Drawings

Laborer   charcoal/paper   15 x 21

Some artists use drawings only as vehicles in the preparation for subsequent paintings. I do that a lot. But I also like drawings as finished art. By subtracting color from the design mix, the resultant limited palette can carry lots of strength with value changes and creative line work. And I have always loved loved loved drawings done in earth tones....they convey strength and softness all at the same time for me. "Laborer" was done from a live model. John looks like the guys I see at Circle K at the end of each work day buying their high-powered beer to get them through an evening filled with aches and pains just to get up and do it again the next day. I respect their physical labors. An honest day's work. Little in the way of financial rewards. Fatigue. That is what I wanted the work to say. I can relate.

Brushes

Paint Brush (Labor Series)   watercolor   8.5 x 14

Brushes are our friends, sometimes our best friends. When we paint often enough, the brush becomes an extension of our hands, our wills and our hearts. When I was a child, I can remember wanting to paint alongside my father. As he didn't trust my skill-level, I was given a bucket of water and a large brush and told that I could paint the side of the garage, which was cement block. I painted happily, as I recall, enjoying the rhythm and the coverage. All went well until the water started drying up and I could no longer see the fruits of my labors. Bummer. These days my home is filled with brushes of all kinds....various handles and ferrules, with hairs from goats, ponies, squirrels and the beloved Kolinsky Sables. They are, to me, a symbol of creative work, no matter who is wielding them. Jack Lieberman shared his tips on cleaning with me - a bar of olive oil soap that sits alongside my sink. I clean them lovingly now and again. And they serve me well. "Paint Brush - Labor Series" was painted in one of my classes and was one of those odd paintings that seemed to paint itself....I think my heart was in it. The bristles are not perfect, but show signs of use.....off I go for today to pick up my best friend. We plan to work together.

The Value of Work

Paint Dancer - detail

One week ago exactly was Labor Day, and being that I am always late, I feel it appropriate to talk labor today. Every now and then, you see a painting that rocks your world in some way....it could be the technique, the paint quality, the colors, the rhythms or the subject. Subject it was. "The Floor Scrapers" by Gustave Caillebotte. Not only is it a lovely painting, but it elevates the stature of the laborers by its subject, even though the workers are situated at the bottom of the picture plane. Lovely. I love to work with my hands as well, as do most of the people in my family. Even though our education leads us to work in a cubicle, most likely on a computer in what might be considered a white collar job, there are those of us that would be most happy working with our hands in whatever may be considered to be blue. Matthew B. Crawford speaks to this subject in his new book Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work. Sitting down all day is highly overrated.

Debits and Credits

Edna...a sketch

Enough about money. I am talking an emotional bank here. My emotional bank is divided into two sections: debits and credits....much like an accounting book. Those things that drain me are definitely debits: courtesy calls from any business with whom I have ever done business or from whom I have ever ordered a magazine; power plays among people; the little purple pill and other ads from drug companies; and the evening scare-tactic news. I have found that I must consciously fill my emotional bank with interactions and activities that keep my bankbook afloat....those are credits. My sketchbook is filled with small drawings of those people who populate my immediate world....those with whom I feel a connection with, as well as those who don't have a clue that I am drawing them. Edna Williams is a dynamo with whom I have shared gallery sitting at Summit Artspace on more than one occasion. Wow.....I feel energized just being with her. She is an avid reader in several book clubs.....she has an interest in art that she feeds regularly.....and she has a forthright opinion on just about everything. Sometimes we quietly sit and read. Sometimes we chat. She is definitely a credit. Five hours feel like one.

By the way, Summit Artspace can always use volunteer gallery sitters.....could put your bank account over the top....the emotional one, that is.

Q...not O

Q...not O   oil/canvas   16 x 20 x 1.5

Small difference between these two letters. Just a wedge. I see the "O" as representative of "ohm", recycling continuous harmony. I see "Q" as an "O" that has been altered, transformed from the outside. We live in what used to be a rural community. When we heard that a new Walmart was moving in, we couldn't believe our ears, as there was another Walmart with 5 miles of our home already. We documented the transformation of these fields as the building went on for months and months. The shopping arena (would that be like a sports arena?) resembles those arenas just off the freeway in nearly every American town. Homogeny. Blah. "Q...not O" was painted before the land was mutated. And speaking of the environment, a show worth seeing is "One Degree of Change", a collaboration between Nancy Richards-Davis, an abstract encaustic artist, and Bradley Hart, a photographer from Kent. The exhibit is open through October 9 at the Dolan Gallery which is located in the Dolan Science Center at John Carroll University in University Heights. A moving experience! Like-mindedness.

Painting an apple a day.....

Granny Smith's Grin   oil/canvas   4 x 4 x 1.5

The artists in my classes will attest to the fact that I love apples. Almost always, we paint apples for the first session in the fall, as they are easy to lug along and fun to paint. And then they provide a treat for the ride home. We also discuss design elements. If we attest to the simple explanation of good design as "big and little things arranged pleasingly on a page", then we must also admit that not every still-life set-up offers the ultimate in great design. Sometimes it is necessary, and even preferable, to allow our imaginations to create where reality falls short. I think of line, especially pencil line, as an inviting element incorporated into a painting. Those first pencil lines that peek through a watercolor not only function as a design element, but also allow soulfulness to appear by watching the attempts, and perhaps the struggles, of the artist. Lines that have virtually no meaning literally still pack a punch when read visually. Squiggly energetic lines playing with the front-stage round form of the apple. Yum. In "Varietal" I painted the scene in front of me, then added calligraphic line work in the form of the various kinds of apples that are available to us in the marketplace. Playful lines. Colorful lines. Contrasted with rounded forms. Crunch.

Bounty

Tomato Tango   oil/canvas   8 x 8 x 1

My life is inextricably bound up with the seasons. Time of year determines what I will be painting, what I will be wearing, how I will be feeling and what I will be doing. There is a constant hum in our kitchen right now....the oven dehydrator is working full-tilt to preserve all of the tomatoes that ripened within a week's time. Funny how that is..............we wait and wait and wait..........and then the ripe goodness inundates our menus and our lives all at once. I always look forward to autumn and its quiet. More quality time in the studio. Less to do in the yard, After the tomatoes will come paprika peppers, then parsley, then thyme, then chives. I love following the rhythms of the seasons. Goodness emerges from each. Georgia O'Keefe once said that visiting the East inundated her senses with green.....and she got bored with so much green. Time to put away the greens. Time to squeeze out tubes of earth tones....raw sienna, raw umber, the burnt counterparts of each; yellow ochre and perhaps some violet. I am ready.

Market and High...

Market and High...a sketch

Yesterday morning I sat outside of the Akron Art Museum for an hour handing out postcards for Summit Artspace to museum-goers. The goal is for more area art-lovers to realize the existence of area artists, where they work and where they exhibit. I really had no idea that so many people visited the museum before noon! Of course, it was a free Sunday Sampler and an exhibit of Chuck Close, a combination that is hard to resist. The presence of window washers(on Sunday?) using an outrageously loud lift made it hard to talk and to concentrate. So, when possible, I retreated into my own visual world, where I find stimulation and comfort both. I concentrated on the old part of the building and drew some of the ornamentation which was vastly affected by the changing light. Whoa....here come some people. Letting go of drawings is so very hard for me. I never want to leave that mind arena. By noon I had handed out scads of postcards and had finished a small drawing. The drawing will be ever incised into my memory.....I hope that the recipients of those cards have that same endless-joyful-feeling as they take in the work at the Akron Art Museum. I also hope that many of them will find a new venue to explore in Summit Artspace.

Paint Like No One's Watching

Deference   oil/canvas   40 x 30 x .75

My sister once gave me a small gilded plaque that said, "Dance Like No One's Watching". I guess one could infer that would mean without any self-consciousness whatever. Letting it all hang out. I read once that dancing was one of the most right-brained activities there is....totally in the moment...just feeling the music....no words....no instructions. How nice. This Saturday Night is the Akron Art Walk from 5-10 pm. What a wonderful way to spend the evening! I will be painting at our ASA studio on the third floor of Summit Artspace at 140 E. Market Street until 9:30 pm along with a motley group of painters from The Akron Society of Artists. I am told that our model will be a dancer.....dancers are my favorites models as they are comfortable with their bodies and seem to hold to a higher notion of "the dance" above "the self". I will attempt to paint like no one's watching.

Trust

Trusting Chef Roger   oil/canvas   48 x 24 x 1.5

O.K.....I have a hard time trusting people....we all have our emotional baggage. But sometimes we can feel akin to strangers. That happened the morning we were scheduled to have Roger Thomas of the Piatto Novo of Sheraton Suites in Cuyahoga Falls as our model for three sessions. I had the opportunity to ride up to our studio in the elevator with Chef Roger. There was something familiar in his countenance that felt comforting to me. I had seen his look before in my own family. When I asked him about it, I found that his heritage was quite similar to mine...some northern European, including Wales, as well as some American Indian from the Blackfoot tribe. I really don't get into the ancestry thing at all, as that goes against my "living in the present" philosophy. But, all in all, I found it interesting. As I result, I found it a pleasure to paint him....I felt the intimacy that is necessary for me to turn out a portrait with feeling. I like the portrait. And I like Chef Roger. After the sessions were over, he treated all of us painters to lunch at his restaurant. What a nice, nice feeling.

Chaos...

October Quince   watercolor   19 x 9.5

My painting process requires chaos. When there isn't enough of it on my canvas, I create some by the purposeful destruction of passages that are too sweet, too precious. The problem solving that is a by-product of this process is intellectually stimulating. The end result is sometimes visually un-readable. But sometimes the picture contains more, and becomes larger, than the original intention. This is a very precarious walk between illusion, chaos and reality. We have to be able to see between the lines and to take in all that is presented to us....not just the good stuff. "October Quince" is a chaotic painting. Most of the ones that I do of nature have that same feeling. Painting them helps me deal with life's chaos as well. Our quince bush is a force to reckoned with, especially during mowing. Its long spikes are outthrust like tiny weapons. But in October, it burgeons with the most aromatic fruits. It is also a wonderful fortress for our tiny feathered friends.

Carl Sagan said: It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

A kernel of truth...

Bi Color   oil/canvas   11 x 14

Just what is a kernel of truth anyways? A small bite....practically microscopic? Something easy to digest? Something that we ourselves digest and decide whether or not it is true? I like that one. When I was a young artist, I was always so impressed by paintings, usually watercolor, of corncobs. The ones of multicolored Indian corn were always the most impressive. It was apparent that these artists had extreme patience, a will to survive and extremely small brushes. Therefore, it was many years before I attempted to paint corn, as I had very little of the above......well, maybe a medium-sized brush. As we grow as artists, we come to digest small kernels of our own truths...the qualities that define us as individual artists. And, for me, it was definitely not going to be perfectly-painted kernels of corn. For me, those kernels had to become supporting actors to the entire cobs and their luscious leaves and silks that twist, undulate and protect. There, I did it. One more kernel on my cob.

White objects + Stacked Objects=Quite a Challenge

Precarious Stack of Vintage Bowls   watercolor   12.5 x 9

I love setting up painting challenges for myself. And I love stacks of things. My husband and I are stackers.....mostly stuff we are studying....books, magazines, reference materials and the like. Simply put, we are "pile people". In fact, when we are having company, we scurry around looking for places to hide our stacks. Stacks are always precarious, moveable, shiftable. And I like white dinnerware.....always have. No fancy patterns for me. I like that clean background look for the palette of food colors. White objects pick up colors from their surrounds that are reflected onto them. Rarely does an object register as pure white.....usually only in a highlight area. So, considering my fondness for stacked things, and white dinnerware, why not combine the two for an ultimate painting challenge? I really like this painting. There is something raw about it. I am usually very disappointed when I go too far with refinement. That is a very very very fine line. The values on the white bowl have been exaggerated a bit. All paintings are autobiographical to some degree, even if we consider just the selection process of the subject matter. "Precarious Stack of Vintage Bowls" is even more so. It has my name written all over it.

Have Sketchbook Will Travel...

two gentlemen from Charlottesville

 
















CharloMy handbag weighs a ton. It's true....I travel with a lot of baggage. But I would rather lug this thing around any day and be prepared for drawings that reveal themselves to me than be left sketchbook-less. This past weekend we traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia for a birthday visit with our youngest son who lives, works and runs in this charming community. The old bricked pedestrian mall is a most wonderful place to sip strong coffee, eat raisin scones, people-watch and, most importantly, people-sketch. It makes me deliriously happy to spend time this way. I usually start 2 or 3 drawings and work on them simultaneously. This allows for changes in position from the unsuspecting models that would leave me waiting. After years of drawing in public venues, I have come to realization that said unsuspecting model will return to the same 2 or 3 comfort positions ad infinitum. Although my little drawings are far from complete, I am happy with their spirits. Gentleman 1 was involved in a fairly deep religious and/or philosophical conversation with a friend. They were intense. I don't believe that they noticed me at all. Gentleman 2 was a gentle-looking young man who had stopped to sip some java and peruse the Sunday morning newspaper. I don't think that Gentleman 1 and Gentleman 2 knew how much their mere presence moved me. Gloria.

Trusting Intuition...

Dappled   oil/canvas   30 x 40 x 1.5

Trusting your own intuition is difficult to do. But the more it is trusted, the easier it is the next time around.....and the easier...and the easier. I have learned to trust mine, even if it means the demise of a painting. In other words, I would rather take the painting where my intuition leads me, spending more hours of problem-solving, than play it safe. Whoa......did I just say that? "Dappled" lead me on quite the supreme adventure! The color evolved from bright emerald green to blue-green to turquoise. The background started out as a barn, then suggestions of a barn to nothingness. The cropping of the horse kept returning, even though I thought I was changing it. The dappled horse went from solid to transparent to everything in-between. This painting holds the dubious distinction of being the longest-time-wise-painting-ever for me............over 4 months of facing the canvas with nothing more to guide me than my intuition. I checked and rechecked my original sketch. I made more sketches. Can you feel my desperation? This horse lives down the street from me. There were times that I couldn't even look at her as I passed by....too much frustration. I was ready to give up countless times. Lucky I was using oil paint. I knew then that I had arrived when my intuition told me I had. I felt that the painting said what I needed it to say. The essence of dappled. It works for me. Another notch scratched on my studio wall for the unknown.

The Bundt - it's not just for cake anymore

Bundt Pan...a sketch

Yesterday, I spent a wonderful day with my friend Jo wandering through the Medina Antiques Mall. It is a pleasant adventure that we love but, with our busy lives, have not found the time to do for many years. What's not to like? Air conditioning....music....and plenty of visual stimulation....almost to the point of overload. It is not nostalgia that drives me, but the true visual pleasure of wabi-sabi-one-of-a-kind items, the counterpart to what we see in most market places. I am always drawn to items with visual texture....old architectural elements and cooking utensils. Lots of muffin tins, old boxes and relief carvings. These old pans are a perfect way to learn much about "the nature of things", which improves and refines drawing skills. We have to deal with perspective, two-point and ellipses, as well as the way light describes the many indented surfaces. The pans are rarely perfect, which adds a quirky element to the drawing. Fun. For an interesting drawing problem, then, we need not look any farther than our own kitchens. The rest is just cake.

Wait

Wait   mixed/paper   20 x 13.5

No one understands defeat like an athlete. An athlete seems to understand the ebb and flow between victory and defeat and the resultant tenacity that serves him/her well. Everyone experiences defeat. Artists experience defeat when they receive rejection notices from exhibits that have chosen not to include their work. Artists experience defeat as the painting progresses from the deliriously expectant and joyful start to the realization that this work, too, has its flaws and may not be everything they had hoped it would be. But without the polar opposites of victory and defeat, we would not even begin to understand one or the other. Without defeat, success would be devoid of meaning. And I believe a successful athlete learns to gracefully incorporate both victory and defeat into her/his being which leads to a rich and soulful existence. Creative Akron artist Mark Soppeland has a wonderful work at the "Fresh and Witty" exhibit at Summit ArtSpace that is entitled "Obsessing over Other's Successes". This work has been created from old trophies. I can't wait to see it in person! The model for "Wait" posed with a towel around his neck, a dejected look on his face, and a trophy in his hand. I chose to concentrate on the face area, as I hoped that his dejection would have a more generalized influence without a physical trophy. Vertical strokes were used to strengthen the feeling of being "down". As with all sadness and disappointment, the only medicine is time.....the wait is painful.

Six Degrees of Separation...

Marci   oil/canvas   20 x 10 x .5

Six degrees of separation (also referred to as the "Human Web") refers to the idea that, if a person is one step away from each person they know and two steps away from each person who is known by one of the people they know, then everyone is at most six steps away from any other person on Earth. It was made popular by a play written by John Guare. (from Wikipedia)

I guess this notion just might be similar to what is happening on Facebook and like-minded websites. This really is an amazing notion. I just finished reading Wolf Note, a book of short stories by Akron writer Libby Jacobs, who has also directed my friend Jo at Weathervane Playhouse. I loved the stories! They are smart, quirky, and show an amazing understanding of human behavior. The book was an award finalist granted by USABookNews.com. On the cover, lo and behold, is model Marci Paolucci who also acts. In fact, Marci recently posed for our Akron Society of Artists on a Saturday Art Walk..............I love the web of the creative community! "Marci" is my effort at portraying another amazing woman.

Wabi Sabi Holes

Longing...Detail

Holes in all kinds of things offer the possibility to learn so much about drawing! Holes are the places where light is gradually denied. Here we can learn about the values of surfaces. In addition, holes are completely wabi sabi....the imperfect quality that offers up the genuine, the used and the loved. Holes can also add a touch of quirkiness to an otherwise staid drawing. Holes in trees, holes in clothing, holes in implements and holes in shoes. What a great drawing experience! Holey moley.

It's all Relative

Eclipsed   oil/canvas   24 x 8 x .5

Painting The First Merit Bank Building at night from our ASA studios on the 3rd floor of Summit Artspace using only headbands with LCD lights on our foreheads was exciting. Oh, yeah, and it was also the night of a lunar eclipse. Also exciting was sipping cocktails on the top of the 100-story John Hancock Center in Chicago. I also had a chance to visit a few galleries on my visit. There were lots of Chinese and Russian paintings being sold for exorbitant amounts. There were also many slick large-paneled multiples. The images were beautiful....sunlight drops showing through branches of trees that were dripping down to lower edge of the picture plane. Really lovely. And there is was.....in green....in red....in blue....in yellow. I was told by the gallery owner that it really is the "big city" thing to do in large art markets such as Chicago.....focusing on just one thing....polka dots....whatever. You might as well put pins in my eyes. Doing the same thing again and again. I guess that makes my work pretty regional. For me, moving into the impersonal visual is a step towards the commercial-oneness. One of my hug-to-my-chest books is Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Rilke. He says:
Just as language has no longer anything in common with the thing it names, so the movements of most of the people who live in cities have lost their connexion with the earth; they hang, as it were, in the air, hover in all directions, and find no place where they can settle.

• Worpswede (1903)

I asked the gallery owner where he was from......Iowa....or was it Idaho?

Peach Pie

Freestone   oil/canvas   6 x 6 x 1.5

This past weekend my friend Peggy Shriner served peach pie at a get-together. Delicious! My mother could never understand my preference for peach-anything. She always said it had no flavor. Flavors of all kinds are very personal, very subjective. Same with artwork. Every person visiting The Chicago Institute of Art will probably come home with different favorites, works that will stay in the mind long after the visit. We might not even know why. Such is the case with "Le Premier Pas" (The First Step), an oil painting by Constantin Brancusi. It latched onto me from across the gallery. Maybe it is the subject matter. The "first step" is and always will be a monumental event for any parent. Perhaps it is the color....neutralized pastels that confuse the viewer...is it pastel? or is it oil? I love contradictions of all kinds. It may have been the extraordinary use of what appears to be a raw umber line along the perimeter of the small figure. Line work is not that common in paintings. It is bold and demonstrates a sure hand. I love raw umber. Perhaps. I am not sure why. Brancusi and Peaches....what a great combination!

The Great American Pastime

Cubs fan...a sketch

For many people, baseball is the great American pastime. For me, it is sketching. We took an urban vacation this year year to Chicago to join several family members for 4 days of urban adventures. One such adventure was to Wrigley Field where we (?) watched The Chicago Cubs play the Cincinnati Reds. For me, the thrill lies in people watching and learning about the nature of drawing the human face and figure. However, when the crowd rises to its feet and explodes with applause, I follow suit in order to fit in, even though, for the most part, I haven't a clue as to the reason for the excitement. For me, the excitement lies in capturing just the right angle of the nose, or in understanding the jumbled values of masses in the eye/eyeglasses area. As a result, I am never bored. Stick me in a seat anywhere with my sketchbook and I am happy as a clam. The frozen lemonade is just gravy. I know that the Cubs won. I do not know the score. Fine with me.

Water Warrior

Water Warrior   oil/canvas   48 x 24 x 1.5

Our friend Pat is a water warrior, i.e., an expert kayaker in white water. What an interesting concept that is a perfect balance of the yin and the yang! Maneuvering through the fast-moving white frothy stuff requires great intuition and moment-to-moment decision-making. As for me, the notion of a warrior that can prove his strength in a quiet, self-sustained way is an appealing one indeed. No killing. No guns. No squealing tires. No arrogance. When Pat saw the finished work, he seemed moved that the face seemed to be timeless....he saw himself as a 17-year-old and at present, somewhat older. At first I was clueless and thought myself to be the recipient of a happy accident. However, my process involves lots of reductionism, lots of wiping out. Perhaps the details of the present were wiped away. Perhaps an essence of my friend is what remained. My goals were only to render the notion of water without droplets and to show the deep admiration that I hold for the man that he is, and the ways in which he chooses to participate in this life. Amen.

Unraveling Perspective

Stack of Books and a Gourd...a sketch

I love visual problem solving! I think that is why I enjoy facing the easel every day. And that is why I don't like to repeat processes. Setting up new problems is invigorating! I can only hope that the artists in my perspective class feel the same way. This week's problem involves a drawing of a stack of books. Alack and alas.....this problem is definitely more intricate than what it first appears. The three books share a common horizon line as the eye level of the artist remains constant. However, each book has its own two particular vanishing points along that line if each is skewed in a different direction. I advised the artists to do thumbnail sketches first in order to understand what is going on before they jump into the rendering which is infinitely more fun. Stay tuned for the finished drawings. Linda Davis demonstrated that she understands the presented perspective problem. Ahhhhh......satisfaction.

Cyclist

Cyclist   oil/canvas   36 x 24 x 1.5

It is always gratifying to get into a national exhibition and even more gratifying to receive a nod from the juror. "Cyclist" is currently a part of The Cooperstown Art Association's 74th National Exhibition and received a juror's citation from Albert Handell of Santa Fe, NM. The exhibition runs through August 28th in Cooperstown, NY. Fellow artist Tom Campbell posed for this painting in our Akron Society of Artists studio. The grand prize painting "Great Mother" by Erica Hart is amazing! I am proud to be a part of this exhibit.

Gizmo

Gizmo at Seventeen   watercolor   11 x 19

Last week I lost my perfect studio companion. She loved unconditionally. She was non-judgmental most of the time. She kept excess chit-chat to a minimum. And, she was willing to dance at a moment's notice given the right song. Gizmo was 19. I will miss her.

What appears simple....................

What Appears Simple   watercolor/mixed   27.5 x 21

Some lessons must be learned again and again....especially for me. The notion of "simple" is a case in point. I am not sure there is really such a thing. Consider those smooth 3-point baskets by LeBron James. And Michael Jackson's sleight-of-foot dance moves. Reports emerge of his endless hours practicing in the studio. To be really really good at something requires more than talent.....we must add in desire and lots and lots of practice. Drawing and painting follow suit. Those whose hands make amazing marks and strokes make them continually.....the ease and comfort with the tools become part of who they are. In our spring watercolor class, we tackled the painting of a tricycle....simple, right? NOT. Those little machines are complex. Mine started as a simple painting which evolved into a mixed media work. I printed rectangles into the background, reminiscent of the cement block garage of my childhood. The grass in front was carved from linoleum and printed on. Graphite marks were added throughout. I like the smudging, the unsure lines and the power lines as well. Time has a way of simplifying the complex. Would a unicycle be any simpler? I don't think so.

Buddies

Buddies   oil/canvas   20 x 10 x .5

We live close to Mogadore Reservoir which is a rich source of beautiful outdoor images....lots of fishermen, canoes, hikers, explosive light and memories. I have memories of hiking the trail in snow that was over two feet. There are running memories, bike memories, swan memories, so-many-varieties-of-ducks memories, ice memories and canoe rental memories. It is always great to have a buddy with whom to enjoy these outdoor experiences. And it can be a four-legged buddy! My challenge in this painting was to squeeze all of my story into a vertical format....I just love challenging tradition in this way, and I also love vertical formats....period......It is always difficult to surpass the notion of local color, which I believe is the key to creating more magical environments. Pushing the color envelope just a bit can enrich both the painting and viewing experiences. Cases in point: Wolf Kahn and Charles Basham. Their work inspired me for "Buddies".

4th of July

Patriot   watercolor   13 x 10

At this point in my life, the 4th of July becomes a melded memory of all of the past 4ths...........wonderful times. Rain or not. Sun or not. The waking up and knowing that the day is different than the others.....holiday. Time to break away. Permission to just enjoy. Barbeques. Hotdogs or burgers. Potato Salad or not. Kayaking. Late breakfasts. Enjoying the love of your family. All under the banner of patriotism. Fine by me.

Children of the World

Girl with Hat...a sketch

Children are wiggly and wonderful! Children represent our future. And, for me, children display a purity and innocence only possible before culture indoctrinates them with "shoulds" and all forms of us-versus-them. If only we could emulate their openness! These days our influence is world-wide. The world is indeed growing smaller as our exposure to other worlds and other cultures has opened up by means of media. What a wonderful thing! In my earlier art days, I would park myself unobtrusively in corners of waiting rooms at hospitals and malls and attempt to draw these squirmy creatures...what a task. "Girl with hat" was drawn quickly at a Native American festival held outdoors at Kent State University.....funny how the experience of doing the drawing becomes fused with the drawing itself! My daughter-in-law gets to travel the globe in her job as a designer with The Tea Collection, which infuses other-culture influences into children's apparel. Their new Japan collection is being unveiled with a video....check it out! Squirmy. Wormy. Lively. Jumpy. Active. Lovely.

Bags, Bags and more Bags

Girl with Bag...a sketch

I am always surrounded by bags. Bags, of course, under my eyes from perpetually designing my days to streamline endless details in order to allow for large chunks of creative time. That is a given. Bags with drawing tools. Bags with watercolor painting supplies. Separate bags for oils. Other bags for plein-air oils. And, of course, canvas bags for grocery shopping! It's a good thing I like them so much! Tom Auld has an amazing leather rucksack that is now perfectly patina-ed and soft that was a gift from his daughter. Mo Mosyjowski has a most creative canvas sling that resembles a log-carrier and is designed to hold her watercolor palette as well. And Lynda Rimke always has the most amazing canvas bags purchased for a song. Muscanvas offers some amazing canvas bags that are handmade.....love them all. Indeed. The maker is someone near and dear to me.....my son. Check it out!

A New Perspective

Last evening was the first of my drawing class where we plan to pay special attention to perspective. Let the wild rumpus begin! We began by considering the truths of perspective:

TO KEEP IN MIND.................

Distortion of subjects is the result of the position you take up when drawing. Three simple principles to remember are:

1. Objects viewed flat on have correct height and width but distorted depth.

2. Objects viewed at an angle have correct height but distorted width and depth.

3. Objects viewed close up have distorted width, height and depth.

Wow....to tell you the truth, I might as well be reading an insurance manual to see if my root canal is covered! It is hard to put into words that which you know visually!

We will be studying one-point perspective for a couple of weeks....that which is face-forward, directly in front of us. We will consider what happens to the object as it moves further back into space. We were all amazed at the tricks that our minds play on us.....i.e. we know that the book is taller than it is wide......but when we draw the book laying down at least 3' from us, the length becomes much shorter than the width......our drawing-what-we-know-to-be-true-brains are being challenged!

Must save some energy....next week we are tacking teacups and ellipses!

Feel like joining us?

Settling In

EverGreen   oil/canvas board   10 x 8

During the last session of the 3-day paint-out, I finally felt comfortable....isn't that the way it always is?
The gardens at this last dwelling were mostly evergreens of many varieties....there was a cool feeling throughout. I finally took off my earphones to enjoy the quiet and paired up a stone sculpture of a giraffe with an evergreen. In reviewing this small painting, I feel it needs some straight lines somewhere....everything is just too organic for me. On the positive side, I really enjoyed the small canvasses that I had toned and textured ahead of time. They lent themselves well to the nature of painting outdoors in gardens. These are the lessons that I feel I must retain when painting alla prima.......there is always next year.

Farmers Market/Framers Market

The Apple Seller   oil/canvas board   12 x 9

The Saturday morning Hudson Farmers Market is an absolute delight....that is where I perched under a tall pine tree Saturday morning during the drizzle. The smells that wafted from the chef's demonstration were tantalizing. The colors of the fresh produce and flowers were stimulating. I was initially drawn to a flower seller, but soon realized that she bounced around too much for me to catch a likeness of her figure. The apple seller was more stationary under his umbrella.....I was satisfied with that. Just across the green from the market is Hudson Fine Art and Framing....a framers market, so to speak. I enjoyed both that day!

Making Hay while the Sun Shines

Baughman Barn   oil/canvas board   12 x 12

The Friday morning of the paint-out poured! So.........I spent the morning on the covered porch of Hudson Fine Art fine-tuning paintings from the previous day. I hope that some day I will be satisfied with my impressions from just one session. The afternoon turned hot and sunny so I spent it at the Baughman property, a renovated arts and crafts house that drew quite a crowd! Although the house was amazing and the gardens quirky and creative, I decided to focus on the barn.....that is so funny, in that 20 years ago, I swore never to paint a barn, as I felt that they had reached a point of redundancy-plus in terms of paintings. I guess it was because I was dying to use my square canvas and the barn was perfect for that. Plus, my goal was to improve upon my ability to use purer color and harder edges earlier on in the process. I usually put those things off until later in the process, after some time for consideration. Alla prima requires more immediate decision-making. We are always learning..............that's why the whole thing is so stimulating! "Baughman Barn" is the result. Although it has a nice mystical quality, I think that, in considering it this week, that it would benefit from a few harder edges and, perhaps, the addition of another color.

Blue, blue, blue

Endless Summer   oil/canvas board   12 x 9

As I drove down College Street in Hudson looking for my next painting site, my attention was grabbed up by some awesome hydrangea bushes....their blueness stood out among the endless greens. The century house behind was captivating, but difficult to paint with so much cut-work around the porch. The owner stopped by and told me that the bushes were new and promised to bloom all summer.....the variety called "penny mac". If I had been able to come into the painting for a second pass after several days of dry-time, I would have come back in with some purer blue pigment. Ah.....regrets. Too much mucking around in oil paint creates nothing but mud....the same as with watercolors. "Neverending Summer" is my resultant painting from that Thursday afternoon.

....and did I mention rain?

The Learned Garden   oil/canvas board   10 x 8

The paint-out in Hudson was exhilarating! Dodging the ever-present drops added to the level of excitement.......it is difficult to paint in front of people, to be sure, but I found it to be less threatening than it used to be. One of the problems for me is the overwhelming complexity of gardens. In order to create an interesting composition, I need to be able to include a larger, simpler form. I also need to tweak the color palette away from the given, the local color, in order to enhance the process and harmony. My first attempt on Thursday morning was a garden next to a guest house. Things fell into place. I usually count on another painting session after drying is near to completion....that is when I add strokes of more pure color as well as enunciating strokes to firm up the movement in the overall composition. As this step is simply not possible in painting plein air, I have had to make adjustments by speeding up the problem solving and trying to foresee conclusions more quickly. "The Learned Garden" was completed in 2 1/2 - 3 hours on Thursday morning. These paintings are available for purchase through the end of June at Hudson Fine Art & Framing.

The Jazz of Life is not Found in the Comfort Zone

Lemonade   watercolor   13.5 x 18

O.K.....my comfort zone is painting privately in my studio. Large glasses of iced tea whenever. Throw in a load of laundry whenever. Check email whenever. Relaxed. Comfortable. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday of this week, I will join a host of many fine artists to paint at the Hudson Home and Garden Tour Plein-Air Paint-Out sponsored by Hudson Art & Framing. Bright Sunlight. Bugs. Lugging painting stuff. Bugs. Where can I go to the bathroom? Bugs. Loud noises. I can do this......Granted, this experience lies well outside of my comfort zone, but I believe in participating in events that come your way............there just may be many wonderful surprises in store. I am gradually learning how to: paint smaller; focus-in on outdoor scenes; put my "create and destroy" process on hold for a while to concentrate only on reality; and enjoy the beauty of the experience. My colleague Carolyn Lewis is a master at this.....she is my inspiration for this event. Come out and see us!

I'm Peachy....You're Peachy

Pail of Peaches   watercolor   17 x 12.5

A hot book 40 years ago (?) was I'm OK....You're OK by Thomas Harris, M.D. I read it myself, and judging by its popularity, so did many others who, like me, were trying to feel good about themselves. We live in a culture that rewards sameness. Communities are becoming more and more homogenous with their outdoor malls and chain stores. Individual and eccentric behavior is regarded with suspicion. Our parents of the 50's simply couldn't imagine why we didn't want to be just like them. We were often punished for wavering from "the path", their path. I love all things peachy...especially peach ice cream. My mother ridiculed me for this as she simply could not understand why anyone would like something that "had no flavor". Well, well, well. Many years hence, I am truly understanding how my own preferences define me. I happen to love the understated peachy flavor and can smell these luscious fruits when I enter the store. "Pail of Peaches" was a breakthrough painting for me in that I could finally appreciate my own preference for vignette formats. My painting style was evolving into a more expressive one, making use of rhythmic and gestural strokes. That is my thrill. When I painted in this way, there was always space left-over. When I "filled in the background", I felt as if I were killing the liveliness of the painting. I might as well be painting the living room wall. So, thanks to Dr. Harris, I can finally say.....I love peaches......and.....I love vignettes....and that is O.K.

In for a little heavy reading?

A book must be the pick ax that shatters the frozen sea within us.”
-Franz Kafka

Leonard Shlain wrote such books. Leonard Shlain, one of my heroes and the father of filmmaker Tiffany Shlain, died last month. He was a surgeon in San Francisco, as well as a genius and best-selling author. His book Art and  Physics demonstrated how movements in art predated groundbreaking scientific discoveries. But it was his book The Alphabet versus the Goddess: The Conflict between Word and Image that rocked my soul. He follows the evolution of our culture from a right-brain-image dominant-one to a left-brained-world that is ruled by words and aggression. This book was revolutionary for me.....in a left-brained-word-driven world, we turn our natural resources into weapons. In a more peaceful image-driven-right-brained world, the materials are crafted into art, into decoration, into jewelry. I am hoping that our tattooed children are leading us into a more evolved and peaceful existence. Leonard Shlain had hope for the future.....as we evolve into a more image-driven existence. I salute this brilliant man. His work made its way into my soul.

Bluebird Babies! - painting nature

Cottage in the Woods   watercolor   16 x 12

"Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. – Albert Einstein”

Albert Einstein was the man! Oh, what those with great intelligence can teach us! My husband loves nature and birds in particular. He sets up bird houses all over our yard and checks on them daily. He knows and delights in their songs. He communes with them. I believe that we can hold communion with whatever is sacred to us, with whatever it is that elevates us. At present, we have 4 bluebird babies, all pink and new. The parents are working hard to help them survive. "Cottage in the Woods" was painted as a still life set-up in my watercolor class.

and it's a hot one

Infusion   watercolor/gouache   19 x 27

It promises to be a hot one here in northeast Ohio today. This week is my friend Jo's birthday. The hot weather brings back memories of her family and ours at the beach in North Carolina....so many beach summers that they all meld into an all-encompassing beach memory. We each have three sons. It took so much preparation that we actually needed that vacation to rest from preparing FOR the vacation. As we sat in our little beach chairs, the swirling waves sucked out all worries and anxieties.....we became one with the ocean. We liked becoming "flotsam". We became tea bags that were infused into the great water. Jo is a coppery beach person and she wears the most luxurious (in my mind) gauzy summer dresses.....and always flip flops. Her beach casual was queen-like. My mind is filled with the roar of the ocean and my skin feels salty even as I write this tribute. Happy birthday, dear Jo.

Surprises

continuous line drawing....mine?

Doesn't everyone love surprises? It's just another way to pique our interest....stepping outside the daily humdrum for a minute or two. A total clean-out of my studio has provided several surprises. Some of the drawings and painting that were stashed away a few years back seem better than what I recall......they have never been worse. Apparently my memory does a number on them when I put them away. In fact, some of the passages actually seem a bit brilliant (passages, not the entire paintings, mind you). I would like to think that we see things differently since we, as artists and as human beings, have evolved and are therefore more accepting of what we see at present. More open-minded? There were many many old sketchbooks filled with "eyeball" and "superhero" art, left over remnants from when my children filled the first pages. A continuous line drawing caught my eye....I am not certain if it is mine, actually. But the lines thrilled me, as well as the overall feel of the drawing. Especially the little curl resting by the wrist. Wow.....I will have to try some more of these. Maybe even the "blind continuous line" drawings, done without looking at the paper. I do love surprises.

Creative Community

I believe that it behooves us to look around and learn from all members of the creative community, including those who create with computers, food, flowers, wallpaper and fabrics. After all, we all work with those same design elements and principles in mind. During my down time of studio repair, I have been perusing decorating books, which is something I rarely make time for. Being a bit of a francophile, I turned to French decorating....whoa.....way too fancy for me, for the most part. No bows, no crystal, no Queen Ann legs and, please, no chintz. Then I proceeded to Scandinavian decor....the simplicity is me.....as well as the soft colors which, apparently, are modeled after the home of Carl Larsson, a painter. I have always neutralized my colors by using the complements. These books suggest using Raw Umber, a bit at a time, of course, to achieve those soft neutrals! What a find! I am definitely going to try it! We have been painting antique toys and well-loved items in my painting class. My painter friend Mo used a wash of her home-made walnut ink on the top of her painting.....it was ingenious. Neutralized....softened....aged. New tricks for old painters.

BTW, members of Akron Society of Artists will be painting from a model tomorrow evening from 5 - 9 pm on the 3rd floor of The Summit Artspace building. Come take a peek!

Group Gesture

Young Warriors   watercolor   12.5 x 17.5

It seems to take me a while to process large groups of art seen at exhibitions and critiques. Within days, however, those works that really touch me seem to float to my surface consciousness. There is an artist at "The View From Here" at Second April Galerie in Canton whose work has nipped my artistic aesthetic in a big way. I can't remember his name but all of his 5 or 6 paintings involved group gesture.....he is a very astute man. Using color and gestural groupings of figures, as well as the negative areas between them, he has so accurately described many social moments. One is called "Awkward Moment" and other something like "Just Arrived" (before the party begins). As a person who struggles with social engagements, I found these works to be all-powerful and all-telling with a minimum of description. Bravo! None of these figures has faces or distracting detail. The evolution is complete. We must learn that in the telling of the story of a figure, the face is secondary. When we tell the story of a group of people, facial detailing and other details simply must go. There is a limited amount of power innate in a picture....and that power is divided between all of the elements in the work. We, as artists, struggle to eliminate the non-essential in order to place the power where we want it. "Young Warriors" is my earlier attempt at a group gesture and was done before my work incorporated this important notion. It is in the collection of The State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio.

Model Night

Filling In   watercolor   10 x 10

Tonight is Model Night, the first Wednesday of the month, at my club, The Akron Society of Artists. It's my favorite........drawing or painting from a live model. Although it would seem otherwise, it most definitely involves a silent communication between the model and each of the artists who works to capture his/her essence. When I get a good feeling from the model, I receive an empathic feeling that helps me commit to the work and, I believe, makes me more receptive to what it is about the model that is his or her genuine essence or beauty. "Filling In" was painted many years ago....our model didn't show up and a newcomer freely took the model stand. I have thought about her and her wistful essence throughout the years. She used makeup tubes from her bag to create art. Her husband picked her up at precisely 10 pm. She shared a bit of herself with me and, although I don't know her name, we were connected for three short hours.

Define Painter...

Paint Brush (labor series)   watercolor   8.5 x 14

There are many kinds of painters. Recently, my studio has been emptied....closed down....for a couple of weeks for home improvements and painting. Bummer. I have been avoiding it for several years, but it had to be done. Instead of painting, I have been watching my husband paint the walls and woodwork. Over the years, he has developed a seemingly effortless stroke....knowing just how much paint should be on the brush, and manipulating the brush in a rhythmic and sleight-of- hand fashion. No matter what task we are performing, repeating the action again and again gives us an ease and relaxation that not only aids the task, but also beckons us into "flow". Muscle memory is involved. Beginners often over-control and choke up on their brushes and pens, causing a stilted and awkward movement. Those who are more comfortable, with many hours under their smocks and painter's pants, move their hands up toward the handle tip, allowing more freedom, more expression and a lightness of touch. They hold the brush more loosely. Muscle memory is involved as well. So, for a while I am dedicated to endless cleanup and selecting of new colors. It has been said that you learn a lot in the off-season. "Paint Brush" - Labor Series can be seen at Hudson Fine Art and Framing.

Now you see it...now you don't

Hidden Symmetry   oil/canvas   48 x 24 x 1.5

Illusion is what painters do....the illusion of a 3-dimensional object on a 2-dimensional ground. My community of Brimfield is probably like many semi-rural communities in that it is being invaded by commercial ventures such as WalMart, Lowe's, Dollar Tree, Appleby's and Kohl's. Things are changing rapidly. A beautiful barn on my road was always a stand-out due to it's two dilapidated but beautiful spires. I always hoped to paint them. A couple of years ago, I finally had an opportunity to produce a painting of each one. Whoa...........within a few weeks of completion, the spires were removed and disassembled, despite local rumors that the owners were going to completely refurbish the structure. I feel lucky. My goal in "Hidden Symmetry" was to juxtapose the extreme texture of the shingles and old wood with a complete smoothness of the background. As always, easier said than done. My normal painting style is full of texture and strokes. Painting the background was most difficult, what with trying to hide and smooth out brushstrokes. "Hidden Symmetry" can be seen in "The View From Here", currently on exhibit at Second April Galerie in Canton.

Labor

Painter   oil/canvas   48 x 24 x 1.5

Labor is a notion that I would like to celebrate in my work. The process of working with one's hands is, in my opinion, one of the most satisfactory things a person can do.....we can lose ourselves in the daily rhythms of cleaning, gardening, repairing and painting, whether a picture or a dwelling. In The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life, Thomas Moore says that caring for one's dwelling is important to the soul.....that is, as opposed to hiring someone to do our own "dirty work". I believe that is true. Cleaning our brushes with care is part of the creative process. Cleaning our bathrooms can be equally as satisfying. Two of my sons live in San Francisco where turn-of-the-century Victorian homes abound. These dwellings are often several stories with loads of decorative turned and lacy piece-work. Not an easy job to paint! On a walking tour of the Mission district, I shot photos of a house painter, perched high up on a ladder, seeming almost relaxed in the rhythm of the strokes. "Painter" is the result. I hold this man in high regard. That is the story. "Painter" can be seen at Second April Galerie in "The View From Here".

Dappled and Wabi Sabi

Happy   oil/canvas   10 x 20 x .5

I recently read a few books on the Japanese notion of Wabi Sabi. The three important principles are: Nothing is Permanent. Nothing is Finished. Nothing is Perfect. What a relief! I believe that these principles further the connection to process over product. One of the books was a children's book done in beautiful collage work about a calico cat.....named Wabi Sabi. For me, this whole notion cemented the connection to my appreciation of The Dappled. The French have a notion of beauty called "jolie laide". This translates literally to pretty/ugly. Perhaps this is all tied up with Joseph Campbell's notions of paired opposites.....where the marrow of life can be found. The plastic notions of perfect beauty are discarded in favor of a more honest, more imperfect beauty that can be found just about anywhere we look....any small visual that gives pause. Happy, my friend's calico beauty, died this year after a long happy life. My painting of Happy is a celebration of her life, my friend and a tribute to dappled, to jolie laide and to wabi-sabi.