SEEMS like every winter we get the most snow in March and April...and even into May and June on occasion! I've lived in Summit County for 30 some odd years now, and EVERY year I make the comment, "I don't remember it lasting this long"! For the last few days the weather gods have been blasting us with the longed for fluffies that diehard skiers refer to as "pow pow". The days when the powder is so deep that we say you need a snorkel to breathe! I must admit it has been MANY years since I have had the desire to go snorkeling in snow...I'd rather paint it! Enjoy your day...see you tomorrow, who knows where we'll be going together!
March 20th...the spring equinox...the first day of spring, joyous springtime ...SOMEWHERE! Those of us that live at 9,000 ft above sea level won't see spring till Father's Day...if we're lucky! At my daughter's home in Portland, OR. the trees and spring flowers are already blooming. We have nothing green here except evergreen trees, so today I painted from a photo I took last summer at the Alpine Gardens in Breckenridge. Spring will come again and we will be treated to a bounty of wild flowers in the mountain valleys. Until then, I need to either be content with our white landscape ...or go somewhere else. Till we meet again tomorrow... and HAPPY SPRING, wherever you are!
My eyes flapped open at 6:30 this morning and the view from our bedroom window was stunning. The sky was alive! It was breathtaking as the colors produced by the emerging sun bounced color on the clouds and the snow covered mountains. The mountain on the right is called Mt. Royal and is the beginning of the Ten Mile Range that extends to Breckenridge and beyond. I love the little red A-frame in the front. There was a time, in the 70's, that an A-frame was THE mountain home to build. Not many left!
In the springtime of 2003 one of my dreams finally came true and I traveled to Italy to attend a 2 week workshop at the La Romita School of Art in Terni, Umbria. I fell in love with Italy. The friendly people, the food, the hill towns and architecture. We had spent the day in the little town of Spoleto and I spotted this beautiful and peaceful Monastery form the window of the bus. The light was breathtaking. I got to spend 2 glorious weeks exploring the country with my childhood girlfriend, Linnea, and another 2 weeks studying art. When I got home I informed my loving husband that, "If you kick the bucket first you are going to have to visit me in my dreams in Italy...I'm selling everything and moving there!" Enjoy! ADOPTED
It was a white out blizzard this morning so I decided to set up a still life, in the studio, to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. I braved the storm to pick up a cabbage and scrounged around the house for green things! I thought about putting in a can of Guinness...but thought I would save that for later :) St. Paddy's Day is famous for giving everyone the excuse to over imbibe...the thought brought back an old favorite song of long ago. Ahem...99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer. etc. I have made up my own lyrics. 99 paintings to hang on the wall, 99 paintings to hang...take one down and pass it around..98 paintings to hang on the wall. You get the idea :) ADOPTED Well, only 97 to go! Keep on sing'n! ...and I'll see you tomorrow.
Day two out of 100!...a snowy cold day here in Summit County so I'm taking you to the faraway Skeleton Coast of Namibia Africa! In 2003 I was part of a group of 7 intrepid explorers that crossed the Namib desert, (by GPS only, I might add!), into the closed part of the Western coast of Namibia. There we saw crushed red garnet sand beaches, beaches of nothing but agates and shelves of jasper that glowed under the waves...we also encountered some of the shipwrecks that the Skeleton Coast is famous for. It was the adventure of a lifetime with experiences and sights that changed this little Colorado "girl" forever. It seems it is time for this sailor to pull his nets in :) We were there for 5 weeks, so you will, more than likely, see more art from this amazing trip. I've also posted a pic of my pallette at the end of this paintings session for the "Curious George's" in the audience...It was a fun day!
...AND SO IT BEGINS! I decided to paint in my "back yard", en plein air. The method of painting that I'll be using to paint is also referred to as "alla prima "..or all at one time. Lesson over:) Fabulous day, scrambled down the muddy river bank to paint next to the water. I was always fond of making mud pies as a child, guess I haven't lost that "desire" :) It started out a clear day with crystal clear skies, but by the time I set up my easel the skies had clouded up! so rethinking the painting it became quieter to reflect the atmosphere change. There will be plenty more brilliant blue skies to capture another day! My wonderful husband, Bill, was my lovely assistant and journeyed down later to capture the moment. Well, here we go...day one down. ENJOY..
I'm getting my gear together, making sure I've packed everything ,and am heading to the great outdoors for today's "Little Gem"painting. I'm going to be painting "en plein air", a genre of painting started by the Barbizon school of painters and made famous by the Impressionist movement. It means, "executing a painting out of doors that represents a direct response to the scene or subject in front of the artist.", to directly capture the effect of light. It will get posted today, on the "paintings gallery" page ,after I return and get it photographed and cataloged. CATCH YOU LATER!
Funny how I can remember everything, (well mostly everything...), that transpires on the day that I paint from life. This 9x12 watercolor painting, "Jasmin's Wagon" was painted on a sultry day spent with family in Hobart, Tasmania. Family and friends and competitive tennis on the family court. USA vs. Australia. Don't remember who won, but remember the joyous feelings of celebration. Nicky, my sister Joyce and I, sat in the shade, out of the line of fire ,and whiled away the day painting, sharing stories... and "imbibing" :-) When I look at the painting again, even years later, the memory of that day always reveals itself. I'm looking forward to this new journey of discovery and new memories and I'm glad to have you sharing it with me. Ciao for now...here's to the start of tomorrow's memories in the making!
I woke up in the middle of the night with the crazy thought..."you need to paint a 5x7 oil painting every day for the next 100 days". WOW, really glad I wrote that one down, it didn't seem so crazy in the light of day!
Just like anything you do for a living the process sometimes gets stale and needs to be kickstarted. I'm in that place and I KNOW that my project is just what I need to get a fresh prospective.
During the next 100 days I'm planning on testing my endurance #1 and pushing hard on my own self induced boundaries...step out of the box I'm already out of :)
Every day I plan on painting something in a new way. One day it might be a still life, the next one from a photograph that I've taken, the next one might be a plein air painting or from my imagination. The possibilities are endless.