hour session. Although not consciously intentional -- for me it perfectly represents the essence of the man I am married to -- rising up out of the water with seaweed falling off of him and surrounded by the colors that he so loves. I did add the gills though:) I gave it to him on Valentine's Day.

Je Dessine: Big Fat Flower Pot

Painted maybe a month ago. One of those times I wish I painted more often so I'd have more of a "vocabulary" of images to draw from as I create a background. However when I look at this painting what I do like is that it seems to have some "gusto" -- a brashness -- that shows up in its color and size. I'm reserving this one to paint over next time I see Sabrina

Je Dessine: Rima

 

Yes, this girl is a bit wild. 

Emma posed for me sitting in Sabrina's armchair.

I did a quick warmup sketch in pen -- then proceeded to sketch it out on a canvas making sure to cover the whole surface with paint. Her face started becoming less and less Emma-like.

Then I removed the armchair and the blue scarf and drew a leopard under her seat.

Then I changed the planters and the sky. And then I embellished her shirt with feathers. Then she started having leopard spots. She started to remind me of "Rima" -- William Henry. Hudson's heroine from Green Mansions.

Oh my. Sabrina wants me to continue changing her. But I'm afraid I've grown too fond of her. What's going to happen next?

Je Dessine: My Office Companion

This painting was the first time that I used small sketches all over the canvas. Also the first time that I removed sketches I didn't like (originally my sleeping kitty was just a cat face).  I just painted right over them and redrew my cat sleeping in the office desk drawer and removed the woman and worked with the paint on the background. It really took a bit of hutzpah for me to do. Sabrina has been encouraging me for a long while to not get stuck on the way things look -- just keep altering and see where it leads me. It certainly freed me up to go exploring!

 

"Je Dessine" (I Draw): Show-and-Tell-Mondays

Owl Dance

I start back to my painting and drawing classes with Sabrina this Friday. I am wondering what will come out of me next? I never draw during the week, I don't practice. I just go to my classes with Sabrina and see what comes out during that hour and a half. The mystery of creation. It kind of makes me nervous, not planning, not practicing, not preparing. But it also is quite exciting -- jumping on that bobsled, that skateboard, that runnaway train and tossing my cards into the wind. That seems to be enough for me.

This is a painting I did in November before I took my holiday creativity break. I drew a Mexican coconut head/cross kachina doll dancing among the desert cacti with an owl. Funny little thing. Sometimes I greatly amuse myself.

Je Dessine (I Draw) Mondays: Music in the Garden

As I continue taking lessons from Sabrina, I am always surprised by what emerges by the end of my session. I always start out feeling a bit helpless. But once I take on the assignment for the day -- and say "no, no, no!" to that curmudgeonly critic in my head -- something kind of takes over. The thing I create is not necessarily outstanding on its own, but increasingly I see how it's all part of the process of learning how to paint and draw.

This painting is from a photo of Sabrina's granddaughter. The background was a plain wall, so Sabrina told me to fill the background with something else. Something else? My imagination is not that broad or great! So I sat kind of stumped and looked out the window to a bright fall day. In a bit my gaze lingered on a pot of begonias on Sabrina's porch. OK --why not that? Perhaps that will solve the background -- ahem -- problem. And maybe it will. It's a start. But I'm sure something else will emerge in this painting. So maybe next week.

Je Dessine ("I Draw") Show-and-Tell Monday

Sabrina and Magic

acrylic, watersoluble crayons

Hey it's Friday! Yep. I'm just r-e-a-l slow these days! Here's a picture I drew of Sabrina, my teacher, holding my stuffed pinto pony. Sabrina really liked the background treatment I did (different yellows, then scumbling with a paper towel), as well as the shadow of the pony's head that I accidentally left in. Sabrina said that it doesn't matter if it was unintentional or not -- everything is intentional in the learning process.

Je Dessine Mondays: Miss Pegge in Her Parlor

This is a recent acrylic painting inspired by my mother. My teacher, Sabrina instructed me to paint fast and not think too hard. Also it didn't matter if it didn't look like my mother. Once I finished, I felt pretty good about the doing of it, and it definitely captured some characteristics of my mother. I emailed the photo to my brother to show her. They both liked it a lot!

And this is a photo of my teacher, Sabrina TerHeune, 89 years young. A fount of knowledge, a force to be reckoned with! The teacher I had been looking for all of my life! We laugh a lot! Thank you Sabrina!

"Je Dessine" ("I Draw") Show-and-Tell Mondays

Emma in the Garden

(acrylics, pencil)

I've been taking a break from blogging, social networking, and being online. I have been spending most of my time in my art studio trying to step up my work discipline by putting in 30-40 hours a week. That's either making jewelry or working on the marketing and business side of things that I am so reluctant to do. As a result a lot of things have been pushed aside, including my daily journal pages. Well, I'll catch up over this month. My drawing practice is nil, too. But I did make my art lesson last Tuesday with Sabrina and I am so glad I did. This is my second painting -- I worked from a photo -- and painted with acrylics on a 2' x 3' canvas board. Again I wasn't sure what I was doing, but Sabrina just kept giving me direction (without looking at what I was doing) as she read her magazine. When I just turned off my n and just layered the color, or scrubbed it or drew with the paint brush -- it all seemed to come out. Actually there was a point where I again experienced the feeling of awe...and gratitude. Makes it all worth the effort, yes it does.