Collected below, I've entered some of my day to day adventures and musings. Some are about my art and others are about my family and environment as I journey through life.
Ramblings
November 19th, 2008
Last Saturday, Danica and I attended a one day abstract art workshop given by Wayne Boucher. I met Wayne over twenty years ago at the opening of the National Gallery and I have always admired the pizzas of his abstracts.
Danica and I had a terrific day. We smeared on colour with oil sticks and then swiped it off. Because of the fluid process of abstract art creating, I felt like I'd done fifty pieces for each one that I ended up with. They morphed and evolved and the sparkle disappeared only to be recreated differently with the next layer of paint. I've decided that the next time I try an abstract, I'm going to photograph it evolving as the process was fascinating.
Wayne said to use only two colours and to focus on a simplified idea. I'm wondering if abstract can be as complex as realism and also if it might not represent any idea but rather be an idealess happening of colour, form, texture, tone.
This week, I wasn't quite in the mental space to carry on with abstract (and also I'm missing some materials). Yet I was too moved to go back and just paint the way I usually work.. I've just finished two loose watercolours of recent images, a close-up of rocks at Peggy's Cove and some yellow grass and red foliage that I saw on last weeks day trip with Laurie to Lunenburg. Both of these paintings were done standing up with arm action only and no wrist action. They both have a glow and a charm for me.
Yesterday, we woke up and it was a glorious winter day. Lots of smow and sunshine and so still in my pajamas, with my ski jacket on top, I headed outside and took some photos of our marsh. Glorious. A few minutes later, the light was gone behind a cloud, and the moment of inspiration was past.
November 7th, 2008
The past several weeks have extremely busy ones. I survived another Open House Exhibition (our 20th) and once the exhibition was all hung and labeled I was very please with the work. Each year, I worry that I won’t have a spectacular show and that I’ll disappoint myself. It’s a relief that so far, it has always managed to come together.
Last week I celebrated the end of the busy 2008 season with a visit from my sister, Nancy. It was marvelous to see her. Also my sister is an economist and always has heaps of business ideas for me. One we decided to try was to offer free shipping of paintings (over $ 500) and free shipping of unframed prints anywhere in North America between November 30 and December 10.
Nancy and I went on two outings. I was lusting to see the new fossil museum at Joggins. It was a beautiful drive. The Blueberry foliage was just glowing red.
Then on Saturday we had lunch at Peggy’s Cove before I took Nancy to the airport. This trip also inspired a new painting, “Lighthouse”.
It feels so wonderful to get back into my little studio full time. I’m enjoying the space, the music, the art on the walks and creating new stuff.
Yesterday I spent a lovely afternoon drinking tea with some visitors from Parkland Estates in Truro.
One older gentleman reminded me of my Grandfather. Maybe it was his northern British accent or maybe it was his smile but it was like having a visit with family.
Also last week I found out I had been selected to receive the 2008 Woman of Excellence Award in the Arts and Culture category from the HalifaxCornwallis Progress Club. Jim and I will attend the presentation ceremony in Halifax in a couple of weeks. Thank you to those who nominated me.
October 7th, 2008
The last two paintings for the Open House, Mirium Sleeping (3) and Laundry, were finished this morning. Now I can start hanging the Open House Exhibition. My three dimentional piece, "Sea Set" is far from finished but with these quirky peices, I have no idea just how I'm going to do them so they can't be rushed. I'll just putter away on it until it's done no matter how long it takes.
With Mirumn, I initially saw her sleeping in a hammock last February in the Amazon Bazin area of Bolivia. Something about her pose seemed classis, timeless, beautiful. I did a small sketch
. After she woke up I asked her if I could take her photo and she lay back down and feigned sleep. Recently I used these photos to do a painting Mirium Sleeping (2).
When I was done this painting, I sifted throught the sketches and found the sketch of Mirum Sleeping. There was a classis simplified presence that I didn't feel that I catured in the more realistic Mirium (2) and so I decided to also try to get this quality in Mirium (3).
This painting is a bit like Diego Rivera's paintings of women. For me it feels sculptural. Even the way I've been working on it has been sculptural; a little colour on and a little colour off. I am still intimitated to paint people ever since 1989 when the curator of my art Gallery of Nova Scotia exhibition didn't want my people paintings in my exhibition there. My people paintings may not be polished or perfect like easy porches with sunlit chairs but they have emotion and I love them because of the struggle to capture a feeling.
. After she woke up I asked her if I could take her photo and she lay back down and feigned sleep. Recently I used these photos to do a painting Mirium Sleeping (2).When I was done this painting, I sifted throught the sketches and found the sketch of Mirum Sleeping. There was a classis simplified presence that I didn't feel that I catured in the more realistic Mirium (2) and so I decided to also try to get this quality in Mirium (3). This painting is a bit like Diego Rivera's paintings of women. For me it feels sculptural. Even the way I've been working on it has been sculptural; a little colour on and a little colour off. I am still intimitated to paint people ever since 1989 when the curator of my art Gallery of Nova Scotia exhibition didn't want my people paintings in my exhibition there. My people paintings may not be polished or perfect like easy porches with sunlit chairs but they have emotion and I love them because of the struggle to capture a feeling.The other painting, "Laundry" was started on location last week. A couple of weeks ago I noticed this clothes line and the view of our Bay when a friend, Dan, was giving me some vegetables from his garden.
I went back last Saturday with some clothes for the line and pegs and set to work. Although the day was sunny and glorious it was also cool and soon I was a shivering zombie. This will be my last on location painting for this year. It was all I could do to drag all the stuff back to the car. Luckily, my car has a seat heater. A seat heater is a wonderful thing for all artists who paint in the cold and then stumble to their cars to get warm. In this painting called Laundry, I love the fast loose sky and foliage done on location coupled with the blowing laundry done today back in the studio.