Gli alberi di una bambina #paint52
Trees of a little girl is the translation of the title. When I was three and a half years old I moved from New Jersey City, where my father was stationed at Fort Monmouth, to Adak, Alaska, part of the chain of the Aleutian Islands. To say that we were living in a remote area was an understatement. I don't remember taking the train across the United States to get there, but I do remember the boat trip through ice and snow and having my father, who left prior to us, pick me up in a jeep at night wearing a parka with a hood trimmed with fur. He then drove us to our quonset hut, where we lived for the next 6 months waiting for our barrack to be built. I felt like an Eskimo living in this hut. All of this was quite magical for me.
Adak didn't have much on the island. There were other families that lived there, all had parents in the service, mostly Army and Navy, living in barracks. The land was flat, nothing in site for miles, but in other areas were purple majestic mountains. I would love to go to my favorite hill near my home called Captain Hill and pick wild flowers. I never felt so free. The island also had a few Totem poles here and there, and plenty of tundra, but no trees. I was too young to remember trees, so I didn't miss them much. It was only when I returned to California at 5 years old, did I fall in love with trees. I couldn't get enough of them. I would stare out the window as we drove through Northern California, admiring my favorite tree, the Oak. I remember saying to myself, "some day I am going to live in the country with those beautiful Oak trees."
When I was in Kindergarten I was always trying to paint trees. I found them so wonderful and mysterious, I felt ther love and their strength. I would go outside and study them and then return to paint with poster paint. Somehow, they never quite looked like the vision I was trying to portray. Now I find myself going back to the childhood memories and I still have the same love for trees. And guess what? I did get my dream. I do live in the country and I do have a view of a thousand trees. I think I may explore my love of trees more and paint what I feel about them not necessarily what they look like.
This is my seventeenth painting toward my #paint52 challenge. It measures 24 X 36, mixed media, acrylic and oil on canvas, price $2160. I appreciate you all for visiting and following my challenge, thank you so much and if you leave a comment that's even better.
Lover's Leaf #paint52
I have the most beautiful Chinese Maple in front of my house. Early spring weather has brought it into full bloom already. It’s magnificent and as usual I attempted to see if I could express its beauty. Sometimes that’s the problem with painting nature. It’s almost impossible to make it as beautiful. In fact, my teacher once said; if you can’t improve it then don’t change it. Ha, that sounds like the judges talking to the contestants on American Idol. They always think they can make it better than the original creator. Yet, when I create landscape paintings, I just wish I could give you a piece of what I see, a morsel of God, the passion, the brilliance, the colors.
This is my 16th painting for my #paint52 challenge. The painting measures 24" X 36" Atelier Interactive acrylic on a museum wrapped canvas (Framing isn't needed). Available for purchase $2160. Thanks so much for visiting.
Twitter Followers #paint52
I was enticed to paint this painting reflecting the common people, people in our everyday life, such a variety, all unique and distinct. But there was also something "sheepish" about how they were marching all in a row, making sure they kept their appropriate space from the person in front or behind. Some seemed conscious, while others were definitely not present. They almost seemed to be marching, and marching, where? Where are they going? Are we caught following others, sometimes forgetting our own journey or perhaps following others dreams not our own? Or just caught in our daily life routines, one day the same as the next, just out of habit. Can we wake up and enjoy our surroundings?
This is painting thirteen of my #paint52 Challenge and another painting for my San Francisco series. "Twitter Followers" measures 24" X 48", oil on linen.
Thanks again for all your support following my challenge and especially when you leave a comment. I so appreciate it.
Do You Dare?
Have ever wondered where your painting was going? I have put myself in such an odd situation with this painting and a lot of firsts. So many that I didn’t know where or what was going to happen next. First of all, painting a red under-painting, with green being the dominat color, created a very narrow bridge for me to walk on. That’s what happens when you take risks. I guess a risk is a risk when you don’t know what is going to happen. Trusting or maybe best of all having no attachment to the outcome is a better choice. This gives me the freedom to not have it turn out or be “right”. My process in this painting is one stroke at a time and the relationship to the last stroke or it’s surroundings. I believe I will reach a point where I won’t be lead but will lead, but right now I have to follow. As my son Blake would say at the end of every movie “to be continued”.
Underneath #paint52
I know you must be wondering, why the name "Underneath" and how does it relate to this painting? Well, color is my language. It speaks in layers, vibrancy, tones, subtleties and more. Color reflects my mood, passion, feelings and desires. It is limitless in regards to what color expresses for me. So as the many layers of color and the color selection and well as the movement in the painting, it tells me subliminaly what is going on "underneath" the surface. I also wonder if the colors I chose correlate to the chakras in my body. It tells me what energies I should notice, as well as a way I need to balance and release. Wassily Kandinsky elaborated on color in his book "Concerning the Spiritual in Art" He talked about how certain colors can represent certain instruments, as well as a reflection of our soul.
When I painted this painting yesterday, I felt such a need to lay down color, I know that it was necessary for my well-being and expression to pull what was underneath the layers of my body, mind and soul, and transform it. Color becomes the alchemy from my spirit to the physical world.
This is my twelfth painting of my #paint52 challenge to paint 52 paintings this year. The painting measures 6-3/4" X 10", Atelier Acrylic on velum and is also for sale for $150.00, contact me if you are interested. SOLD Your support has been wonderful and I am so grateful, thank you!