Fall Equinox

Welcome to the September of my life. I am  just past the fall equinox and instead of a great sadness that the day is over, I have to stop and revel in my ability to experience the beauty of life and all its treasures

Quickie Watercolor Today

 

Zoey and the Orcas

Zoey and the Orcas

Seeking solitude after a rough day Zoey had dragged her boat out to glide in smooth waters of the Puget Sound. Hahaha the gods had laughed at her. Instead of the quiet, she found herself immersed in sensory overload an unexpected, glorious display of Orcas. She noticed the bold contrast of their smooth skin, their camaraderie, the splash and the pure joy of flying through the air for precious seconds knowing that their immensity would safely return them to the comfort of water.  She wondered if they were prancing just for her. Or if she been invited to share in one of life’s wonders?  Yes yes yes. She too could believe that she was part of life’s wonder. It wasn’t solitude she was craving but a feeling of belonging.….If only for an instant.

It reminded her of childhood when she would  leap  over the  wet grass in her back yard.

Life and its fight against entropy.

In the history of our universe, entropy has been the prevailing force. But LIFE, well life is the counter to entropy. Life has found a way to go from Chaos to Good Orderly Direction. This collage is an attempt to illustrate the brilliance of LIFE. 

 

Chicks in their nest

 

Bird Story

 

Reconnaissance 

Parley

Riding out the storm

Les Etoiles

Douglas Fir next to an old cabin

 

Barred Owl

Painted the Owl with gouache, cut it out and pasted it over a gouache background. It's so to paint around an object so I thought collage would be a better way to go. Plus I got to try a few different backgrounds. Collage keeps it interesting for me. 
 

Striding with the tides

Back and forth go the tides.
The wet sand greets six webbed toes
It’s like a dance.

Haiku to Calvin and Hobbes

Hair cut and style

Even the famous need to sit

We can but imagine

1962 An Adventure in France

Link to the books blog if you don't want to but the book.  So no, you don’t have to buy the book, but it would be more fun to read on paper. My real hope is that you become inspired to write a little of your own memoir as it was one of the most satisfying is things I have ever done

Last summer by brother Mark challenged me to I write and illustrate a story about our family trip to France in 1962 which was the summer I turned 5 years old. He was only 3 years old that summer so I was safe knowing my memories were going to trump his! Plus we had a lot of photos to help jog my memory. I thought it would take me about a month to complete.  Well 8- months later, I am finally pleased to announce the book is complete and in two languages thanks to my cousin Henri who translated it into French. It is just 44 pages long and available on Amazon, here is the link. Link to buy the book. 

The Scotland Countryside

 

New tenants

Sarah took the trail by the old stone wall which was a nice short cut to the Olmsted farmhouse who housed three new tenants, Kathryn and William and baby Kevin. Sara’s backpack bulged with goodies. She hoped the freshly baked bread, sausage and apples would make a good welcome gift. It had been a while since she’d held a baby and so her arms were itching for a cuddle.

Storm Watching

 

Sailing Home

 

Grid art

 

Mist and Snow

I've been working on misty fog in the mountains using Paynes gray and arches paper. The birds were added on procreate. 

Here I took the same painting and added a ski scene instead using procreate. I am enjoying mixing the two mediums.

This one is 100%  Paynes gray water color  and arches paper. What I don't like is the way that the grid separates us from the birds. But perhaps if it is accompanied by a story of an old man looking out his cabin window it would work. 

This one is 100%  Paynes gray water color  and arches paper.  I added a series of skiers to suggest a blustery ski day. 

I hope to do a few more. But this time pay attention to the shadows, sun direction and story line. 

 

Gridtastik

This was fun on so many levels. I used oil pastels to fill a page with color and then cut up squares, circles and bits of paper. The papers were rearrange to form this collage. 

Kenny Barron at Jazz Alley tonight

 At Jazz Alley last night listening to great music. I had to respond with pen and ink. It was dark so I did it blind while responding to the music.

Cabaret

 

Alex and I decided to try our hands at dancing last year.  

This was our first time on stage. It was a riot near wracking fun but I would do it all over again!

Here we are in rehearsal. 

A value study.

My French cousin Lucie took this photo for me while on vacation during the holidays. I tried to reproduce it as simply as possible. It was really flat so I set about adding a little shading and texture. It was fun to experiment. I mixed 8 different shades of gray ahead of time and then added the donkey at the end. My hope was to have the white trees a focal point.  

 

Abstract painting with watercolor today

 

A walk in the woods

Practice makes better, not perfect. But I am in the right direction as so that feels good. These are mostly watercolors but I ended with some gouache to help place light in the dark areas.  I have been painting two at a time while attempting to make the same painting. But a you can see, no two are alike. Which do you like better? One or two. 

 

The whole is greater

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Aristotle

 I love this quote. It has so many different meanings. This morning I related it to the making of art. We take bits and piece of materials. And play with all the parts in a unique way hoping to form a whole. 

Winter wonderland's one and two