Flowers, Plants and Trees

So!  Been in the workroom a couple hours already this morning and did a couple smalls based on some photos in my bin.  I haven't even placed the painting of the succulent even close to the mandala yet and the colors may not correspond; if not, I'll have some more work to do making it more of the greens that are in the photo.  I think the poppies will work though.  The actual flowers are not really visible in this photo since the angle is weird, but I think they will be okay once I mount the canvas with the rest.

Flowers are my comfort zone:  I love them, I have painted them lots, they mean happiness to me, I don't ever think flowers or weeds are ugly, they are nature, we are connected to our plants and flowers and of course trees, they smell good, they look good, they feel good, they convey living and breathing on the earth, etc. etc.  I could go on and on about the story of flowers that is always in my head.  But, I won't.

I will take a breath and get ready to work on another landscape for September at Sutter Gallery.  Maybe after a little meditation break in the backyard, yes with my flowers, plants and trees.

A Sunflower

This sunflower's petals are falling down all over itself, and that's what I love about it. I love it's ability to still be attractive even in its floppiness, in its not so pristine and perfect existence.  It can stand in the hottest summer air and thrive just because of the heat, it also has a thick and tough stem so that it can withstand the stiffest of winds that sometimes come to the open fields and gardens where sunflowers grow.  It can sustain itself for weeks in a vase of fresh and clean water but do not let the water get stinky and smelly or our Ms. Sunshine says au revoir.

Each painting is a story, lots of times a painting is a metaphor for life's adventures in the simplest of forms.  When one puts lots of them together in the form of a mandala, then what great stories we may conjure as we slowly take in each little "small" painting.

Onto Sunflowers

Well!  Here we are with my daily paintings (that I have not done daily).  I have 3 more done and they are small landscapes in which I've tried to keep within the color confines of my mandala.  I may need to go back and lighten/darken as necessary when I am finishing off the overall painting, dunno.  Then again I may like the differences in view of the necessary part of my brain that dictates to me about not being a part of the ordinary crowd.  I'm the artist and the one making the decisions...I am the Queen of Everything!!!

Here are the most recent three:

As one can see from this one laying on my work table, I am finishing off the sides as I go.

This second one is two trees, one bushy and one a more confined type...I see that I may need to take out one though...looks confusing now that I am done with it.

Third little gem is trees in the background with long weeds in the foreground while keeping the edge of the mandala in place...maybe the weeds are too dark.  I'll make this decision later.

Okay so...onto the next small.  I am wondering about a new idea for another one of these little guys.  I haven't done any flowers yet, hummmm...yellow sunflower?  Yay!

Seeing Pink Spots!

And so got caught up working on my strata landscape.  Of course it took me an hour to get ready to come into my studio in the proper attire!  Yesterday at the gallery offered the thought to me that if I am my own authentic self in my demeanor and in the way I dress, just be myself, I am able to speak to customers and the public in a meaningful way without any inhibitions.  Wow!  Really?

There were just a few problems with the painting I felt, so I took out the two pink spots and made them a little subdued and formulated a better strata, I think.

Now to get back to my mandala, it's been ignored but not forgotten.  I feel like an artist today thanks to my recently formed new critique group, yay!

Life is A Strata Composition

So on my walk this mornin' decided to take some photos of our Preserve as I am in the process of doing some landscapes to hang at Sutter Creek Gallery in September.  This is one that I just finished.  It's a strata composition in that it contains lines of different levels that go up into the distance.

Here are a couple images of the first photos I took:

As I walked I felt the oh so wonderful feeling of freedom and contentment that I always do when I get outside.  So many strata compositions, so little time.  As I took more photos I realized strata compositions everywhere...so look at these of the golf course, even these are stratas.

 As I walked back to our neighborhood, I said out loud "Life is a Strata Composition" and this was to myself since nobody else was anywhere even near to me.  So then, look at the stratas I found:

  Even the simplest walking areas are stratas.

At this point I realized Betty was in her garden clipping and having a zen moment.  We smiled to each other and she mentioned my having a zen moment with my camera and I agreed with her that I was, in fact, having a zen experience explaining to her strata composition being a metaphor for life.  As we live life through the years our experiences, events, moments of questions, choices, answers, loves, hates, the goods and the bads, create layers to our lives...Layers as in a strata composition.  Betty smiled and I could see she got it, two ladies in a zen moment realizing the layers and layers that have created our beautiful strata compositions.  Wow, just decided on the title of my new series "Life is a Strata Composition"

Little Whisp of Pink

DAY 10

So, here's No. 10 so far:

Lots of my stamp on this one and a little stencil work on the bottom.  This is a little larger canvas, 5x5" and I finished the edges as well with a continuation of the front design.  Each one is different on the sides as some are finished in a solid black or combination of the colors I have used on the individual piece. 

Breathing nicely this evening and now going to my place on the couch to enjoy some television and the A's game with my hubby.

Oranges and Pinks, What???

I am laughing out loud at myself again!  I just put together my pieces that will eventually be a mandala painting and I have 10 semi-completed.  How did that happen?  The last I posted were Numbers 5 and 6.  So here's the majority of the pieces together as of this morning:

The tenth small painting is on my work table drying after doing some stamping and painting work on it this morning.  I will be posting a photo of it later today.

At this point I'm questioning the orangish pigment that has taken over in a few spots.  I guess it's because I added yellow to the red that I'm mixing with white to make the pink.  When the big piece is done it may work out since I haven't incorporated anything other than my original 4 colors but we will see.  I keep going back over the completed pieces as they dry because acrylics have a tendency to change color as they get drier.

It's been a beautiful morning.  I already watered by vegetable garden, I've got tons of cherry tomatoes happening so I may possibly making my infamous gespacho next week!  It's really good with a nice little red blend that I know...yay!