change, choice and peace of mind...

No, this isn't about a marriage proposal.
it's about saying YES to life itself.
Saying yes to making art part time
instead of full time.

Saying yes to a 15 minute art session
instead of a 2 hour one.

Saying yes to knowing that art will always be with me,
regardless of what i do from 9 to 5. :-)


As many of you already know, a few months ago,
i made the decision to look for work outside the home.

The whole business of making a living with art
became very disheartening to me.
I seemed to be struggling all the time
to make ends meet.

When the struggle overshadows the joy -
it's time for a change.


When i lost my job unexpectedly almost 10 years ago now
and made the decision to become an entrepreneur,
i had no idea what it meant,
or where it would lead
or how i would do.

But i knew one thing.

i would give it a damn good shot
and when it no longer worked for me,
i would steer in a different direction.

Here we are, 10 years later,

and i am steering towards a new path.

I have made countless creative connections,

i've worked with tons of wonderful (and not so wonderful) clients ;-)

and i have learned more about myself

that i ever thought possible.

Oh, and i've become more brave. :-)

Too often, we say no to change.

We don't trust ourselves enough
to be able to handle whatever comes our way.

We want to keep things the same,

predictable,

safe,

protected from the possibility of maybe failing...

of maybe losing control...

of maybe making a mistake...

of maybe being judged by others.

I've failed at many things.

i'm quite ok with this. 

i think as a society,
we need to worry less about what others think
and listen to our own hearts for a change.
Be kinder to ourselves.

Viktor Frankl -

a man i admire, for so many reasons...

Everything can be taken from a man but one thing:

the last of human freedoms - to choose one's attitude

in any given set of circumstances,

to choose one's own way.

- Viktor Frankl

art, good music and kind people make me happy

hi peeps.

it's time for faces! :-)

a tiny acrylic and marker on paper (12 x 12 cm)

There's a video at the end of this post.

It's what i was listening to while i painted last night...

the whole CD, not just the one song. :-)

and then there's this woman... 

i love Jane Goodall, and what she's done with her life.

My first ever blog post was a little watercolor of Jane and a friend...

you can see it here.

I was a woman of few words when i first began blogging.

Now i won't shut up. 

(giggle...)

I had a hard time with this one...

i seem to have made her look much older

- something i'm not so sure she would like.

but it is what it is. 
Sometimes there's a likeness,
and sometimes less.

 I certainly tried to give her compassionate eyes.
Whenever i see her on tv, that's always what i notice about her first.
Those peaceful, loving, compassionate eyes.

You can see a lot in a person's eyes.

I then took time to finish this one too -

just added the word and a few magical dots. 

I kinda like it.

I hope you all know how much i appreciate

your kind comments.

The thing that makes me the happiest

is knowing that sometimes,

I may actually inspire someone out there

to make art

or write poetry

or take a walk outside

or listen to music

or bake a cake

or notice the moon

or write a song...

or just be more appreciative of something.

Anything.

That makes me happy.

Because i believe these are the things

that give life meaning -

and there are too many of us out there

waiting until we retire to find meaning in our lives.

hugs to all of you...

xox

hope you like the song

blowing bubbles with Gerhard Richter and Dar Willliams

hi everyone!

There is no better way for me to spend an evening

than by painting.

Even when things don't go so well...

(acrylic on small canvas, 6" x 6")

The colors in these pics are way too yellow,

but i'm posting anyway.

I wanted to show how sometimes,

the process doesn't always go so smoothly.

When i was at this stage (above),

i thought the arm was too extended,

and i didn't like the face

so i painted over it.

Then i thought she was leaning forward too much,
and i hated the neck.

fixing or changing things in a painting
is really not that difficult.

You can see where i painted over the face

and the arm again...

At first, it may look messy

but in time, it's all "fix-able"!

If you're not comfortable with something, change it.

It's a painting - not brain surgery. ;-)

Finally coming together for me here...

this is closer to the actual color 
(taken by the window this morning)
although in reality, it's more turquoise than blue.

i love blowing bubbles...

In the springtime, i sit on the front porch
and blow bubbles. I do.

Who said blowing bubbles was uncool after a certain age?

After i painted this, i watched this film
on Gerhard Richter.

I wasn't sure i would like it at first -
to watch a man put paint to a canvas
and then use a squeegee to go over it.

But it's about far more than that...
He is about far more than that.

He can paint things like this:

and like this...

but he chooses to paint this...(below)

because this has more meaning to him

at this time in his life.

It's not about what sells

or what the public expects from him.

it's about what he feels.

This is what fascinates me.

Now that he has the choice

to paint what he wants

he chooses this.

And speaking of feeling,

I'll end with a little video of a song

that i love as much today as i did 10 years ago...

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead.

Thanks for being here...

xox

universal pain

If you reveal your secrets to the wind,

you should not blame the wind

for revealing them to the trees.

KHALIL GIBRAN

I painted this last night.

i had just finished watching a documentary about a family in Latvia

who had a history of incest 

and this one woman who was trying to free herself

from such heavy chains on her heart.

My heart went out to her and her two children...

born of her own brother.

Family secrets.

I just thought about how the pain must be the same

for anyone who is abused -

whether you are in Russia or the US

or France or China or Canada.

The feeling must be the same.

Just as love is universal, so must be pain.

My current books on the go.

Someone asked me the other day

what i was reading.

I was never one to read just one book at a time.

I usually have several books on the go,

and the book i pick up depends on my mood at the time.

Some books are heavy on the head, some are lighter.

If a book is really good, I'll read it faster than the others.

Some books i prefer reading in the morning,

and some easier reads are kept for the evenings.

I sometimes feel like i'm trying to learn

as much stuff as i can while i'm here...

i know, it's ridiculous, right?

but it's who i am.

And truth be told, i wouldn't be who i am today

if it were not for all the books i've read.

Books not only have the ability

to teach us about the world,

but they also teach us about ourselves.

what we like and don't like.

what makes us tick.

what we love and what we learn to tolerate.

what we are willing to stand for.

the reasons we believe what we believe.

What frustrates the hell out of us.

(right now, for me, it's all the hype about the damn smoke

coming out of the Sistine chapel chimney!)

I for one, do not care who they elect pope.

There. I said it.

I'm still convinced that if most catholics knew

about the history of catholic religion,

they would be fewer in numbers.

Maybe when they begin to respect women,

and children

and gays

and scientists

and atheists...

i'll change my mind.

Who knows.

Miracles can happen. 

;-)

The well has dried up. Go figure.

hi everyone.

My, how time flies...

Can't believe it's been a week since i last posted!

(watercolor and micron pen on paper)
There's been very little creativity in my world lately.
I've hit a wall.
A dry spell.

I could always push myself and post something anyway,
but it would most likely bore the hell out of everyone,
and i don't want to do that.

I don't want to be boring.

Plus, I'm not in the practice of pushing - 
myself or others.

Things always get done eventually.

There's enough pressure in the world already.

Living a creative life is an ebb and flow.

Like the tides.

As much as art is an obsession for me,
there is still a need to shut down now and then
and pull away from the paints and pens.

Recharge.

Refill myself.

Breathe in the good,
breathe out the bad. 

Walk on the frozen beach.

Read poetry instead of twitter.

Look at the moon and stars in the night sky.

 (art junk table, piling up)

I've intentionally pulled myself away lately
from social media - something that feels
more right to me with each passing day.

I've got very little art for you,
but i've gathered a few little inspiring videos.
At least i thought they were inspiring.

I hope you like them.

Chuck Close - an american artist who sees through different eyes.

And this - monks making sand mandalas...

So beautiful -

a wonderful lesson in patience

and the impermanence of everything.

including us.

And this. 

How could one not be inspired by this?

A reminder that art is everywhere

and one vision can change lives.

And this one always makes me smile...

so cool.

Thanks for visiting here.

Wishing you a green light kinda day. 

xox

(Linking this to Paint Party Friday, Create Every Day,

Artists in Blogland and Mandarin Orange Monday!)

always toward the light

hey people!

i had so much fun doing this collage earlier today.

Sometimes i think art is an escape from reality,
and other times, i think of it as moving towards
something bigger than me
rather than away from reality.

I guess it means different things to different people

but don't you love it when things just come together

and it all feels right?

god knows it doesn't always feel right.

but today was a good day.

i even decided she would wear cowboy boots with tiny spurs.

You can't see them much, but they're there.

it's all in the details... (giggle)

and then a few little words.

I read somewhere that all living beings

gravitate toward the light...

Well - except mushrooms i guess...

and the grumpy old guy downtown. :-)

Just a quick note to all of you...

I've had to limit commenting on blogs lately,

only because i was spending more time on-line

than actually creating something.

Making art.

This damn social media can quickly eat up 

a lot of hours in the day

and I don't want to become a zombie

in order to be social

with the whole fucking world.

Besides - i don't want to be social with everyone.

Only with those of you who are here with me. :-)

So i just wanted you all to know that even if

i comment a little less on your posts lately,

i'm still reading them.

I'm still laughing

and sighing

and admiring

and oooo-ing and aaaaah-ing

So keep creating and posting, ok?

xox

Linking this to Illustration Friday!