how to avoid assholes, or avoid becoming one

Hello out there...

I have little time in the evenings lately,

so i did this little painting sketch this morning.

I'll bet the vibe would be different

if i painted in the morning rather than the evening.

When are you most creative? Morning or night?

I have this perfect little routine going...

Walk in the morning, work in the day, paint and read in the evenings.

I'm not usually one for routine, 
but if it ain't broken, don't fix it, right? ;-)

It works for me, so i'll just keep movin' on...

I didn't have anything in mind when i began this. Obviously.

As i get older, I am getting much more picky about
how i choose to spend my time
and who i choose to spend it with.

There are a lot of good people in this world,
but we all know there are still way too many assholes. ;-)

The key to a happy life is limiting your time with the negatives,
and maximizing your time with the good stuff and the good people.

(You're welcome)

I also have a few other keys to happiness:

- avoiding victims (the ones who bring you down in 5 minutes flat)

- watching very little tv

- walking on the beach

- avoiding those who don't believe in dreams (and who try to crush yours)

- avoiding negatives. In people and in math. ;-)

- making art as often as i can

- listening

- good wine and good coffee

- caring very little about what others think of me

- trusting my own voice for a change and drowning out the rest.

- everything in moderation. Yes, everything. 

I believe my bullshit radar is getting
really honed and precise with age.

I'm just saying... ;-)

Years ago, i never would have painted something like this
and posted it for the world to see.

Well, ok, maybe there's only a hundred of you, but still.

I never would have dared to put myself out there,
for fear of being judged. For fear of not being good enough.
For fear, for fear, for fear...

And yet, what if i AM judged by someone out there?
What if i'm not the best?
How does this really change my life?
How does this actually matter?

It doesn't.

What matters, is how I feel about what i'm doing.

If you can make sense of it - someone else will too.

Unless you're a lunatic. 

In which case, it'll only make sense
to other lunatics. ;-)

But still - it'll make sense to someone!

I'm grateful that we all share this space together

and feed off one another in creativity and connection.

That's what it's all about, isn't it?

xoxo

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

a blast from the past...

hello everyone.

I thought i'd share a few things with you 

from my younger college student days.

I began the day today with intentions of cleaning the studio.

It never takes me long to get distracted

whenever there's cleaning involved. ;-)

Most of these were done in 1990.

I like this one. Done with tissue paper and ink.

The sad thing is, i can't remember doing it,

nor most of the other drawings...

Looking back at old artwork or writings

always helps me see the progression of my work



I loved drawing detail, and often found inspiration in nature...

 

or in an old cloth...

quick sketches to get the basic lines...

see how little is needed to express a feeling?

another sketch of my bag...

a wise man... 

made obvious by the beard, the glasses

and the size of the book he's reading. (wink wink)

and moi - done in front of a mirror, in Dec 1990. Pencil and charcoal.

And last but not least, my coffee. 

The real thing, not a drawing. ;-)

There's nothing like a nice, slow Saturday.

Wishing you all a great weekend

and enough time to do whatever makes

your little heart happy.

Remember - it's the little things that matter most.

xox