nature

Haiku June 27, 2012 Clear Sky

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Cool clear blue sky morn

Spring-like temperature, June

Nice “cold front” surprise.

Art Prescription:  What an unexpected wave of cool temperatures! Almost needed long sleeves for our morning walk. A perfect day for plein air painting.  Nothing makes me happier than being right in front of the plant I’m drawing, trying to describe its personality and curves with line and paint, so much richer than working from photos. This brings me to a conversation I had with a friend yesterday…we talked about how different people are in how they choose to live their lives. Some people live just on the surface, never diving into a deeper meaning for their circumstances. For me and my friend, depth is important. Each and every day we seek to find meaning and purpose and if we can express this creatively! bravo!

Here are the paintings I’m working on:

Haiku June 25, 2012 Wife

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Precious beyond all

Who can find a good woman?

She is his reward.

Art Prescription:  Saw my little female blue bird again in the yard. Will she build another nest? Started two new paintings today with lots and lots of layers, kind of like a relationship. Started off with big broad strokes of many colors, then added a dimensional coat of just red. Then I painted the whole canvas white. From there I sanded the areas of red that I want to stand out. Big plans for these paintings!! While all that was drying I did a little sumi-ink painting of the Spice bush Swallowtail I saw the other day!

Haiku June 24, 2012 Home Improvement

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New minty green walls

Bright white trim, two coats, team work

Next stop bamboo floor!

Art Prescription:  Sam and I have been working on our home improvement projects for two solid weekends now. The painting is done! Next is the bamboo floor, which has to “rest” in the room for 72 hours before you lay it so the wood can adapt. We work pretty good as a team…a bit of irritability here and there, but overall we both enjoy a little hard work for the reward at the end. As with the many facets of life, you get back what you put in…Oh, and while doing this kind of painting, an idea for a new series came to me and I can’t wait to get back in my studio…stay tuned!!

Haiku June 23, 2012 Blue Birds Too Much Tech

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Architectural

Soft green moss, pine straw layer

Fit for a Blue Bird.

Art Prescription:  My Blue Birds have launched from their nest. We took the old nest out with hopes that the same couple will build again for another brood. Bird’s nests amaze me. To think of the planning and work it took to build layer after layer of moss, grasses, and pine straw with one beak full at a time…now that is commitment. I enjoyed watching this pair find the box, build, and then feed their fledglings. In our world of over stimulation and too much technological input, parents racing around from event to event, telling their children “hurry we’ll be late,” and who wants to hear music every where you go, especially in the grocery store, world, a little focus is a good thing. While they are parenting, birds have the sole focus of raising their young and getting them launched. Obviously there is something to learn here! Why is it we humans think we can do everything all the time?

Haiku June 22, 2012 Thunder

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Big billowing clouds

Climb upward with heavy dark

Thunder, lightening.

Art Prescription:  This time of year we can expect thunder-storms in the evening. It’s hot and humid, and all that moisture gets sucked back up into the atmosphere and has to go somewhere! Bottled energy. My garden is thankful for the downpour. I’m working on pen and ink drawings that I hope will be turned into stamps. If you ever study the lines of a flower you will certainly be seduced!

Haiku June 21, 2012 Spicebush Swallowtail

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Spicebush Swallowtail

Black, orange, and blue beauty

Looks for sweet nectar.

Art Prescription:  Out into the 100 degree heat I go after work to catch the bus to my car. Tired and grumpy, and hot, I wait for the next ride. Just then I spot a fluttering jewel out of the corner of my eye. No bus in sight, so I follow and wait patiently as she lands on the ground. Besides nectar from plants butterflies are often seen in the mud or around mud-puddles. They get certain minerals out of the soil. She posed perfectly for me and reset my attitude. A moment to marvel at the iridescent wings of a butterfly is just plain magic!

Haiku June 20, 2012 Summer Solstice

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Glow around edges

Silver lined Summer Solstice

June air sits on skin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Art Prescription:  It finally feels like the June I know and love. Lots of sun, lots of heat, lots of gorgeous flowers. For every silver-lined cloud there is a thunder storm brewing, heavy rain on thirsty crops, and so the cycle repeats itself.

Haiku June 19, 2012 Bee Balm

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Las Vegas style hat

Red feathery flamboyant

Hummingbirds fancy!

Art Prescription:  Bee Balm is an exotic flower. Deep tones of red stand tall on sturdy green stalks. True to their name, the bees love them, and so do hummingbirds. While I water my garden I often get a fly by, fluorescent hummer zipping in and out of my water stream. Their long pointy beaks fit nicely into the Bee Balm vessels. Our lives are so filled with motion and activity. The garden always reminds me to stand still a moment and just watch!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love the composition of this sketch…it’s like lovers saying  “I need to tell you something.”

Haiku June 16, 2012 Echinachea

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Echinachea

Grows tall, petals nod gently

No apathy here!

Art Prescription:  Actually more commonly known as Purple Echinachea, or Echinachea purpurea, Eastern Cone Flower. My blooming group stands tall and proud in the corner of a plant bed that rounds the sidewalk to my studio. These big, bold blooms say hello! And Echinachea has antidepressant properties, and is believed to stimulate the immune system.    

We could all use a bit of this. I’m distressed by apathy – or the seemingly spiritlessness of some people’s lives. The human will is a fragile thing. For me the simple act of watering and caring for my blooming garden creates moment after moment of peace and joy! The spirit of nature renews me, to study and sketch, sublime!

Haiku June 15, 2012 Sunflowers

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Bout to bust open

Show off big yellow petals

Wide rich green veined leaves.

Art Prescription:  So, the squirrels planted a couple of sunflower seeds last fall in my deck pots. Now with regular water and sun, these “volunteers” are growing tall and about to bust a bloom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sitting quietly and sketching with pen and ink is so Zen. No matter what’s on your mind, you can escape for the moment and study your specimen. Stay in the moment…stay in the moment…life is all about moment to moment. When we spend too much time worrying about the past or the future we are literally losing the moments we are living. I’ve tried meditating, but sitting still is a problem for me. A moving meditation like walking or drawing, or swimming, works magic. Namaste.