Saturday, February 23, 2013

Some Cactus Zen...

 ...designed in mandala fashion...
just in time for the opening of professional baseball's
Cactus League spring training
here in the desert.
And above...she appears again...
this time
digitally flipped in celebration of the almost full moon
boldly lighting the desert night skies
with a bright cerulean glow.
Does that mean Spring is here???...
Well...just about!
Have a happy Saturday!

"That's the true harbinger of spring,
not crocuses
or swallows returning to Capistrano,
but the sound of a bat
on a ball."
~Bill Veeck, 1976

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Studio Time...

...and a sketchbook pomegranate study.
Actually, these dried pomegranates were snipped from a
bush right outside the studio...
and included a small bulbous grey spider
which crawled out
of the pod painted in the lower right corner.
I am NOT a fan of spiders..
so he was "wisked" from the scene immediately!
I went with
paint straight in...no pencil...and added some ink flourishes
as decorative highlights.
(Click on image to enlarge)
Another day in artistic paradise?
Ahh...You betcha! :)

"Paradise is seldom recognized as such
until
it is considered from the outside.”
~Hermann Hesse

Sunday, February 17, 2013

A Tropical Pinwheel...

...posted from here in the beautiful desert southwest
for all my friends and family
who are
"wishing and hoping and thinking and praying
planning and dreaming
each night..."
 for the first signs of spring 
"Up North."
(Thanks, Dusty Springfield, Burt Bacharach, and Hal David
 for the words...)

"It's spring fever.
That is what the name of it is.
And when you've got it, you want -
oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want,
but it just fairly makes your heart ache,
 you want it so!"
~Mark Twain

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Happy Valentine's Day...

...celebrating the day
with an ATC size painting of one of the tin hearts
in my
San Miguel Allende sacred heart collection.

"The heart has its reasons
that
reason knows nothing of."
~Blaise Pascal 1670

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Winter Trading...

...five of the 18 Artist Trading Cards
I made and traded during the January Artathon
I am expecting the lower 2 cards
to arrive at the studio of Veterok in Finland sometime
this week.
(Click on image to enlarge.)
My!  What wonderful places my art flies to!

“Voyage, travel, and change of place impart vigor.”
~Seneca
(Roman Philosopher, mid-1st century AD)

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Seeking Zen...

...while painting a Persian blue sky portal...
perfect for a cloudy, blustery, cold Arizona day.

"Three things cannot be long hidden:
the sun, the moon,
and
the truth."
~Buddha 

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Zen Line Dancing...


My brush and pen
swirl and twirl...spin and spiral...twist and turn...
all about the color wheel...
dipping and lifting in rhymthic syncronicity.
They virtually dance
day in...
and day out...
keeping kaleidoscopic palettes and patterned tangles
boot scootin'
and tangoing throughout the ballroom space
within my head.
Sometimes I get exhausted
by their vigor.

 "Dance first. Think later. It's the natural order."
~Samuel Beckett


Sunday, February 3, 2013

Doing What One Loves...

...must run in the family this weekend.
Pictured above is
my brother Mark at Soldier Field in Chicago today
on the ice...
15 degrees F...snow gently falling...
a big smile in his heart.
 From the hand made back yard ice ponds
my dad
would make us whe we were kids...
to the most
legendary sports venue of Chicago...truly
living the dream...
and
bringing home a trophy to boot!
Ahhhh!
Love you, Mark!
Pssst...Thanks for the photos, Katie...:)
Hot chocolate anyone?

"Four out of five dentists surveyed recommended playing hockey."
~Author Unknown

A Fabulous Friday...

 ...was spent by teaching an all day art workshop
in Studio 2
with some wonderfully artistic women...:)
 The title of my class was
"Whimsical Botanical Watercolor Designs."
Above are several examples I used for inspiration.
Click on any image to enlarge.
 The paintings on white were examples showing
what I was making in 2006.
The Maruman Japanese fold sketchbook
on the table
is my latest solo effort...completed this fall.
 Carolle, my energetic-ever wonderful "assistant Muse" took this photo
while I did a demo.
Thanks, Carolle...this was a nice surprise.
It looks like lots of notes, ever so patiently, were taken...:)
Happily showing the results of their workshop endeavors
are
Pat, Sid and LaRayne...
...Judy...all by herself...as Kathy had to leave early...
 ...Cindy and Penny...
...Kay and Michelle...
...Marilyn and Lou Anne...
and, lastly, Paulette and Barbara.
On so many levels
it was a beautiful day from start to finish...
from morning coffee...through lunch...to an afternoon ice cream cone.
The sun was bright...the air fresh...the temps were springlike.
The studio was a-buzz with busy artistic Muses
playing, giggling
and making some very happy art.
You know...
each and every day that I do something artistic I feel blessed.
Sharing what I do with like minded friends
is sheer bliss...
a personal little slice of artistic heaven.
A Fabulous Friday??? You bet!

"You can discover more about a person
in an hour of play
than in a year of conversation."
~Plato