Week 12 update

Cleaned out linen closets this week. It is amazing what gets buried! Four bags later of stuff to give away and throw away! Detritus of not being able to pay attention to "stuff" accumulating in one's life. I do feel that there is way to much 'stuff" everywhere. Will take a lot of effort to go through it all eventually.

I was able to try a lino block print this week. I used a much softer version of the old school linoleum to cut a stylized fish. Added impressions of another small block I cut a while ago on an eraser. Used proper inks and brayers.

Also managed to get two drawings done sitting outside this weekend with mom. Lovely weather---not too hot 26 or so--- and no humidity.

Here is my bluebird.

And here is another try at the swallowtail butterfly. Different source photo from the one I did several weeks ago. Turned out better I feel.

I found it hard to get motivated this week to get working on something bigger and new. I have made a list of a lot of things that need to be fixed in the house and in the garden. May have something to do with it.

Feline Capers with Flying Carpets!

Max (full name Felix Maximus) and Oscar were chasing each other around the place going full tilt boogie, Up and down stairs, through the family room down the hall, through the living room up to the dinning room, onto the dinning room table (which is a no-no!). Alex has been sorting through boxes of slides on top of mom's persian table carpet. In any event they were doing so fast that the carpet  went flying onto the floor with cats and boxes of slides . I've never seen them jump so high with the unexpected carpet ride. Their genuine surprise at having everything go flying was quite something to see.Currently they are sitting on the desk beside me watching as I write this blog.

As to art projects, I.ve been trying e few new techniques with mixed result. Here are two small paintings I did using a brayer to apply watercolour right from the tube, Then I applied water and saran. Finished it off with pens to highlight.

Also tried my hand at using pastels again. This time its a drawing of trees..

Week 11 is done!

I'm rather glad this week is over. I have felt that I have had very little control over my time or anything for that matter. I did have to take the new plasma TV back to have it replaced and then the cable repair supervisor came back to hook everything up again. Lots of running around just having to do stuff. I can't even say that it amounted to much. Oh yes, I almost forgot the wing chair and ottoman came back from being re-upholstered, so the living room is pretty well set. I am still on the hunt for a unique side table or cabinet. That will be serendipity.

As to art work, I have been working with acrylics trying different techniques and mediums. Here are two small paintings using stamping and gloss gel. The stamp was cut out of an eraser.

The other one is bigger and was my first attempt at using a self leveling gel with acrylic. It did not respond as I expected. I thought I could get the paint mixed with the gel to "flow" . Not much viscosity. I will try this again, but not without a bit more information as to how it works best. I have seen some artists produce works where the paint seems to just flow beside or through other colours of paint. that's what I wa aiming for. Instead I got more of a Jackson Pollock approach with a lot less control than he achieved! Oh well, this year was about experimenting and learning (I hope)!

TV and Terrarium Wars plus Mom turning 98!

On Tuesday Mom turned 98. Beautiful day! I did have to remind her constantly that it was her birthday. I put out fancy clothes for her, but she came down with an old outfit on, so we has to go dig the new ones out of her closet. In any event we were able to go out for a drive, have some company over for a visit, and go out for dinner with her. Her mantra is the countdown to 100. This picture was taken a couple of days later.

Still having problems with the new TV and its set-up. It may come down to taking it back and getting a replacement as the lesser of all evils. On top of that we had to do an emergency cleaning of the terrarium, since Tuesday morning there was a white film floating on top. Big job!!!! The last time we took everything out was in May. We need to come up with a better system for keeping it clean longer. The pumps were quite plugged.

In spite of it all I did get a watercolour abstract done. Used modeling paste and glass bead gel to create texture for the watercolour. Then I went back in water soluble ink pencils to hghlight.

Week 10 Blahs!

This has been a frustrating week, what with technicians breaking off a connector while rewiring to complete the installation. Still not complete in that now the new TV has to be taken in for repair. Many hours wasted with this. That, plus a lot of heat and humidity and short tempers all around, its not been too pretty.

I've also been trying a couple of new techniques with less than stellar results. Its hard to be patient with myself so that I can learn to master a new medium and/or technique. So I will have to try again. One of my personal lessons. Its always been easier to go off in another direction, rather than dig in to master something that does not come easy. At least anything for myself has always been like that. If I was tackling a client project, I would just dig in until I got it done to everyone's satisfaction. Oh well, it isn't a "journey" without introspection, hurdles, and small victories.

I did manage to do another couple of drawings in pastel sitting outside this week with mom. Pastel is such a messy medium, so outside seems to be the ideal place to work.

The perspective is not quite right, but I do like the intensity of the cheetah's stare.

For some reason, I am drawn (pun intended) to wildlife drawing lately! That and abstract. This last one that I will post is an acrylic with drops of isopropal alcohol to disperse the paint. Less dispersal that I expected, so I went back in to enhance patterns.

Mid-week ten! TV hurdles!

I had been working on a pastel drawing of Anemones sitting outside since it is such a messy medium, when I got interrupted by Alex to say that Hydro was here to replace the meters to the new digital ones. All the power was off for a while. Fine! So with the power off , all the electronic equipment needs to be pampered and changed, in this case including our old TV in mom's den. Its the one we all watch together. It decided to lock up and not take any input. After a lot of fiddling we decided the time had come to dump the old one and buy an new Samsung Plasma flatscreen. We've had the old Zenith for 19 years. so no regrets, although I had been thinking that Christmas would have been the time to do this. So off to the store....... has to fit in my car..... hoist it upstairs and get it set up. Took quite some time and effort, but not nearly as much as wrestling the old one downstairs. Weighs a ton!! At any rate, nothing goes easy. Finally broke down to get Rogers in to get the connection hooked up. Some channels look horrible... most look fab!. By now its 10:00 pm. The verdict is that the reason that we don't have perfect reception on all channels is due to the old line feeding the upstairs TV. Should be replaced. So yesterday we decide that this too should be done. They are coming on Friday to replace the cable. Needless to say, I've not gotten much painting done. Worked a bit this morning on  a painting of what I hope will be a Thunderbird and perhaps this afternoon I can get back to the pastel drawing..

Well I did get it done this afternoon. Here it is.

I do love the rich creaminess of pastels, but I'm going to have to practice more to get better control over the medium.

Creativity or mediocrity?

I'm having a grey day today. Heavy and grey sky may have something to do with it, but it may also be where I'm at. Starting this creative journey feels a lot like doing a detox or throwing up a hairball. What comes out is not pretty.So what I'm feeling about what I am producing or trying to produce is that its off the mark. Probably mediocre. I've been experimenting with different approaches ----- that was after all the intent for this year----- but the results are less than satisfying to me, but still I need to just let it be as it comes out. Does not always help either to get friendly advice, in that when something is done for me, its done. I'd rather try again, later when I'm ready. I do not do well with fixing something that's not quite right. Makes me feel mediocre and like I have to meet some outside criteria. I may or may not post these thoughts. For now I'm just putting them down.

I came back to this about 6 hours later. What is creativity anyway? Who creates? I'd like to think it is God working through me. I do know something is pushing to get born. Sometimes if feels like a hairball, but I hope sometimes it can also be something inspired!  Who decides?

As to creative endeavors the last couple of days, I have created two new neckpieces. One is a tri-colour freshwater pearl necklace.

.The other was a little trickier. I had a curved piece of abalone shell, that I wanted to have as a centre piece with a potato pearl strand across it. It needed something to create contrast, so I put in a caged shell drop on one side. Odd, but it sits quite interestingly on the neck bone.

Lastly, I just finished a piece I call Whale Dreams. I have no idea where it came from, but I guess I was channeling my inner Shaman.  Although there are dark connotations to whale symbolism, I like the interpretation of the whale with the seed of renewal and the flow of the cosmic water of life
Source: The Complete Encyclopedia of Signs & Symbols: Identification and Analysis of the Visual Vocabulary That Formulates Our Thoughts and Dictates Our Reactions to the World Around Us

Mid-week nine

Its already the ninth week of this journey, and I have still so much I have not yet tried. One of my concerns is that I will go off in too many directions at once and not get to my true destination. But hey, its the journey that counts, isn't it?

Alex and I went to see Inception yesterday. Quite intriguing concept that is well done, but leaves me guessing as to what is real. Brings up the question. Is this life the real dream? When will we know what is real and what is just a pale imitation of a dream?

On to my creative endeavors this week so far. Here is a study of an golden eagle that I did sitting outside on Monday with mom. I may want to learn how to do this properly in oils someday! This is done with water soluble Inktense and Graphite pencils.

On Tuesday I worked outside with pastels. I've always loved the creamy texture and rich colours some artists are able to produce using pastels. Difficult medium to control.

I also did an abstract, but I'm not sure that I'm finished with it yet.

Tomatoes, Apple of Peru plant, and interrupted sleep

I have been reading Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love. I'm about two thirds of the way through and I find myself reconnecting with some of my post divorce passage to independent, self-sufficient womandhood! Long time ago and not something I think much about now, but this current journey has some parallels.

Tomatoes!!! Out of the garden, fresh picked and popped into my mouth! I had forgotten the intense sweet taste, unlike anything you can buy from the grocery store or even a farmer's market. Its been years since I have planted my own tomatoes. I can't imagine why it took me so long to try again. Another discovery this week has been a plant that came from a branch with seeds that I picked last year during one of my early walks through the neighbourhood. Not one I had ever seen before. I planted the seed head and forgot about it, until I discovered it peeking out from under a bleeding heart plant several weeks ago. Grows quite rapidly, so I will have to move it to another part of the garden. Sandy was able to have it identified by the Biology Department at Trent University as the Apple of Peru, or Nicandra physalodes. Lovely mauve trumpet shaped flowers  on a tomatillo type shellcase. Apparently its an annual that self seeds quite rapidly. I'd sure like to know why its called the Apple of Peru though!

On to interrupted sleep. Mom has taken to waking up in the middle of the night again and thinking its time to get up.  In the last four or so nights that has been the case. Several nights ago Alex woke me up because she had been rattling around in her closet for some time around 1:30 am or so. I went to check and she was fully dressed and had made her bed! Saturday night she calls me to wake me about 2:30 am to ask if she can have her bath. She was up again at 4:00 and at 5:30 am! Last night a bit better. She woke me about 6:30 to see if she could have her bath. I always get her to go back to bed, but its hard for me to get back to sleep after that.

I did get some more painting done. A couple of studies working outside sitting with Mom. One is from a photograph I took of a wall of hydrangeas a long time ago when Alex and I were able to take a short break and go to visit wine country in the Beamsville Bench.

The other is a study of a Swallowtail butterfly. I got a lot of positive feedback on the Monarch I did last week, so I thought I'd give it another go. Not quite as real.

Lastly, another abstract done with acrylics and modeling paste.