Sacred Moments
Finding meaningful moments as we hurry along in life, distracted and focused on a hundred different things is difficult.
It is when we stop to notice the love and beauty all around us, that our perceptions shift and change. Only then, do we become fully present in the moment, alive, and aware of the sacred in our lives.
Today I grabbed my camera and decided to take some photos. I played around with some of my favorite gemstones, crystals, journal, and some fabric.
In the process of arranging these objects, I felt a sense of peace and stillness wrap itself around me. This is the shot I ended up with.
Everyday is full of sacred moments waiting to be experienced.
Sacred Moments (C) 2008
“The secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life, and in elevating them to art”. -John Ruskin
The Mask of Gaia
Creating paintings of masks has been a life long passion for me. I also like making masks out of paper mache, plaster, ceramics, etc…
I have a series of mask paintings I have been working on for several months. Below is one that is almost finished.
The Mask Of Gaia (C) 2008
“The hypothesis of Gaia is the idea that we may have discovered a living being bigger, more ancient, and more complex than anything from our wildest dreams. That being, called Gaia, is the earth.” James Lovelock
Lunch Break
I visited Jan Worden’s site this morning and got all fired up about creating a mono print. I can’t wait to get started.
One of my dearest friends Margie, taught me how to make one after we had visited a small gallery featuring some of her mono prints.
I was very impressed with the whole process. She used found objects like coke bottle caps, twine, feathers, anything she thought was interesting.
Margie would use these to create images in the ink or paint, and continue with this process until she was satisfied, then make a print. The whole experience was so magical, I could sit and watch her for hours.
Just finished with lunch and now I have some time to make a mono print. This is going to be so much fun! I have never made one using acrylic paint.
Our Lunch Today Pizza & Salad
Shaylee Update
Worked several hours on the Shaylee painting today. It takes me anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months to finish a painting, depending on the size, detail involved, and time available.
The size of this painting is 11 x 14″. You are viewing only the head and shoulders portion of the painting.
Shaylee (C) 2008
“Happiness… it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort”.
Vincent Van Gogh
Corel Painter IX.5
I use Corel Painter 7 and IX.5 along with a Wacom pressure sensitive tablet when creating my digital paintings. My first Metacreations Painter 6.0 was a Christmas gift from my husband.
He handed me a pretty packaged paint bucket and said Merry Christmas! When I learned it was a digital painting program, I was skeptical that I would actually use it.
I have been hooked ever since. I love it! I can paint to my hearts content, no mess, no cleanup, and no chemicals. Best of all, I have an endless supply of canvases.
The only drawback is a steep learning curve, I finally had to take some classes to be able to really work with it. Other than that it’s been a great journey.
Below is a digital work in progress. First I made a sketch, then scanned it and moved it into Painter. I began developing the fairy woman’s face, hair and the background.
This is a rough first draft of the painting, and I decided to call it Shaylee. A Celtic/Gaelic word meaning fairy princess of the field.
Shaylee (c) 2008
“Gay are the hills with song: earth’s faery children leave,
More dim abodes to roam the primrose – hearted eve.
A. E.
Calla Lily
Today has been cold and dreary , but I did manage to work on some of my paintings. When the weather is like this I just want to crawl under a nice warm blanket with a good book.
When I stepped out earlier for some fresh air there was a light drizzle, and I noticed our calla lilies were looking kind of sad. They are usually blooming by now.
Well it’s time to get back to work. A nice cup of chai tea should lift my spirits.
Calla Lily ” The muse of artists for centuries”
“Earth laughs in flowers” Ralph Waldo Emerson
Acrylic Play Date
Today I decided to play around with some gesso, tissue and rice paper on watercolor paper. The first thing I did was crumble up some of the tissue and rice paper, then tore some of it into smaller pieces.
After I selected the size of watercolor paper I wanted, I spooned some gesso out onto it, spreading it out with a spreader. It took only a few hours to dry this morning.
Next I sketched out the angel, spiral, etc. Then started painting with watercolor and fluid acrylics, laying in some color. The painting needs a lot more work before I develop the angel and spiral, but I was tired and decided to finish later.
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Angel at Play (c) 2008
Watercolor, Acrylic/Mixed Media
“In order for my work to evolve, I become involved in playfulness and take the opportunity to look at the ‘what- ifs.’ Whatever the result, it expands my vision by letting go of who I think I am and discovering the spirit within.” Jean Deemer
Saturday SketchCrawl
Saturday’s around here are always busy and this one was no exception. Today was world wide “sketch crawl” day and my husband sponsored one in our area. It’s always great fun but due to still recovering from the flu, I stayed home.
Instead I cleaned off my computer work area. It really needed it! Of course, a nice clean area just begs for some kind of creative activity. Resistance is futile! I just had to sit down and do a quick sketch in my new clean area.
Above is my moleskin journal and watercolor travel set. I also used watercolor pencils as well.
My computer work space clean and ready to go!
Working in Acrylic
Learning to paint with acrylics has been an interesting journey, and certainly very challenging for someone used to working with oils. I painted with oils for many years and stopped because of allergies.
The acrylic/ mixed medium painting I am currently working on right now is a work in progress.
I sometimes like to alternate between paintings and other projects, because it gives me a chance to process the work, and if I feel stuck for any reason then I take some time off. When I return, I’m refreshed and ready to go!
Below is the latest acrylic painting I am working on. All images are copyrighted.
Scarab Paper Mosaic
Working on a paper mosaic scarab. I began cutting many tiny little pieces of paper for the body, wings, and the sun. I had a great time, although it was a bit messy. I am already dreaming up more projects using this technique. Below is a photo of this work in progress. After it dries I will begin work on the next process.
