an arting life
“Plein air” means painting outdoors, on location, instead of in the studio. The artist is capturing the scene as well as the mood and atmosphere of the location. It’s been years since I’ve done this, and – with cooler weather in Florida, right now – I’ve been getting outside with my portable easel. The first…
This triptych has a history. Its current subject – Lake Winnisquam at dawn – was not its first incarnation. Here’s a photo of the finished work. It’s an acrylic painting, and each of the three canvases is about 18″ x 24″. Here’s my original photo from Oct 2014. We spent a month in a cabin…
Unlike most of my collages, this is about place. It has no people in it. Not even a hint of one. It’s because place was on my mind when I woke up this morning. Places where I fit in. That’s New England. Mostly Boston and coastal Maine, NH, and Massachusetts. And almost any arts community….
For the past few years, I’ve regularly featured art on the front door to our home. I’m not sure how many people actually see it, but it’s my way of adding original art to a world that sometimes lacks originality. I believe that art has an authenticity that’s only appreciated when it can be viewed,…
Most of my collages flow almost effortlessly as I create them. This one challenged me at several points. Sometimes when I work, I lay out all of the pieces before I start gluing them in place. At other times, I glue pieces as I tear them to size. Most of the time, it’s a little…
What now…? I doubt that I’m the only one asking this question, as we head into the uncharted territories of 2021. But, because we forging a fresh, new path, perhaps we get to make the rules. We can invent our new world, and make it better than before. The flaws of the past are coming…
This is among my favorite sets of daily collage pages in my “Looking for a Fairy Tale” art journal. The scan is as good as it’s going to get, for now. (I’ll see if I can get better photos when the new camera hardware arrives.) My (current*) husband suggested that – perhaps – the pages…
Working on a book based on my 2002 “Looking for a Fairy Tale” art journal, I was struck by an image I’d used on May 4th, 2002 and a similar one in yesterday’s collage. It’s the tiger’s eyes. At the top of this page, you’ll see the 2002 collage – admittedly a scan that needs…
Some of my collages start with very odd inspirations. This one began with three images: First, the classical figure in the upper right. Then, the woman with the sunglasses. And finally, a photo of a wall with a large window and a translucent, folded shade. (The latter is at the left side of the collage,…
It’s time to try some different techniques. Not necessarily mixed media, though this one is clearly that. Mostly, I want to go beyond the edges of my “tidy” impulses. The question is: Will my work still retain its artistic vision and integrity? And, will these nudges into somewhat-unfamiliar realms take my art in a new,…
The past three mornings, I’ve woken up smiling. That’s refreshing, and this collage reflects that. (The photo is a little blurry as I photographed it in early morning, low-light conditions. I’ll replace this photo later in the day.) Life isn’t perfect. (Is it, ever…?) But, after a good night’s sleep, and with an increasingly clear…
This collage, “And carry on,” is about darkness, the light ahead, and the path from here to there. It’s about where we are as a country (in the U.S.), as a world, and as individuals. And what’s immediately ahead of us. It may not be tidy. Challenges may await. We’ve seen the darkness. It may…