The heavy velvet curtain has crashed to the floor. The floodlights illuminate only dust particles. The diva is backstage having a meltdown. They've called an ambulance. A complete blood transfusion is required.
And I, the operator of an ailing MacBook Pro, am waiting in the wings until the fat lady can sing those Laurelines arias again. See you tomorrow--- or a day very much like it.
K and I had a wonderful time in Montreal, though it was way too short to even begin to see and do all that we wanted. She gives a lively account in her new blog of the trip, with lots of great photos.
I sketched as and when I could. You knew I'd find fountains. The fountain on rue Saint Sulpice in Montreal features trappers, dogs, and explorers, as opposed to the cardinals and mythic creatures of the fountain at Saint-Sulpice in Paris. We saw the Yves Saint Laurent exhibition at the Musée des Beaux Arts, which was stunning. I have another sketch from that show to share. We took a bateau mouche tour of the Saint Lawrence river and we visited the Jardin Botanique, one of the largest in the world. I have more sketches to post and will do so in the next couple of days. Then it's back to painting paintings---of rocks and water, what else?
Two daughters, two trips. And look at the coincidence in the fact that the names of both cities translate, roughly, as 'royal mountain!' I'm sure that means something. Somehow. Somewhere.
K and I leave early tomorrow morning and return Sunday night. I'll wager there aren't lots of rocks and water scenarios in Montreal, though there is the Saint Lawrence river so qui sait?
We've had a very nonwatery period here---a whole week of record-breaking heat (several 100F days) and no rain in sight. I'm trying not to succumb to PTSD--- the memories of our recent, prolonged and intense drought are , however, powerful.
And apropos of nothing watery, here is an ink and watercolor rendering of cardoons from my front garden:
8 1/2" x 11", dip pen and Higgins russet ink and Schmincke watercolors on 140lb CP Acquerello Italia paper.
For those of you interested in learning all about ink and wash techniques, please check out my dear friend Cathy (Kate) Johnson's website and Cafe Press store. She's published over 30 art instructional books and is now offering a whole slew of fantastic cds on ink and wash, plein air sketching, and other mediums and methods! There's no better source for art instruction than generous, ubertalented Kate! See you in Montreal!
I was SO inspired by the Monterey coast. The play of water against rocks, the calligraphic shapes of rill and wave and swell, the high value contrasts, the splattered textures of spray and rock---it was pure heaven. And just when I was getting a feel for the the abstract shapes and the energy of it all, I had to leave. But sketches and photos will allow me to pursue these themes here in the studio.
Taking my daughter C to check out graduate programs at the Monterey Institute last week was a wonderful thing to have done. Having extended one -on- one time with her was such a gift and, of course, being in that gorgeous part of the world again was balm to my artist's soul. For this seeker of watery places, it was a bonanza. I devoted most of my time to C, but I was able to make a few sketches, and make studies and take photos for later paintings! I could ecstatically and most profitably take root in Monterey for a month or more, just to paint.
You can see that I had time to focus on sketching en route. I didn't know how much time I'd have for it once we got to Monterey, so I took advantage of captive models as I traveled.
There was no dearth of rocks and water to focus on, of course, it being the coast of California and all. I have more watery sketches to share, so come back, won't you?
Well, only if you want to, of course.
1,000 Artist Journal Pages: Personal Pages and Inspirations, edited by Dawn deVries Sokol, Quarry Press.
I haven't seen it yet because it's coming out this summer, but I'm going to be in it---five or six or seven pages from my sketchbooks, I think. We'll see how many make the final book, of course. It should be great fun to peruse, don't you think? There are many wonderful artists represented. I can't wait to see it!
I leave tomorrow for my trip to Monterey, California with my daughter C, back on Sunday. I'm so looking forward to it. I haven't been to that part of California since I lived there, when I was C's age! I'll do as many sketches as I can for sketching's sake, but I'm also hoping to make studies for larger paintings on the water theme when I get back. Since this is not solely an art trip, I'll be a bit more limited in my work time.
Here's my latest entry for my sketchbook group, the Moly_x_9xInternational Exchange. It's not a great reproduction of the acrylic original, but it gives you the general idea. I found this box turtle in my garden, hiding in the mixed border.
I also finally made flight reservations to my incredibly exciting (to me!) Mystery Place, a place very like Hawaii and very different, too. I'll be going the end of August. I'll tell all soon!
Happy end of May!
I seem to have a thing for drawing and painting sea creatures and here's another variation on the theme. I WAS born on a tiny island in the middle of the Bering Sea, so I suppose I imprinted on water, rocks, and sea life at a very early age. I like the calligraphic shapes of these creatures, too. Who knows why we're drawn to the things we are?
I've recently plunged back into acrylic painting, after mostly drawing and painting in watercolors for the past three or so years. I'm beginning to get my sea legs a bit in the studio. I do know this: that painting as assiduously as I've drawn over those years will stand me in great stead technically, emotionally, and every which way. I'll never, ever stop sketching, though. It's like breathing to me. I'll just be doing both, writing about both, showing both here. This is the balance I've been needing.
Acrylic on board, 8"x 10"
click on image for bigger version
Remember Peregrine Farm from the creek painting in the post below? Here are some poppies from the farm, sold at our local farmers' market by Alex and Betsy Hitt, Peregrine's genii and owners. Love them. Alex and Betsy, that is. The poppies, too, come to mention it.
My husband makes breakfast every Sunday and it's a highlight of my week. Case in point, breakfast in progress this morning:
Speaking of joie, here are some photos of my garden, taken yesterday morning. The third week in May is a glorious one every year, a pinnacle of flower, color, fragrance, form.
Hope your Sunday is/was full of joie.
That's what my two-week blogging hiatus did for me! It's all about balance--- and I'm in the process of rethinking and redirecting my time and energies to regain that balance.
So, back to the search for water! I'm discovering as I go that I'm drawn to subjects that show the play of water against and around rocks. I'm starting out in a fairly representational mode, but I can feel the pull of a more abstracted, more stylized approach to this theme. But, you know, I'm not going to try to control the process---I'm just going to paint and see what evolves.
I'm also in the midst of making arrangements for my second big trip to a watery place---the place that is very like Hawaii, but very different, too. I'm really excited about it and will make an announcement as soon as I've got it all sorted out.
I'm also going to Monterey, California at the end of May. My daughter C is interested in a graduate program at the Monterey Institute, so we're going to check things out there. Talk about rocks and water! Big Sur is a famous example of exactly the phenomenon I'm drawn to.
Then it's off to Montreal with my daughter K, for a last mother-daughter trip before her baby is born in October. The last time we were there, she was 7 months old. A sentimental journey, indeed.
Here are some things I've been working on lately.
Creek at Peregrine Farm. Acrylic on board, 8" x 10".
Water movement study, creek at Main Farm. 8b graphite on bristol.
Book talk and book signing, Regulator Bookstore. Ink and wash in sketchbook.
...which is the core of life.' Poet and translator Witter Bynner in his preface to The Jade Mountain, an anthology of Chinese poetry, says that passionate patience characterizes the poetry of the masters of the T'ang Dynasty, and that western poets can learn from a study of this work how best to express that apparently oxymoronic quality in their own poetry. I think all of us would profit from trying to cultivate passionate patience, don't you?
Me, I've never been short in the passion department, but lately (and mostly always) I've been lacking that pesky patience part. And me a gardener! If there ever were an activity that calls for passionate patience, it's the making and sustaining of a garden!
Art making calls for passionate patience, too, and I'm ready to take my couple of weeks' blog break and get rejuvenated on both fronts.
Here's where I'll be spending a lot of time:
And I'll be reading more Chinese poetry, too. The best anthology I've found (other than The Jade Mountain mentioned above---I like Bynner's translations the best) is The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry; from Ancient to Contemporary, the Full 3000-Year Tradition, edited by Tony Barnstone and Chou Ping. If you haven't read these poems, please do. The imagery in much of Chinese poetry is startling, clear, and pure---for this visual artist, it's a world of endless inspiration. I'll be listening to Chinasong by the Shanghai Quartet, among other things, too.
Finally, here's my first sketch for the Moleyx9 International Exchange. Our group is to render what is outside our windows, so I took that injunction literally this week, and sketched the 'Old Blush' rose outside my bedroom window, in the rain . 'In the rain'---the loveliest phrase in the English language.
See you in a couple of weeks! Be passionate! Be patient!
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