My intention each month is to complete four paintings. I started my four paintings but then my peonies bloomed.
Somehow it always seems to rain a few days after the peonies open and then their heads get too heavy and they fall to the ground. So, I put everything aside, picked a lovely bouquet and did this quick 18 x 24 painting. The flowers are always so cheerful I can’t help but paint them. And yes, it did rain the next day. Now on to finish the other four paintings I started.
….I belly dance. Why not? I’m old. The exercise is good for me. Belly dancing makes exercise fun. Trust me, you can really work up a sweat shimmying!!! I love to play dress up. I love the sound of my coin belt and my zills (little finger cymbals on the ends of my fingers), and the awesome music.
Belladonna solo
I have become a sheep painting addict. I think this is my fourth painting of sheep, the last for a while. I want to do some more cats and some garden paintings. The peonies in my garden are about to bloom and there is only a small window of time to paint them. I look forward to setting up a still life of the big, puffy flowers with the beautiful perfume.
Sheep Grazing
I try to finish three to four paintings from the New Moon to the Full Moon. It sets up a nice schedule for me and, for whatever reason, it works. But spring seems to always muck up my plans and I’ve had to allow myself some extra time to complete this set of paintings. I’m still working on one more and hope to have it finished this week.
Tarpon Springs Boats
I work from my own photographs but had a hard time getting into this painting at first. The colors in the photo were very dull and depressing (it was winter in Florida) – so I tweaked the colors. Color is the best therapy in the world. Once I added some warmth and color if felt like Florida feels to me.
It is always good to have another set of eyes when painting. Fortunately, my students convinced me to remove an ugly post from my work. Once I made my color changes and took out the post – all the obstacles melted away.
It has taken me longer to finish this set of paintings than I originally planned. But, paintings will get done when they get done. This one is of my Lucy. At the end of our day, when the nights are cold, I drape this quilt over the back of the couch and make a tent for Lucy to sleep under. In the morning I usually fold up the quilt and put it away. For some reason, I left it out and Lucy made herself a lovely nest. The sun was pouring in and I fell in love with the pose.
Lucy’s Quilt
Many years ago, I was visiting my parents in Vermont when my sister called. She knew I was thinking about getting two kittens. She told me there was a litter whose mother had just been hit by a car. If I didn’t come up and get two kittens they would be eaten by dogs!!!! Reluctantly, I drove up to the farm in Jericho. There was this little band of wild felines each about the size of my hand.
Miss Mousie
There were two dark calicoes, two gray calicoes an one gangly black kitten all with the double paws. I immediately fell in love with the little black male. But which female to choose? I scooped up one little bitty thing in the palm of my hand. Her legs were hanging to each side. She fixed me with a fierce gaze that could have frightened even the largest of dogs. All I could do was laugh. She was so funny with her vicious stare and her peanut sized body. I decided this was the kitten for me. I happily brought the two kittens home to Framingham.
Mousie had the personality of badger but I loved her. I was her human and I loved her for 19 years. I have always been intrigued by this image of her and putting this into paint made her come alive again.
When you own a home, it’s not always a romantic, dreamy world. Life often intrudes on the creation of paintings. The reality is, if you want to get out of your driveway, you have to remove the snow! I’m an artist. I survive. If I want something done, I have to do it myself. That is my reality. Often I come up short in a few departments.
It’s snowing here in Massachusetts. Been snowing since last night. 5+ inches. I dreaded going out this morning to attack the wet heavy snow. I have a teeny tiny snow blower and a very large circular driveway all lumps and bumps and assorted surfaces. I’ve had my little snow blower for 10 years. She’s the perfect size for me because I can pick her up and put her in my car. She also has leather paddles instead of cutting blades which is safer for someone who doesn’t get “don’t stick your hand in there!” Sadly, with much swearing and tantrum throwing on my part, she finally died during the very first snow storm of the season – way back in October. 
My very gifted and mechanically knowledgeable neighbor said, “Maybe it’s the belt.” Belt? What belt? When I got over the fact that my machine had a belt I then realized I had no idea where the belt was! Somehow snow blower and “belt” never came together in my artistic, visual mind. Duh!
Took out my manual. Probably should have taken it out 8 years ago! My little snow blower needed a new belt, new leather paddles, and a new scraper. We are talking ratty old leather paddles chewed way down below the “dot.” Actually I couldn’t find the dot; a scraper blade that lost half it’s width so the bottom of the machine was doing the scraping – not the blade; and a belt that no longer fit on the assembly because it was so cracked and stretched out. Machine abuse. Sigh.
Found everything on Amazon. Got my parts in a few days and needed my other mechanically gifted and knowledgeable neighbor only once to help me get some rusted screws unscrewed. Discovered I needed a few new tools in the process which I purchased eagerly. A girl can’t have enough tools! I put everything back together myself (I am woman hear me roar!). I was a little embarrassed that I had not been kinder to my little machine over the last ten years. This is Massachusetts. I live in the snow belt. We have lots of storms. I do my driveway lots of times during the winter. My little snow blower never complained even though she was getting more and more unhappy.
I kept apologizing to her with each new part I attached. How could I have ignored her for so long? I got her all spiffed up and put her back out into the garage – where she has sat patiently waiting for a storm to come.
This morning I got her revved up and started to push. OMG!!!!! A giant arc of snow came flying out of her that I don’t remember ever seeing (being that’s it’s been 10 years since she’s had any new parts). The snow was heavy and wet. No way could she handle that last year. I would have had to hand shovel 150 feet x 2 of snow!!! Now she was blowing snow with the greatest of ease. It was so exciting!!!! I almost wished I had more snow to blow. I might be getting that wish because it is still snowing and another few inches are promised before this day is finished. The really good news is I actually have a healthy snow blower that can do the job.
My artist’s brain does not wholly grasp the mechanics of machines but I’m a little more understanding of the concept of check your parts if you want your machine to work! Instead of swearing at my little snow blower because she could only spit snow out a foot, I should have changed her belt so she could throw snow 50 feet or more. This was a good and very humbling lesson to learn. Mea culpa little snow blower.
Sheep in Princeton
Hey Day in Princeton at the Audubon Society is a joyous occasion for all ages. I fell in love with these sheep and decided they would be fun to paint.
Four Sheep
I want to do a million more sheep paintings. Maybe a close-up! It took me forever to get all these layers of green on.
Girl in a Pink Jacket
This little girl was lovely in her pink raincoat and white hat.
Happy Painting!
Hello everyone:
Just finished stretching and gessoing 40 canvases. Ready to paint for the year!!!
I’ve been meaning to address this cleaning issue for a while. It is important to learn to work clean as a painter. This enables you to paint in your house, a friend’s house or a classroom without wrecking your woodwork, furniture, floors and clothes from renegade paint. It also enables another student to sit in your spot when you are not in class and not come away with damaged clothing. Undetected wet oil paint, once it gets on your clothes, is an invitation to disaster. If not caught immediately, it ends up on your car upholstery, it spreads to other clothes (if you put it in the wash and don’t know the paint is there) and sometimes finds its way under your shoes where you can now walk and leave a lovely paint trail. Oil paint is a bit like poison ivy. It’s one purpose in life is to attach itself to you without your knowing.
When I first studied with Liza Meade Steig in Cambridge, MA, I came to class in my paint clothes. There was not much of me that wasn’t covered in paint and I was now going to paint in Liza’s dining room! She explained very clearly to me that lords and ladies were able to paint in lace and velvet. Just because I was in jeans and a sweatshirt was no excuse to use my clothes as a paint rag. And there would be serious consequences if I got paint on her furniture. I was petrified I would leave paint somewhere in her house. Because of this I became very aware of my painting environment and learned to work clean.
Paint happens but it can be controlled if we are aware of our environment.
My Painting Set Up
Here is the set up that I use in my studio. I have 2 surfaces at right angles. The one in front of me contains a few spare rags cut up in very small pieces (big pieces of rag drag through the paint and then onto everything around you), my palette box with my palette inside. I am right handed so I have a piece of folded, cut up Turkish toweling in the right bottom corner of my palette box. This is where I wipe my brush of excess paint or scraped paint I’ve cleaned up before I add new color to my palette. My little cup of clean turp is at the front of my palette. I mix my colors in the center and always clean the center before I put my palette away in the freezer (oil paint keeps well in the freezer).
My turp can is to my right as I am right-handed. It has a cat food sized can inside it with holes punched in. The can is flipped over putting the holes on top. This allows me to clean my brush on the cat food can instead of swishing it in the dredges on the bottom. I NEVER leave brushes in my turp can. If brushes are left in the turp can, the brush you are using with a ton of paint on it travels down the handles of your brushes already in the can leaving a lovely trail of paint that you will now get on your hands when you go to use these brushes again. I clean each brush in the turp after I use it then place it on a piece of folded toweling on the area to my right. This also holds my jar of unused brushes waiting at the ready, my cup of tea (it says “She Who Must Be Obeyed” – a gift from one of my students) and my container of liquid laundry detergent where I will place my brushes at the end of my painting session to be brought to my sink to be thoroughly cleaned and rinsed in lukewarm water.
I do not touch the paint with my hands. Any paint that gets on my hands is cleaned off immediately. Also, my cup of tea is not directly near my turp can. This prevents me from dunking a paint filled brush into my cup of tea. Guess how I know this!
This set up allows me to set up quickly and clean up quickly. No paint on my hands, clothes or in my house!!! Hope this helps. Better to be painting than to be cleaning.
I wish I could say that I get to paint everyday. Most days I do paint but, being a homeowner sometimes requires the doing of other things. My latest adventure was procuring parts and tools for my 11 year old snow blower. I really should be kinder to my machines. I sometimes take them for granted when they just keep working year after year. She has a really big job to do living here in Massachusetts. The driveway is a bit hellish with its lumps, bumps and rocks. She finally demanded that I take care of her after 11 years of service by conking out in our last snow storm. I’m sure our previous winter put her right over the edge. The parts came in today and I spent most of the afternoon carefully putting her back together again apologizing over and over again for my neglect. I do find it best to talk to my machines.
As an artist, I find my choices tend toward the cheapest way out. So, I spent about $85 on the needed parts and decided to do it myself. With my snow blower manual and my next door neighbor to help me loosen the bits (and show me the tools I should have) I managed to figure it all out. I can’t imagine what I would have had to spend if I took her in to be serviced. Never mind buying a new machine! Here I am an artist at 60 years old with small engine repair added to her repertoire. Hope this inspires some great masterpieces. Here she is waiting for our next great snowstorm.
