SISTERS AGAIN

SISTERS AGAIN is a 20x24 alkyd painting on canvas. My previous 5x7 pastel study helped me know whether I should go larger.








I really like this painting. It reminds me of a Jessie Wilcox Smith illustration. Jessie was a children's books illustrator in the late 19th century, who studied under Thomas Eakins and Howard Pyle. She may be best known for her covers on Good Housekeeping magazine. If I could do nothing else the rest of my life but work like this, I'd be a happy person. See her work by clicking the title, "Sisters Again" above.

Speaking of happy, I hope you all had a happy Christmas and Hanukkah. Mine, despite all the stresses, turned out lovely. I'm grateful for my healthy and beautiful extended families.

There was one disaster, however, which I would like to avoid in the future. My mashed potatoes turned into inedible paste. They literally would have choked people to death, had I served them. Was it the cream that I added instead of milk?????

AT THE BEACH WITH MEG

AT THE BEACH WITH MEG is a 8x10 alkyd on GessoBord.







No time to write. I have Christmas gift shopping to do. And Christmas grocery shopping to do. And a Christmas dinner to prepare. And packages to wrap. And stockings to stuff. And a house to clean.

CASSIE AT THE VANITY

CASSIE AT THE VANITY is a 9x12 pastel on PastelBord.













CASSIE AT THE VANITY, and 3 other pastels are being shipped to the Brandon Michael Fine Art Gallery in Santa Fe, for:
THE FIGURE, December 21st through January 15th
Opening Reception - January 1st, 5 - 7 PM

My new book, click to see it.

Not a good day so far...

I had to run up to the post office to deliver an entry by its deadline today for a show in Wichita. Less than a mile from my house, still on my street, approaching the highway, a dog came running from the highway toward me; I veered my car to try to avoid him. I was unsuccessful. I heard the impact, and heard him as he collided into my front left bumper. I stopped and watched helplessly as he ran to the backyard of the house nearby. I backed up, pulled into the driveway, ran to the back. He was lying on the deck, breathing rapidly. Though there were no visible injuries, I knew he was in bad shape. I banged on the door of the house. No answer. I called 911, not knowing if they would consider this an emergency. They did. They sent a Deputy Sheriff out (he was there in less than 10 minutes). As I waited for the cops, I stayed with the dog and apologized and cried and prayed he'd go quickly. He did. By the time the Deputy arrived, the dog was not in pain anymore.

The Deputy knocked on the house door, and, not surprisingly, someone answered. I figured someone was there but just didn't want to answer to a stranger at the door. It was their dog. They were not able to keep him tied up; he kept slipping out of his collars. I had seen him in the back yard through the year, tied to a tree, no matter what the weather conditions. I had felt sorry for him.

I wish there were something redeeming to say about it, but there's not. I'm just very sorry. And sad.

SISTERS AND A GOOD BOOK, click to bid

SISTERS AND A GOOD BOOK is a 7x5 pastel on PastelBord. Bidding begins at $100.

It's getting cold out there. I think I dreamed last night of planting zinnia and poppy seeds. The first few cold days of the season, and I'm ready for spring. But poppies should be planted in the fall, so I'm out to go find some poppy seeds.

SISTERS IN WHITE, click to bid

SISTERS IN WHITE is a 5x7 pastel on PastelBord. Bidding begins (and usually ends) at $100.











It seems fitting to end the year with Christmas–a festive celebration for family and friends. A time to warm the house with glowing candles, brightly wrapped presents and a huge pot of wassail on the stove. And despite the fact that they appear immediately after Thanksgiving nowadays, the brightly decorated malls, Christmas carols and outrageous yard light shows thrill me.

But this is what I look forward to all year: when everybody’s finally asleep in the house. I go into the dark living room, plug in the tree (always a real one), turn on Handel’s Messiah, and for 2 hours, listen to the entire piece. It brings into focus what this is really all about: 2700 year old prophesy fulfilled in the birth of a little Jewish boy. If you’ve never listened to the entire symphony, it goes on to tell the rest of the story.

I say it’s a must, if you find yourself getting lost in the cacophony of the season.

LITTLE DANCER

LITTLE DANCER is a 20x24 alkyd on canvas.













Well, it’s on again. The Christmas frenzy. When to pull out the decorations? When to buy the tree? Do I host a dinner? What to buy the husband? I always thought Christmas would get simpler as the kids grew and left home. I never stopped to consider they’d be back with husbands and grandchildren. And then there are the step children and the step grandchildren. I think we’ll have 10 stockings on the mantle this year. Oy. It doesn’t get easier.

And it’s time again for me to start organizing our church’s annual New Year’s Eve art show. It’s a one day show, open to all artists in the area. No jurying. They just bring their work on the Sunday before New Years. Several of us at the church remain long after the service is over, and bite our nails, hoping artists show up with work. Inevitably the artists trickle in, and inevitably we wind up with a beautiful show.


The New Year’s Eve show, from 7-9:30, is an opportunity celebrate the arts and to get to know the artists in the community.

And this year we’re having a separate show just for kids in the adjacent room, with their own buffet table and award. It should be fun.

If you’re in the area, and want to join us, either as an exhibitor or an appreciator, here’s more info:
http://www.douglasvillevineyard.org/art-show.html

Receiving Instructions

Receiving Instructions is a 12x36 alkyd on canvas.