A Painting for Today

Yesterday, I felt frustrated as I approached the time to do some artwork. That's probably because I am 'rusty' at it. But as I worked, that special feeling came over me. (It's magic, you know!) I wanted to experiment with a surface that an 'artist friend', Brandy Miner, has been using cardstock as a surface. Upon trying it, I noticed that as you 'dust' after a few colors (there's nowhere for the excess pastel to go) the dusted colors get all over the other colors, so I ended up working and reworking. But that's ok,

I needed to see what it was like.
"Glads, Too" pastel on cardstock, 8' x 10" framed size

After that warm-up, I continued on. I have such great family photos, I decided to jump right in and get a portrait done of my (I guess it would be) 3rd cousin, Madeleine.
I will post it tomorrow. Have a few details to clean up on it. When you take photos of your work, you see all kinds of tweaking you need to do. Same goes with standing back from your work, which I am not good at..so I often use the photo I take as my "standing back".

Renaissance...and Beyond

Robert Genn sends a twice weekly email to those who subscribe to his newsletter. The current letter is about being a "renaissance" artist, how each day artists of today are rethinking, giving new life to ideas, putting a fresh spin on a vision, and adopting different attitudes for ways of seeing the world.
Genn explains the workings of "renaissance" in these principles:

"Curiosity as a way of thinking
Suspicion of authority and conventional wisdom
Respect for intelligently filtered history
Aspiration to higher levels of achievement
Vision for renewed potential in all things
Tendency to invent private systems
Reinvention and perfection of former skills
Accepting the challenge of the difficult"

I encourage you, that when you look at art that is different, unique and not like any other...remember the idea of "renaissance".

Last night as the storm was brewing I took some photos. I got a new Sandisk, and I swear it takes better photos. Is that possible? It is an "Extreme III". Unbeknownst to me, my camera - a Nikon D-50, won't take anything larger than a 2 GB card. We found that out the hard way. Bought an 8GB card and the camera kept giving me an error message. So much for taking a thousand photos in Guatemala...I think I will see how many it will take here at home. Then I always have a back-up. So, not to worry. Here are some of the ominous clouds. The rain was different. It was like piercing and in sheets.

This is looking to the north...(BTW, for some reason, when I see clouds like this, it always reminds me of the end of "The Terminator" movie, when Sarah Connor is driving away in her Jeep - very apocalyptic)

This is looking to the west...

Is It Bigger Than a Breadbox?

Hubster was being pestered by a fly the other morning. He had to stop it's advance of attack. Interesting the size of it shown below. The fly probably didn't know he messed with the wrong person!Art isn't happening right now - oh snap! But it will be soon. Oh ya, this blog is a "periodic journal of life as an artist living in NCK" and we are "do-it-yourselfers" on most everything we do. That takes away painting and art time. I don't profess to be a "full-time" artist, I bask in the thought and would like nothing better, it's just that all these "other" things take time. We are still replacing kitchen cabinets. Big job! Here is a photo of the laundry room/entry way. The upper cab has glass doors. I have loaded all my cookbooks into that one. I also got to place my food items in my new food pantry and my pots and pans in my new pots and pans pantry - get it "pan"try?! Makes you wonder where that word comes from. I will have to research that. Ha! Lucky me, I get one more pantry (these cabs came from a "master" kitchen) and that will be a "catch-all" or "junque" as hubster calls it - pantry. Seem to have lots of that stuff, still hangin' around. Although we have AC, the heat and humidity plays with my energy levels - daily.
Took a quick ATV ride last night to check out a "burn" we could see on the horizon, never found it. We scared up a whitetail doe and twins in the stubble wheatfield to the south, they were just darn cute and very cool to watch. Their tails wag like a dog's tail! Electric fence is keeping those and other critters at bay around the sweet corn. We are going to have sooo much corn when it comes in. You should see me cringe, though, down around the pond, where hundreds of tiny Woodhouse toads are jumping out of the open cracks in the dry earth. Hasty Herman bit into another one last night before sundown. They are poisonous in case you haven't read my late rantings about them. Lots of wind and some rain at 3 AM. Sleep wasn't in the mix too much about that time.

Oh - and this one goes out to my family - who I may have told - I wasn't going to Guatemala??? Well, left my options open and then decided that I would go. (At least I will be painting!) One shouldn't pass up these opportunities in life - the world will just have to adjust. See my sidebar. Not many days til I leave. I am planning each day with what to take and how. Traveling with art supplies, as well as everything else, will be interesting. And...I am preparing my body for bug bites. Mosquitoes devour me at sunset every night!
P.S. Happy Birthday to my step-daughter, Leslie, who is 23 today! We are expecting her for a visit next week.

Where I Stand Sunday

Well, actually I stood here on Saturday, and I am probably still asleep as you read this, you early birds. Our NCKAA group had a show at the Downs, Kansas 'Celebration'. There were 8 of us. We set up for 12 hours. 'Small town, big life' is their motto this year. Lots of very nice people came by to view our fine art. I got out the old pegboard easels I used to use long time ago - used to have 7, but they got grabbed up by teachers as we used them for charts and big books in early primary grades, so now I am down to 3. Perfect for just a small show, where we were only asked to bring a few. Notice I brought 7, though (8 if you count the large one on another easel).

I am standing on the bricks outside the old train depot, where names are engraved for those who donated to the progress of the renovation and preservation of this building.
I used the time for sketching, too, so check out my sketch blog. Below are a few photos of my set-up and what the depot looks like.

Where I Stand Sunday is an ongoing photo essay examining the different places I spend my life standing. Too often we take for granted the everyday places we spend our lives walking on. The ground we tread on has its own stories to tell. If you would like to also post this subject, please let me know. There are several of us (see my sidebar) and we would love to add your blog to our list.

Look Alikes

When you have children, your first one usually looks like their father, not always, but often is my experience. They say it's natures way to tell the dad it's his, so he can bond with the baby right away. My daughter is a mixture both sides of her family. She has a little bit of me and a little bit of her dad and his sister. At times, she has looked a lot like me, I guess because of our 'big baby blues'. She also has a trademark expression. So much so, that my son-in-law, who is an artist, has done several paintings showing that famous scowl of hers. He is excellent at narrating expression with acrylic paint. My sister-in-law told me she had a photo of me with that same expression. I didn't believe it, however, today I received the evidence via email. You can be the judge. The photo is me eating an ice cream cone on a trip to Georgetown, in Colorado, many years ago.

Painting by James Burns, Brooklyn, N. Y.

When Lightning Strikes

Last night, clouds rolled across the prairie and performed a super light show. I grabbed my camera and attempted to capture at least one of the lightning strikes. It was dusk and I needed to create a shutter speed that would capture it, but be able to see it, too. Shooting lightning is very tricky! My reflexes weren't up to it, certainly! This is one photo that shows some lightning, although not anything like what was going on for the most part.

As an artist, I really appreciate other art. It inspires and comforts me. On May 24, I posted a "Where I Stand Sunday" blog, which my new friend Susan Carlin found interesting and asked if she could 'paint' it. It was so wonderful, I purchased it from her. The photos below show the original photo and the painting. The photo of the painting, doesn't do it justice, as the colors are really great! It is 6" x 8". I have the perfect frame for it, and it is going on the wall where I can see it daily!

Boy, that's my feet - alright!
Also, I have a friendship that I gleaned through blogging. Leann lives in Michigan, and paints daily in watercolor, makes prints and rubber stamps and does lots of mixed media fiber art. She also cooks and bakes, writes about the music concerts she attends and has a very colorful life!

Leann has sent me several handpainted postcards. I received one while I was in KC. You can see it below. It reminds me of a time in middle school, when we used to take large square grid paper and try to draw a different object in each square. Leann painted a different object in each square. This one will also go into a frame and be a daily viewer! The post office was kinda rough on this one. Their machines tore the surface a little. I have been noticing that more lately, have you? You would think since we pay so much more for mailings and they certainly can afford equipment that doesn't wreck your mail, that it wouldn't happen. Hmm.

Back at it - Again!

Sorry, for no “Where I Stand Sunday” this week, I was at the mercy of “dial-up” service where I happened to be…and you know how that goes, especially with me! Whew! It’s good to be back. I missed my blog – hope you did, too! I returned home last night. I have been away for 25 days. However, as my compatriot Dorothy Gale said, “There’s no place like home!”

I have felt very out of touch with my little world and I am sure there will be some adjustment to be ‘normal’ once again. Hubster was involved in wheat harvest with our neighbor while I was away. He took a few great photos to keep me up to date of life on the ‘home front’. Here is a great sunset, over the harvest equipment.

I have spent a lot of time with my family over these several weeks. Our Annual ‘Gray’ Family Reunion was perfect, as usual, for catching up with relatives and just kicking back – “on the lake”. My aunt held a “Celebration of Life” ceremony, as 3 members of our clan passed away this year, my cousin Kay, and her mom and dad, Aunt Gwen and Uncle Harold. There was a short service for them at the guest house with lots of photos and memories shared and then a celebration for the three new babies born this year, my granddaughter Scarlett, and some cousins – Liberty and Maria…and there is another baby girl on the way in November….very special times! My stepson and his wife are also expecting a girl, in September. Lots of girls to increase our family numbers! It’s interesting to watch the formation of new ‘generations’ as well as watch others continue to mature and grow up. Seeing the same little kids each year, is like watching growth in time lapse photography.

A great table piece of fresh fruit served at the 'Celebration'.
Cousin Chase and his puppy Andre (the Giant - he is a bull mastiff pup), canoeing on the lake. Below are the "tweenies" (4th generation since this annual event started, 34 years ago) playing on the floor with my grandaughter, Scarlett (5th generation).
I guess between my brother and I - we took over a thousand photos!
I will be in a local show on Saturday in Downs, Ks., for their 'Celebration'. Check out a few of us at 'The Depot' from 9AM to 9PM. I may set up and 'plein air' paint, just so I get some painting done.