Water

I hope everyone had a wonderful spring break last week!  We took our son to Legoland and the Aquarium for the first time.  He had a blast but I really think he liked the Aquarium the most.  I hope everyone also has a lovely week in preparation for Easter this Sunday.  It is such a special time for us as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus!  Have a joyful time with your families.

My husband informed me yesterday that today is World Water Day.  A day to remind others that not everyone has fresh and clean drinking water.  This is something that I am thankful for as I do simple tasks as brushing my teeth or washing my hands.  We are a rich nation and I hope that we can solve the lack of clean water for the world.

Since we are talking about water, I was going to share some images I found of Japanese watercolor paintings.  If you are an avid reader, you know I am no expert on watercolor.  I love it, it's beautiful but I am not good at using watercolors.  It takes a lot of control over your medium and I am just not good at it, simple as that.  Even if I am not good at something, does not mean I can not enjoy it and admire those who are.  My sister has loved Japanese anime since high school.  So every once in awhile we would find ourselves admiring Japanese art together.  So, here are a few images I just happened to find:

I would also like to take the time to mention Brussels today.  My prayers and thoughts are with the families and friends of those who were hurt or killed in the cruel attacks that happened there today.

Publication

Happy Spring Break everyone!!! I hope everyone is having a great time with family this week.  The weather looks good enough for everyone to enjoy outdoor fun.  It is a little windy here today so, we are taking a break from the outdoor activities.  It is a good thing too, we have been going outside and playing and going on walks so much, an indoor movie is just what we need today.  Happy Spring Break friends and Happy St. Patrick's Day on Thursday.  I am Irish and we do not take St. Patrick's Day lightly in my family.  Growing up, we had parties and corned beef and cabbage every year so, of course, we had some corned beef and cabbage this year.  We had it early this year so we could share with friends because what is corned beef and cabbage without sharing it with friends.

Today, I have a few things to share with you, so hold on to your hats.

An important part of being an artist is getting your work out there.  Some artist use online sources (me), galleries (I tried it once), and publication (I have done that too).  Grant it, I'm not the most successful at any of these things BUT I have tried them and so should you.  In high school, I entered a local art contest.  The contest was to illustrate a lullaby.  I chose "Indian Lullaby".  I had never heard it before but the lyrics were very visual, perfect for a painting.  Here are the lyrics:

Indian Lullaby

Bed is too hard for my tiredness.

Give me a hill soft with leaves.

Tuck a cloud up under my chin,

Lord, blow the moon out, please.

Rock me to sleep in a cradle of dreams.

Sing me a lullaby of leaves.

Tuck a cloud up under my chin,

Lord, blow the moon out, please.

Isn't that just beautiful?  So, I painted what I saw as I read the lullaby.  Let me first tell you what was going through my head during this time.  I was busy with another contest that I wanted to win so much more, so I worked harder on another painting.  The lullaby painting I popped out quickly and did not give a whole lot of thought to it.  I am not trying to toot my own horn, I'm just saying that sometimes the things you pay the least attention to, become the most beautiful and noticed artwork.  Well, my painting got noticed.  I won second place, prize money, and a publication in a book of lullabies. I can not find where you can buy the book currently but here is a picture of the book and my painting inside it:

So, I am a published painter.  But, college came along and another opportunity presented itself for me to be published again.  I was currently working with the Anthropology department cleaning, labeling, and cataloging artifacts.  The school year ended but I needed a summer job.  My boss knowing I was an art student minoring in photography, asked if I wanted to photograph grave stones for the History department.   Needing a job, I said yes.  That summer, in East Texas, being....HOT, I went and photographed headstones and took video with a group of history majors and graduate students.  I can not remember all the pictures I took or all the cemeteries I went to, but it was fun and informative and well, sad.  Seeing all those forgotten headstones and going to a children cemetery, it was a rough summer but, very fulfilling.  At the end of it all and by the time Fall came, my photographs were published in a small booklet.  Here it is:

Honestly, if you flipped open a page and asked, did you take this picture, I could not confirm or deny because it was so long ago and so many pictures.  I was not the only photographer so, it could be anyone.  I know my photos are in it though and if I looked up my saved pictures on my computer, I can remember better but here it is.  

The lesson to be learned here is to keep working hard and stay open to many opportunities for your work.  Some unique situations may arise and I would advise to take them.  You can grow as a person and an artist and even more so, your resume can get just a little bit longer.  

Before I go I do want to share an artist with you who my in-laws shared with me.  Just check it out for something unique HERE.

So remember to be the best artist you can be!!

Just in a Cocoon

So, I know...I know.  It's been awhile since my last post.  I have been dealing with some personal stuff and last week I was ready to blog a new post.  I just had to clean my office first....well by the time it was done, I was done.  Now, here I am in a clean office ready to blog away!!!

We finally got rain today...FINALLY!!!! It has been awhile and it was getting just a little too dry around here.  Luckily, today we have been getting a steady rain and my son and I have been snuggling and watching movies.  I hope life is going well for you dear reader.  I just love this time of year.  Spring is when everything comes alive again after looking dead for so long.  I hope your home is looking beautiful now.

Speaking about things transforming....I came across a article showing the transformation of caterpillars to butterflies!  What a perfect thing to talk about while everything is changing around us.  I know it has been a long time since I have posted last, and this post will be short, but I hope it is a good start to a lovely Spring!

Check out the article HERE !  Number 16 is my favorite, the Glass Winged Butterfly.  I like it so much, I'll add the picture here.

Valentine's Day

Love is in the air!!!  At least for most.  For those who refuse to celebrate this holiday or have no one to share it with, I do hope you find a way to make this day special.  I remember hating Valentine's day in my single days but I always found a way to have fun.  My single friends and I would exchange gifts and watch chick-flicks while eating a ridiculous amount of junk food.  Now my husband and I just try and find a moment of quiet while our son sleeps and watch a goofy comedy and eat a ridiculous amount of junk food.  Have a wonderful day with friends, a loved one, or family.  

Since, many people have dates planned this coming weekend, I wanted to honor one of the many things that happens on dates, getting to know each other.  If you are a new reader to my blog, I want you to get to know me.  Way in the beginning of starting this blog, I explained what I do know and my education in art.  What is just as important as that is, what art really means to me.  What happens when I see something I love in a museum or gallery.  So please read what I have written over a year ago explaining what art is to me:

What Art is to Me

Now that you know my intentions with this blog, let me tell you a little about myself.  I have a degree in art from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas.  My degree is in painting and photography, of course, my two passions.  I currently live in Kansas with my husband and my son.  I hope that information about myself can help you understand why I have started this blog and that I do know a little something about what I am talking about.

Today, I want to talk about my favorite artist and his influence on me and hopefully your art as well.  As a child I fell in love with Impressionism.  Its beautiful and the movement and colors created a fantastic dream world I can live in.  What is impressionism?  It is a style and movement that art took after artists wanted to show movement in artwork to make it feel like the world was still moving even when it was captured in a painting.  The world is constantly moving, growing, and changing so why not capture that in a moment, in a painting.  So with that of course my favorite artist is Claude Monet.  His paintings appealed to me as a child and still do to this day.  Anytime I visit a museum that has one of his paintings I get butterflies as I study the work with intensity.  I grew up just outside of Houston, Texas so I visited the art museums there on a regular basis.  There is a Claude Monet painting there that he painted in his later years that defines art to me.

The Japanese Footbridge, 1912-15 Claude Monet

You are probably thinking, that is not the footbridge I know of...well your right.  This version he painted later in his life when his eyesight was failing.  Monet had an eye condition that made everything have a red hue to it.  Why I find this version the most fascinating is we are truly seeing through his eyes.  We are seeing the world as he saw it, red.  THAT is what art is to me.  Showing the viewer the world through the artist's eyes.  So let me show you my world through my eyes.  

Patience

Happy Groundhog day everyone!  From what I've heard, Phil predicted an early spring so lets hope he is right.  As much as I want snow for my son, I do want that lovely spring weather so going outside will not be so freezing!

Patience is something everyone has trouble with.  Standing in line at the DMV, waiting for water to boil, or to an artist slowly working to get that finished product.  Well, if you think to yourself, I am a fairly patient person, let me introduce you to Lorenzo Duran Silva:

This artist does leaf art, and not just any leaf art, intricate cuts into leaves found on the ground.  Lorenzo collects leaves, cleans, dries and presses them.  Draws out a design and lays it over a tiny leaf.  He works on the design ranging from a week to a month.  At the very end, he pulls his drawing paper off the leaf so carefully as to not ruin that month of work to reveal a detailed, intricate design.

So, how patient are you?  On a scale of a toddler to Lorenzo Duran Silva?  After looking at this man's work, I think my patience is closer to a toddler's patient level.

I hope you enjoyed learning about this artist and remember to be the best artist you can be....patience and all!!


Here are more images of Lorenzo's work and here is the website I got my information from: HERE

But Is It Any Good?

Greetings from middle America!  Living in the middle of everything has its perks and downfalls.  Later this week we will experience the perks to having everything happening around us, like cold weather.  We will be enjoying some warm winter weather in the 60's while others are sadly buried in snow.  The weather just seems to pass over us and head on out to other corners of America.  Shockingly enough, I would love some snow this winter.  Our son received a sled for Christmas and I would love for him to use it for the first time this year.  We just need snow!  To all my readers who are buried in snow and can not go anywhere, I wish you safety and warmth!  Maybe we can switch places for just a minute so I can take my son sledding.

Abstract art....is it any good?  I know most art museum goers find themselves saying under their breath, "I could do that....and that is worth millions?  I'm in the wrong profession!" A simple paint streak across a canvas may seem like simple work but, when it comes to art, it really might not be.  Some of my favorite classes to take have been in Art History (minus the cave drawings, I enjoyed the more current work).  Understanding the work and knowledge behind that one paint streak is a lot more complicated than you might think.

I was on Pintrest late one night, which is most nights, and found a great blog discussing this exact topic, Is It Any Good?  Let me share with you this blog and this might help you see abstract art a little differently, and hopefully, know you might not be able to do it yourself.

Read HERE!

I hope everyone has been sketching away and bettering themselves in your art ability.  And as always, be the best artist you can be!

Sketching

On this cold cold day, I am held up inside because it is toooooooo cold outside.  Its the kind of cold that cuts you to the bone no matter how many layers you manage to put on.  The kind of cold that takes minutes not seconds to warm back up once you get inside.  The kind of cold that makes you mad at how slow your car takes to warm up.  Can you guess that I am tired of being cold?  It is even harder when you have a little one who is still in a car seat.  Little kids can not or should not wear a winter coat while in the car seat.  So, you wrestle your child into the coat inside, walk a few steps, then wrestle the coat off your kid in the car, lather, rinse, repeat.  So, yes I am ready for spring already.

The last few days I have realized something that was missing in my life.  I can list many things but lately, the one that I have been focusing on was my art.  I write about it and sometimes do a craft or two with friends but not like I used too.  In college, I would spend late nights in the studio working on my latest piece.  I used to forget eating meals until I finished just one part of a painting.  But, I have not made a painting in awhile.  I think that most artists go through that period where life happens or an art road block occurs in your mind.  So, how do we fill this void to keep the juices flowing and our talent alive?  Sketch. When I say sketch, I mean anything.  A shoe, a word, a circle, a dream, anything.  That helps collect your thoughts into a book that eventually will bring you a work of art.  I have countless sketchbooks strewn around the house with sketches that are now the paintings hanging on my walls.  I have forgotten that.  I have forgotten to spend time in a sketchbook doodling my thoughts.  I think that is why I have hit a road block when it comes to creating paintings.  I need to work through my thoughts to find the one that is worthy of a painting.

My challenge for you is just that, sketch.  Go buy a sketchbook or make one by binding some blank pages together and sketch.  Get your thoughts down onto paper so you can work through them and find your next masterpiece.  I wish you the best with this because I will be with you doodling away.  If I have anything worthy or well anything, I'll share with you my readers.  If I like it enough or even you do to, let me know and I'll make it a painting.  If you want, please share your sketches too.  I would love to see them.

As always, be the best artist you can be!