TIME AWAY

June 11, 2015

I have all but disappeared off my blog.  I am so consumed with reading, observing, experimenting with new ideas in my art, and tending to the daily things that take one's time, that a blog comes last. My use of time that seems ever more fleeting, is time to think and reflect.  I am finally making time for thought, inspiration and reflection and relishing it.
So, this blog comes once in awhile as I have a moment. My apologies.

Voyage I

 Complicated lives lead us from one thing to another.....and at this time I want to let the mind wander, the ideas flow and be at play with new work.  Explore, Dream. Discover.

Thoughts on a snowy day

GLOW

As I look at the falling snow enveloping my nature space, I long for its moisture to bring glorious shades of green, yellow, red, and purple to this canvas of white.

I am reminded of a quote by Henri Matisse:

"There are always flowers for those who want to see them." 

I repeat those words and I see shades of green, yellow, red, and purple against the snow.

What Will Happen Today?

WHAT WILL HAPPEN TODAY?

As I face the morning, I ask, "What will happen today?"  It could be the sight of the fox running across the snow; the emission of music that is new to me; the warmth of my dog wanting a brief cuddle; the voice of a friend whom I have not heard from for some time; the discovery of a color combination that I like; the taste of a delicious clementine.  Who knows?  Thus, I ask, "What will happen today? It will be one, two or pehaps many things, as I happen to them---these things of today.

Sunrise, Sunset

DISCOVERY

DISCOVERY

Fog along the Seine

• finding
• uncovering
• unearthing
• determining
• exploration
• disclosure
• detection
• identification
• revelation
• realization
• recognition
• perception

--Oxford Dictionary

A PLACE APART

As Fall enters I relish the solitude and privacy to set a place apart, as the trees provide for the birds, to sketch, to erase, to read, to paint and to erase again...without interruption.  So on this brilliant morning with leaves shimmering against a clear blue sky I do my creative work.  Before going to the studio I re-read Keats, "A Thing of Beauty."

"A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases;it will never
Pass into nothingness;but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing...."

These words resonated as I watched the leaves against the sky.

REFLECTION

Reflecting on J.M. Barrie as I paint today:

"The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough."


"God gave us memory so that we might have roses in December."

On this hot June morning, I remember soft snow falling on evergreens in the backyard.

Cooking in the Unconsious

FANFARE

Lots of things have been cooking away in my unconscious over many months.  Suddenly, it is all beginning to exhibit itself on paper.  I feel like I am practicing my scales again on the piano and the scales sometimes are moving so fast that I have to step back and let the work look at me.  It is delightful to be making new acquaintances in new ways.

Discovery helps make me understand!  Onwards!