|
February 2024 - No winter blahs here, just a few neutrals in the form of some old favorites (see above) on the kitchen mantelscape for January and February. The hellebores are in bloom right outside my window (we haven’t seen snow here since I don’t even remember) and I’ve been painting in vivid color. I just recently finished a commission I received last October, one I barely had past the conceptual phase before Christmas. In the long period of mulling it all over, the title came to me at the end of a yoga class - All Things. I believe I was inspired by the “all things bright and beautiful” verse (that’s what shavasana will do for you) but it could just as easily reference the expression “all things in their own time”. By early January the creative energy was freely flowing and the studio floor was covered with collage papers painted in a bright, cheerful, primary palette. I’m glad I didn’t try and push the work and gave the little seedling of an idea plenty of room to grow and bloom. Another fun project that came to fruition recently — She Said It Cards released the first set in their Meadow Series of notecards. Each of the six blank cards in the set features one (very charming, imo:) illustrated bee. Seeing your work in print is a pleasure. So are fantastic house sales — another highlight in January was, as my friend Jana coined it, the “mother-of-all-mixed-media-estate sales.” Jana was alerted to the sale by another friend and kindly passed on the information (love my fellow artist friends). She and I went on the first day, a Friday, and were there for hours. The house was packed — literally every cupboard, shelf, cabinet, corner and piled on tables in every room. You could probably say without exaggeration that Susan (that was her name and I say that with a touch of reverence) was a hoarder. But it was all art supplies! (I get it, Susan, I really do.) My greatest finds were probably the binders of ephemera and piles of old letters and ledger sheets I came home with. This is the kind of experience that many collage artists dream of, and should probably heed as a gentle warning from the universe you really can’t take it with you. To top the winter off, I’m tagging along with husband to his company’s annual meeting next week. Normally this would be in a place like Los Angeles or Vegas, and I wouldn’t be tempted out of the studio. But this year it’s in Barcelona and I’m going. I’ll have several days on my own to explore the city and I’m really hoping to seize the opportunity to do some urban sketching. I almost always have a little on-the-go art kit with me when I travel and I almost never pull it out. I start to feel, I don’t know - “shy” about it. The excuse that I don’t want to “burden” my traveling companions with waiting 20 minutes here or there while I sketch is the perfect way out. But Barcelona — a fabulous city and no excuses, I should return with great memories and at least a few little drawings. I have some other big (to me) things in the works for March but I feel like I’ve gone on longer than I meant to, I’ll share that news next time. Until then — cheers, love and lots of beautiful color! Rebecca
|
