"Not a Butterfly Yet"

"Not a Butterfly Yet"

5x7 on watercolor paper

Can't chat much but wanted to post a little something I finished today.  I love changing a few aspects of my art to experiment with different looks.  Try it with your own art...if you normally paint eyes a certain way, tweek them a bit by changing the size or shape.  If you usually stick to the same color palette, pick one new color and incorporate it somehow.  Have fun!  I did!!

finished!!! We Share One Moon

I'm always searching for the reasons why I paint.  I'm drawn constantly to my studio to draw or paint and create something where there was previously nothing...this draw sometimes gets me a little nutty since I'm a busy mom of three.  I'm balancing the "have tos" with the "i want tos".  You know what I mean...the "have tos" include but are not limited to, laundry, dishes, meals, cleaning. referreeing (spelling?), chaperoning, etc.  I'm discovering that this need to create will only fester and make me frustrated if I don't listen.  It was maybe a whisper for a while but it's heard loudly and very clearly today.  It is part of me.  It's who I am.  I know that I will not create maserpieces on a daily basis but I will create.  I will draw and paint and make things that were previously nothing but bits and pieces or paper or canvas.  I am not in it for the money or the prestige (a little nod of encouragement is always appreciated but not necessary) and I will keep going even if other people question my subject matter or my methods or the amount of time I devote to what they might see as "silly" or "foolish" or even "a waste of time."  I am an artist and I am me.  I am a mother but I have layers like everyone else and I refuse to make apologies for what I am passionate about outside of my family.  I'm devoted to my family and in that is me...aren't we as moms part of that family we're so devoted to and passionate about?  Without taking care of yourself, there is no taking care of anyone else.  You must feed your soul...in doing so, you better yourself for everyone else.  You show your children that you are self confident, you love yourself, you are ok with you.  Maybe that leads to them being ok with themselves, too....we can hope, right? 

So, I paint.  I draw, I dream, I imagine, and I create.  I feel alive when I do and I feel reconnected with the world somehow.  This painting has revealed itself recently in light of Japan's horrible circumstances.  I hope everyone can relate to the "something bigger than us" concept.  Perhaps "she" is Mother Nature, pregnant with new life, preparing to plant new life, holding the moon in her hands.  I initially titled this "She Holds the Moon" but I felt like "We Share One Moon" was more appropriate once I added the star painted like the Japanese flag.  I hope that when you look at this painting, you feel connected to the people of Japan and that you remember we do share one moon.  They are suffering in ways most of us can only imagine.  As humans though, we can empathize with their mourning, worrying, crying, dying, weeping, etc.  We need to keep them close to our hearts and do what we can even in small ways such as praying.  This is what I have done...beyond praying, and I hope it can help somehow. 

New Painting in Progress

This is a gallery wrapped canvas, 16x20 inches.  Lots of texture and layered color.

No title yet but she makes me think of Mother Nature...that there is something so much bigger than ourselves. 

close up of houses

close up of pockets...soon to hold flowers or stars of some kind.

I'll post more when I'm done...happy early St. Patty's Day!!!

work in progress

Working only sporadically but love to play with new ideas and materials or techniques.  Still loving the faces, textures, shapes and color.  This time, I tore paper and traced the unique shape for lips, nose, and eyebrows.  I then attached the papers with gel medium.  I'm still working on this and I fight myself to leave more of the background showing.  I love to blend colors though so it's tough.  I also love to use a great deal of scrumbling and my brushes are taking a beating!  My favorite thing to do though is to go into some areas with my watercolor pencils to add more dimension.  I will take a color that is a shade darker and accent edges, blending the color in with some gel medium to make the color permanent.  Sometimes I take a complementary color and add some touches of that to an area to make it pop.  The other thing I love to do is use colors other than white for highlights -- light aqua is great for this!!

I wish I could paint for hours...I'll settle for smaller increments of time just to be able to keep my feet wet so to speak. 

Enjoy!