Having Fun

It was another busy day working in the studio. I don’t know where the day went, but I got a lot accomplished. They say time flies when your having fun, and I sure had fun getting carried away with my new painting. I will post a picture later on.

Sundial – Photography

“Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in.” – Henry David Thoreau

“Hide not your talents. They for use were made. What’s a sundial in the shade.” – Benjamin Franklin

“Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.” – Carl Sandberg

Lady Of The Lake

The Lady of the Lake painting is finally finished. I used Painter IX, the only program on the market that can simulate what traditional painting mediums can do.

First I used a customized pencil to draw the woman and sword with scabbard. Then I created a new layer and began laying in color, working on this layer allowed me to preserve my original sketch. Once I liked what I saw, I then flattened the image and began painting directly onto the original canvas.

At this point using customized soft charcoal, pastel, and oil brushes, I painted the woman and background. Then I finished the piece by adding detail and highlights

This painting took me somewhere between 20 to 35 hours to complete.

Lady of the Lake – Combined Media – 11 X 14 inches

Lady of the Lake’s Sword with Scabbard

The lady of the lake is an archetypal figure in the Arthurian legend, and known as Vivian, Nimue, Niniane, and sometimes as Morgan le Fay. She was also Merlin’s lover and rival and was credited with bewitching him.

The lady of the lake is best known for gifting the sword Excalibur to Arthur. Excalibur’s scabbard was said to have magical powers of it’s own, and was stolen by Morgan le Fay and thrown into a lake, never to be found again.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson, described the sword in his poem “Morte d’Arthur”, later written as “The Passing of Arthur”, one of the Idylls of the king.

“There drew he forth the brand Excalibur,

And o’er him, drawing it, the winter moon,

Brightening the skirts of a long cloud, ran forth

And sparkled keen with frost against the hilt:

For all the haft twinkled with diamond sparks,

Myriads of topaz-lights, and jacinth-work

Of subtlest jewelry.”

Crazy Weekend

The Data Center where my site is hosted had some issues over the weekend and my site was down. They finally resolved the issue this afternoon. Thank Goodness!

A vacation to Hawaii sounds great right about now. Laying on the beach, listening to the surf, daydreaming, and a soft tropical breeze blowing through my hair.

I use to live in Hawaii and there are times when I really miss it. Several years ago a friend of mine brought me a plumeria lei from Hawaii. I was so touched by the gesture, I felt inspired to paint a portrait of a woman wearing a plumeria lei.

Memories Of Hawaii – Combined Media – 9 X 10 inches