Anyone who stands for freedom is on my pedestal

For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains,

but to live in a way that respects and enhances

the freedom of others.

Nelson Mandela

It's portrait time again...

The weather was fine last night.

Far more comfortable for an evening of painting.

First block out the light and dark colors...

I usually use a bigger brush (this one) at this stage and a smaller one

for the details in the end...

can't have Nelson Mandela without strong colors...

strong colors for a strong man.

And there you have it.

I guess i could have made more of an effort to hide those words

"CAMPFIRE SONG" in his hair.  ;-)

Truth be told - i never noticed them much

until i was done. 

Several years ago, I read his book "LONG WALK TO FREEDOM"

and it reminded me of how so many of us take our own freedom for granted.

a lovely signature, wouldn't you say?

While i am a huge advocate of "knowing thyself"...

i also believe we make the world a better place

when we open our hearts to others,

and understand that there is room for everyone.

I still don't understand what most wars are about.

I suspect i never will.

Call me naive...

So here's the book i'm currently reading and loving...

You can often tell the character of a person

by the words he (or she) writes... especially if they are personal letters.

This is a book of letters Vincent wrote to his brother and friend, Theo, and

your love of the man grows with each page read.

His words speak to me of kindness and struggle and generosity and loneliness... and such heart.

Here are 3 passages that i found beautiful:

Oh, if only every artist had something to live on,

and to work on, but as that is not so,

i want to produce, to produce a lot and with a

consuming drive. And perhaps the time will come

when we can extend our business and be

more help to others.

*****

Come now, isn't it almost an actual religion

which these simple Japanese teach us,

who live in nature as though they themselves

were flowers?

*****

...you cannot study Japanese art, it seems to me,

without becoming much gayer and happier,

and we must return to nature in spite of

our education and our work in a world of convention.

*****

Beautiful, yes?

Being an artist sometimes means

feeling out of place in the world.

It's important for us as artists

to see the value in what we do.

To feel good about why we do it.

Too many of us still try to justify why we create,

or we downplay it as "just a hobby".

We create because we must.

Van Gogh created because he needed to.

Because it made sense of what he was feeling at the time.

His words remind me that there is room for everyone,

that many of us face the same struggles (whether in 1850 or 2012),

and his writings make me feel at home again.

Thank you all for visiting.

xox