Each Night Before I Go To Sleep ...

I modify the old children's prayer and thank God for at least one thing.  Years ago, when going through an especially hard time, I could only come up with oddities, like peas and the color orange.  Thank God, I'm in a much better place these days.

With one caveat.  It's summer and summer is my least favorite season (give me a cold, crisp day and a good sweater and socks and I'm in heaven).  So last night, before I drifted off to sleep, I offered up to God some summer-time blessings.  So in no particular order:

• fully ripened peaches
• blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and strawberries
• sweet, crisp corn
• all purchased at my local farmer's market, from folks I've come to know and admire
• the sounds of cicadas
• interesting and beautiful bugs of all sorts on my front porch
• fireworks
• lush sounds of birds
• the smell of warm lavendar
• going barefoot
• having bare shoulders
• children playing in sprinklers and water fountains
• summer dresses
• summer breezes, no matter how hot
• the refreshment of cold water sliding down my throat

Last night, I slid into sleep, full of gratitude and wonder and awe.  God is good.  I am blessed. 

Local Film Artistry

Inge Chiles, daughter of my dear friends Mary and Mike Chiles debuted in a film last night at the Moxie.  Inge and other Missouri State University students created a short film "Thin Air" using a lot of talent, hard work and very little money.  Impressed?  You bet.  I'm not a film critic, but as an avid lover of films, domestic and foreign, big and low-budget, quirky and serious, I think I know film.  And this was film worth watching. 

Inge acted with restraint and believability, confusion, gentleness and hope.  Ingrid = Danny Daigle (the main character).  Professionalism abounded. 

Another showing occurs this weekend.  Make time to see this and other locally produced films at the Moxie. 

Joplin Relief Effort

A friend of mine, Lil Olive, owner of Good Girl Art, recently asked me and other local artists to donate a piece of work for an upcoming sale to raise funds for a Joplin artist, Martha Goldman, who lost her home in the recent and horrific F5 tornado.  I feel honored to have been asked (and a little terrified), especially after I saw the list of other artists who would be contributing. 

Please come to Good Girl (325 E. Walnut Street, Suite #101, Springfield, MO 65806) for the monthly First Friday Art Walk, August 5th.  Peruse and buy and support local artists and help a Joplin artist.

Here's what I'm submitting. 

Here's a list of the other artist; like me, I think you'll be impressed:

Amy Carroll

Tommi Clark

Stephanie Cramer

Debbie Curtis

Nathan Gamel

Jared Gillett

Sarah Jackson

Sky Hoyt

Gin Martin

Lil Olive

Elaine Pawlowicz

Jennifer Pierson

Randy Russell

Jesse Stone

Eric Vaughn

Chad Woody

Jane Almirall
Kate Baird
Julie Blackmon
Pen Brady



Seen on a Bumper Sticker

"Worship Your Faith, Not Your Politics"

'Nuff said.

My Louisville Adventure

Hello, this is guest blogger June Elizabeth.  My Grammy is always talking about how life is an adventure, so guess what?  I had an adventure of my own last week.  Neither my Mom, my Grammy or my Poppy told me that we were flying to Louisville.  I had been on an airplane before, but it was when I was only a few months old.  Boy, were Sissy and I excited!  We loved flying.

Mom and Grammy had packed lots of activities for us to do while on the plane and in the airport (and little did we know how handy they would come in....I think grownups call this foreshadowing.")

We got into Louisville several hours late, but Sissy (aka Squish, aka Ishta Baba) and I didn't want to miss a thing so we didn't go to sleep until we got to my Auntie's house.  We all had to catch up on our sleep the next day.  Here I am napping with Poppy.  He sure loves to snuggle with me and my sister, and sometimes it works.  We fall asleep!

This is my beautiful Mom.  She loves coming to Louisville to see her "Louisville family."  Doesn't she look happy?

This is my second cousin Caroline and her friend Ersno (oh, come on, I'm only three years old; I don't know how to spell).  Don't they make a cute couple?  He was really funny and Caroline, aka Moon, is so sweet. 

Grammy let me borrow the camera and I took some great shots.  I'm so excited to show them to you. 

Ok, so those were just practice shots.  I was getting ready for my first photojournalism assignment, the big, surprise 90th birthday party for Honey (that's what we all call my Poppy's Mom).  

This is Poppy with his sister Auntie.  They are very close.  And my sister really knows how to act goofy.

Here's Honey the day before the big party.  We don't think she knew what was going on, but she may have been messing with us (hey, I normally don't talk like that; I just imitate adults, don'tcha know?).

I was a big helper girl all weekend.  Here I am fixing my Mom's hair.  Once again, isn't she beautiful?  I take after her. 

I focused on personal hygiene all weekend.  A girl's gotta look good at all times. 

Here we are the next night, waiting for Honey to show up so we could get this party started.  Oh why do grownups always say "Be patient?"

Doesn't Honey look surprised?

Hey, I'm getting pretty good at this picture-taking gig.  That's Baxter.  He's really smart and kind to little kids. 

This is Baxter's mom Jeanine.  She makes wonderful soaps, lotions and other smell-good stuff.  Check out her website Moss Hill and buy some great stuff from her.  She's nice too. 

Honey got lots of gifts:  tomatoes, hand-made cards and some other stuff.  No toys though. 

Sissy and I got these great cookies.  We couldn't figure out which parts to eat first.   

After the party was over, Sis and I didn't want to go to bed.  We tried everything we could think of to stay up late.  Mostly, we just did want we normally do, which is to charm adults.  It works everytime.  (I could write an advice column for other toddlers.  I'd have to squeeze in with all my other jobs:  singing, playing, jumping and collecting bugs). 

I loved my trip to Louisville; my family was wonderful and I had so much fun.  But grownups always say "All good things must come to an end."  I think that's called a cliche.  We left Louisville Sunday morning and spent all day and night in airports and places called "gates" and saw people sleeping on the floor and in hallways.  Sis and I managed to have fun, going up and down the escalator about a hundred times.  We sang and danced and told stories and tried to keep the grownups entertained so they wouldn't get cranky.

It was a lot of hard work, but it's all worth it for my adoring public.  Until next time, I'm signing off.

June Bug

Introducing Other Members of the Clan

Here is the boyfriend/husband of nearly 35 years.  He climbs things:  trees, roof tops, fences, in through windows.  He's terribly cute, if not sometimes reckless.

Clare is our only daughter and life-long companion.  From that Maundy Thursday, 1989 when she joined our family of two to today, she delights and challenges us and fills our lives with joy. 

Clare and Matt have given us two Weebles, June Elizabeth and Christa Marie.  We never knew what real fun could be until they came along.  (Or real exhaustion either).  They fill us up with joy, wonder, creativity and silliness. 

We are so blessed. 

Here's What I Think....What Do You Think?

I believe that my painting took a turn, a good turn, this past year.  I feel as if I am coming into my own style, my own language that represents me and what I'm trying to convey with my work.  I felt joy and excitment in producing some recent works, yet I think I have enough distance on them to see the needed areas of growth. 

I'd invite your comments, both negative and positive.  I want to continue to grow as a painter.  I want my work to continue to speak to others.  I'd like to hear from you.

This painting has gotten a bit of play, of publicity of late.  But I find that I'm a little tired of looking at it.  I named it "Rocks of Ages."

Here's what I like:

• the layering of color
• simple, sweet strokes
• the combination of colors
• it conveys joy and life

Here's what I would like to change:

• there should be a stronger sense of distance between the foreground rock and the background rocks, using less saturated colors and/or smaller shapes
• despite the richness of the hills in the background, I wish I had made it more subdued so that those forms would receed into space
• perhaps most importantly, the painting needs some areas for the eye to rest.  An "ahhhh" space

Here's another one to consider:

It's entitled "Presence" and it was a turning point painting for me.  I feel very attached to it and I need some objectivity.

The little bit of woods in the right-hand middle ground seems like an after-thought.  The colors aren't correct.  There is nothing specific about that area.  And the area of ground to the right of the largest rock is too dark.

But I love the layering of colors on the rocks.  There are lines within lines on the major shapes which seem to pull the eye around the composition.  I believe that the painting speaks of strength and timeliness, something I attempt to capture in my landscapes.

What do you think?

Happy Birthday Clare!

I can't believe you are now 23 years old.  Where did all that time in the rocking chair, reading books and singing innumerable songs go?  Didn't you just get on the bike and fly away?  I think it was yesterday when I took you for your first swim lesson and you jumped into the pool before I was finished changing?  It couldn't have been that long ago that your Poppa and I walked you to the bus stop and you jumped on board without even looking back. 

OK, I have to say that the middle school and high school years crept by, but having you in my life has made me a richer, wiser, and happier person.  I wouldn't be the person I am today if I hadn't adopted you and made you my daughter.  I am blessed, deeply blessed.

Thank you dear one for being my daughter.

Love you always,
Mama

P.S.  Sorry for the fuzzy picture, but your beauty shines through it all.

Thought for the Day

"Art is not what you see, but what you make others see."
— Edgar Degas, French artist, born July 19, 1834

Thoughts for the Day

As an artist (I actually wrote that?), this speaks to me:

An artist is not paid for his labor but for his vision.
...James Whistler

And this, as a person of faith and hopefully, integrity:

A 'No' uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a 'Yes' merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble. ...Mohandas Gandhi

More Collages

Roman Holiday

Women's Suffrage

Just a note about the collages themselves.  I've used:

• etchings from books I've rescued from throw-out piles,
• antiques postcards (many from France),
• magazine clippings,
• buttons,
• my own handmade stamps,
• small paintings of mine,
• fabric,
• bottle caps,
• a collection of wonderful handmade papers (not made by me),
• shells,
• photographs (taken by me or my beloved boyfriend-husband),

Who knows what I'll use next (I'm saving some old keys, scraps of acrylic paint, stamps, drawings by my grand-daughters and other such STUFF!).



Sustenance



Collage Catch Up

Unexpected Answers

In the Land of the Giants

Words of Comfort

Imagine getting a set of images from France, instead of a letter (some people still write those I hear), a postcard or an email.  What would it look like?



Words of Comfort

 This is my attempt to answer that question.

Something New...for Me

After months of intense painting, I've wandered into another artistic world.  I didn't intend to stay as long as I did, but once I crossed over, I wasn't quite ready to go back.

I've been working on a series of collages, using some etching reproductions that I've carried around with me for 27 years of moves, packing and unpacking.  Twenty-seven years?  What's remarkable to me is that I love to de-clutter and purge, re-arrange and de-clutter all over again.  I hung on to these, despite all those episodes of throwing out.

I post them so that I can look at them from a different angle, much like seeing your painting in a mirror or looking at your work upside down.  It gives you a fresh perspective, something that I need after working on these for weeks.



Hungry Anyone?



So without further comment, I'll put these up for comments, suggestions and (gulp!) criticism. 

I have a lot to learn

Doesn't that just say it all? 

A lot to learn about what?  Let's start with blogging, move onto painting, followed by:

• managing my time,
• being a good friend,
• how to speak up and not be afraid
• taking risks
• living in the moment
• being faithful
• oh yeah, and not taking myself too seriously

Gulp! I guess it's a launch

After thinking about this for months, thinking about this for months, thinking about this (OK, you get the picture), I've decided to take the plunge.  Do I think I have much to add to the blogging world?  Not really.  Do I know what I want to say?  Nope. 


Why do this then?  I'm not really sure, but after avidly reading and admiring blogs of all sorts for years (and successfully nagging my husband into starting one), I've decided that I would like to put a visual record of my life, loves, likes, and aspirations into the cyber world.  Why not? 


I love beauty and creativity.  I am a lover of God and sees life as an adventure.  That's about as simple and as profound as I can make it.  But my personal motto is "Life is an adventure" and I hope that you'll join me as I travel this latest adventure.