Rainflowers commission

I recently was commissioned to recreate a version of ‘Rainflowers‘ in a larger size for a couple in Palm Desert. It was an odd size they needed, but I knew just where to go to get that made perfect – Jim Ciskowski at Blue Ribbon Art Support – he also makes wonderful cradle panels. We had the panel and painting created within a month, and I was delighted to be able to take it over and install it on Memorial Day. Here’s the painting, and in its forever home. Once I got in there, I totally understood the odd size, it needed to match their artwork on the other side of the tv!

Rainflowers II. Contains the words “Only the rain puts the color in the flowers”.

They might get swapped around, just for variation!

A friend will help you paint….

… a real friend will help you paint a body.

Read the story of the bodies in this month’s Newsletter.

Fusion Art Waterscapes

Was delighted to get an email yesterday that my painting ‘Wiest Lake’ was included in the Fusion Art Waterscapes online exhibition. Thank you Chris and Valerie Hoffman!

I made it into the news

One of my friends noticed that I was in the Hi Desert Star this week – one of the artists mentioned at the recent 29Palms Art Gallery Spring Faire a couple weeks ago.

This Link goes to the direct page.

Women Painters West Show

I was pleased that working virtually meant I was able to enter the Women Painters West show ‘Hope Springs Eternal‘. And…. well you know those robo calls that we’ve all started getting again? I’m glad I picked up one with an LA area code whose number I didn’t recognize, because I was being congratulated for winning third place in show with one of my entries, Hope Rising. I’d had an interesting exchange with the lady who’d been setting up the virtual show, because I’d mentioned that my work has poetry in it and she was trying to find a way to best show this.

Then when I looked at the show link, I noticed something – I’d sent the wrong image for the other painting. Nevertheless, the one I’d sent was on theme so I emailed and explained what I’d done, and asked to change the name of the painting. There was a flurry of misunderstood emails where the lady thought it was the painting that had one. At the moment of writing, it looks like ‘Rising Together’ (the name is now corrected) won third prize, it was actually ‘Hope Rising’. Perhaps it will be fixed by the time you look at this! I hope so!

Grey Cube Skies show

I was pleased to be accepted into the Grey Cube Gallery Skies show recently, with my refractured watercolor ‘Crimson Thread’. One of the things I’m enjoying about so many online shows is that it’s really practical for me to enter them! Enjoy the show!

Unfortunately the contest doesn’t allow you to see the sonnet in the painting: Crimson Thread
The world is turning into dawn, and I
can see a crimson thread start to appear
announcing that the newest day is near –
it makes me greet the beauty with a sigh.
Soon the ribbon’s red will turn to gold
and other wisps softly to scarlet turn –
water, under influence of light will burn
such colors that it awes us to behold
the transition from nighttime into day
and cause to wonder how we could deserve
this vision – just for living on a curve –
and leaves us without words that we can say,
only the thought that perhaps we should do right
to earn the reward that brings the end of night.

Associated Artists of the Inland Empire Show

Associated Artists of the Inland Empire is a long name and a nice welcoming group. I got to meet many of them for the first time on the zoom meeting this morning, where we also had a collage demo by Aleta Jacobson.

We had had a judged online show that I probably wouldn’t have been able to enter due to distance and size of paintings, but I guess this is one of the good side effects of covid. The juried show is available to be seen by all HERE. I didn’t win any prizes on this one, but delighted to have been able to be included. See if you can find my paintings amongst the others as you enjoy them.

Another Forever home

The title of this painting is ‘And Never Leave…’ I’m glad to say that it has found its forever home with one of my favorite collectors!

Dawn off my back porch (there’s a new one every day but few look as good as this one). The poem written for this painting and painted into it is:

To step into a place and just belong
to stand within a sky and to believe
to raise your head, look up and to behold
and never leave, and never leave, and never leave.

4th Annual Skies Exhibition

It’s my pleasure to announce that one of my paintings was accepted into the 4th Annual Skies Exhibition with Fusion Arts. I guess I have been working with Fusion for quite a while as I was accepted in the 3rd Annual also. And further joy, as they’re local to me, I was able to meet them a couple years ago – back when we met people IRL!

Anyway, enjoy the virtual exhibition HERE.

Newer work #117

• 

1454 Cloud Castles. 9.5×7.5 Watercolor collage on foamcore in mat to 14×11. $65
Contains the poem:
Do not be afraid
to build castles in the clouds,
the sky is where we live.