Party Pictures

At breakfast on Valentine's Day, I was chatting with a couple of ladies who have also been married to their husbands for quite awhile. We were laughing about how unlikely it would be for us to get anything on this holiday. Once in awhile Doug and I exchange small gifts for Valentine's but it is erratic and frankly, has fallen a bit on both of our lists of things to do. I hadn't even considered sending anything to Doug this year, mostly because the thought of getting something together AND shipped out while here seemed completely overwhelming.

At lunch I was standing in line and noticed that there were many more packages than usual (there is a shelf in the dining hall for incoming mail for the residents) in addition to a large flower arrangement. I smirked to myself about the poor girl getting that tacky gift; beautfiul flowers wrapped in all kinds of shiny frou-frou, tissue papers, cellophane, and ribbons imprinted with shiny gold hearts, blech. As I was getting my food, Becky (writer) from Madison, WI tapped me on the shoulder and asked me if I knew those were my flowers! I went to check and sure enough they were for me (from Doug, duh). Who got the flowers was a pretty exciting event that day, and since Doug is already looking pretty good for taking over the household for a month while I play with my paints, this sealed his reputation as a good guy. Although, Nick (writer) from Florida pointed out that he was probably just "marking his territory". Much laughter at lunch that day.

Anyway, I am posting just a few of the pictures from the dance that we went to that night. My dear hubby got my overly sensitive laptop up and running again for me. What a guy!

From left: Erica (painter) from Saratoga Springs, NY, Seth (writer) from Talledega, Alabama, Amanda (painter, her studio is directly across from mine and she is the girl I went to the hardware store with on the first day here) from South Carolina, and Lucy (painter) from Ireland.

Me and David Grozinsky-before he changed into a very snappy black western style shirt with colorfully embroidered flowers all over the front.

Nancy (painter) from Texas has the floor!

Ron (writer) from Chicago. Ron is one of my housemates and is very sweet and funny. And maybe just a little drunk here given that he is wearing a pink petticoat and dancing with Nick (see next photo).




PS. Doug and I had a good laugh about how the flowers were all dressed up. He also hates all the crap that flower shops tend to add to an already beautiful group of flowers.

How Pollock Made Me Paint Again

Hillside Trees, 2006, Oil on Panel, 12x12

Unfortunately, I didn't get much done yesterday either. I had just gotten into the painting zone with a little help from Mary Gauthier, when it was time to clean up and go to a valentine lunch with my husband, Doug. We had a nice time and I always a enjoy a good salad, especially one that someone else has to prepare and clean up after. By the time we got home, it was time for me to run back into town to pick up the kids from their after school stuff. Hopefully, I will get more done today and tomorrow.

So I have a lot going on this year and I am still kind of in awe about it. I have an art education, I went to the University of the Arts in Philadelphia from 1985-1988. My major was illustration and with the usual youthful optimism, I was certain that I'd be a very successful illustrator. Then real life stepped in. I had to get a full time job after college and I tried for awhile to do illustration on the side. I did a few jobs here and there and then I met my husband (ok, he was my boss, so sue me!) and had less time to pursue my personal work. We started a family and I felt strongly about devoting my time to raising the babies so the art took a back seat. I did have a few creative outlets during this time, I learned how to knit and sew, I attended weekly figure drawing sessions and I became involved with a local arts organization. In 2003, our family plunked down on a farm in upstate NY after having lived in Utah for ten years. My youngest daughter began school and at the same time I was reading Pollock, An American Saga. While Pollock seemed to be a bit of a mess, (that may be an understatement) I was so inspired by their move to the Springs on Long Island and his subsequent breakthroughs. I also admired Lee Krasner's tenacity in keeping him on track and continuing to pursue her own work at the same time. So I thought that since I had more time during the days, I'd give it another shot. Despite not ever having done a landscape, I started painting landscapes. How could I not? The land surrounding us is beautiful! The first pieces I did were dark and moody and kind of depressing, but obviously I have moved into a different direction at this point. And hopefully I and my work will keep evolving.

So that's why at age 41, I am considered an emerging artist and why everything that's going on seems so surprising and, well, cool.

This is a painting I did in early 2004.



Window View#28, 2004, Oil on Panel, 12x12

Love Day

Pink Poppies, 2005, Oil on Panel, 5x7


I am not a big fan of holidays and the rampant commercialism that surrounds them, but I do find some enjoyment of them through my kids. I have spent the last few days helping my girls make handmade valentines for their classmates. We did decoupage on heart shaped wood cut outs. They turned out beautifully and I have a newfound respect for collage and especially for Modge Podge. You can put down just about anything, slop some Modge Podge over it and when it dries, everything is all sparkly and shiny, with layers, yet it's solid. I should put collage on my list of new things to try when I have some time to experiment. I love Lee Krasner's collages, particularly the ones where she used the cut pieces of her own figurative drawings.

Yesterday, I managed to fritter away most of the morning on the computer. I should be getting to work in the studio right away in the mornings but my husband got me a new computer with a big monitor and I can't seem to take my eyes off of it. Anyway, I did work for about two hours or so. I applied glazes to several paintings so that I can start with the color on them today (more on my process some other time) and also finished up a flower garden image. I had to finish up by 2pm so I could do my daily 3 mile walk (stupid new year's resolution), then the kids get home and studio time is definitely over at that point.