painting as a child

playful color... it makes no difference to me whether made in nature or made by man... big sweeping sunflowers flowing with the bright colors of yellow... tiny red and black lady bugs dot their petals...

temper paints lined up in front of a large sheet of butcher paper, waiting for their turn for the little round little fingers to dip into their silky hues and produce a finger painting masterpiece.

these were some of my first memories where i recognized the importance of color...
i love the way paint feels on my hands a rainbow of my very own tucked safely under my fingernails...the way a brush full of paint and color moves across the paper...as a child i could spend hours lost in the magic of my painting...stories to be told only for me...

i miss those quiet times creating...molding my personality into the artist i have become...i miss being a child and not knowing what may happen or the freedom i felt to dive into such an adventure...so this summer i will meet my old friends...open my paint box...and let my little round fingers explore what it is again to make a finger painting masterpiece...

surfing the unknown

there are days i feel brave...that surfing into the unknown wearing only a wetsuit and carrying only my surfboard will carry me across the waves into the ocean... into the unknown...today was such a day...i started looking into products i will need to start my art business...scanners, printer, color pencils in every huge...bright oranges and blues... shades of golden yellow so soft one can hardly see their effects a pond the page...i love art supplies...brushes to fill with thick rich paints...drawing pads with their glossy cream colored pages waiting for the charcoal of my green handle pencil to approach laying the first soft strokes of an outline...

this part is easy... shopping is easy... i have been drawing and painting for so many years it really comes quit natural to me...it's the show case of works that may take some time...comfort in others eyes...

i must be fearless if only for myself...i must paddle my surfboard through the waves turn...mount...and stand on top my board...feeling the rocking of the water under me... it's coolness lapping my feet i will watch for the shoreline...slowing riding back towards the sandy beach...into the unknown.



my mermaid
mixed art hand painted on canvas

love love love painting for my children...tooth fairy boxes,painting their bedroom walls,canvas works and these chairs that go with the Dogs do Rule table...

i lose myself in time and space when i paint...there is a calm easy place in my painting...a place all to my own...

three years to pot roast

i remember as a child spending summers at my grandparents home, some of the most heart warming foods on the planet being plated and set in front of me for dinner...for me, every mouthful was a safety net being carefully wrapped around me holding me in place lost in a moment of time....the foods of my childhood are closely tied to the happiness i feel today.

when i first tried to recreate my grandmothers pot roast i failed, with a great sigh,and mustered the willingness to try again. it took three years and plate after plate of half done meat, raw vegs and soupy stock to master what i know my grandmother would be proud of. (and my family begs for)

chuck roast lightly flour and brazed in veg oil
two cans of del monte diced tomatoes-garlic and onion
slow cook for 1 hour-add
potatoes
carrots
celery
garlic
salt and pepper
a bit of water to cover and simmer for three to four hours

warm bread and three years to pot roast...my grandparents are always with me.

spaghetti dinner

tonight we ate...spaghetti, the one meal my whole family will eat without question...
perfect pasta... dressed in a sweet red sauce... dancing with crusty garlic bread...600 cal all for me...prepared by my husband, what could be better. (not doing dishes)

i was born an artist, it's true...you may have heard this line before... my mother says i was coloring by six months making my own finger paints out of peas and carrots... drawing the faces of the people i saw around me out of mud, a stick as my brush and the sidewalk as my canvas.

i have used many forms to create my art as i have grown...many of these still involve food...i love the colors and textures of the food i fix for my own dinner...many of the shapes i use in my art.

there will be many projects ahead for you to read and become a part of...starting with a few paintings i have done just for me.