Cob Cottage Studio

Mother and Child

2009-07-12T15:21:00.000-07:00

New Jersey is home to many breeding farms. This painting titled"Mother and Child" was done from a photo of a Standardbred breeding farm. A friend and collector of my art supplied the photo. The finished painting is sized 13 1/2 x 18" on 300lb watercolor paper.

I miss having foals on our small farm. Our last foal was born six years ago. Our "Maggie" cold be bred and the thought has crossed our minds. Then reality sets in and we go on with our lives!

A Jack Called Punky

2009-07-08T11:09:00.001-07:00

This handsome fellow was all Jack when we visited Cobra Farm in Lexington,KY. last May, during my solo show at Gallery B. Though I was taken with all the beautiful thoroughbred horses at the farm, it seems the dogs I met there have come alive on my canvases first.
This is a small 8 x 6" casein on canvas on board.

Another rainy day finds me back in the studio for the afternoon. My pups are sleeping.The house is quiet. It's a good time to paint.

Jack Russells Wanta Have Fun

2009-07-07T12:11:00.000-07:00

Another gray day. Seems that is what I am bemoaning a lot these days.
Sorry if I sound like a broken record.
Above is a fun little casein on board, 5 x 7”, of a young JRT having fun. Jacks are always ready for fun! I am titling it “Leapin’ Lizards”. It will be put up on my website too. The pup who inspired this painting belongs to a new friend I have made on Facebook. Thanks, Vicki!!

Now I have to make some time for some commissions that need to get finished and in between those I will be working on new work. While my family series got put on a back burner, that whole subject matter is begging to be done…and so I have to follow my muse.

The other night I spent a fair amount of time looking for rentals in Italy. It is a dream of mine [and Les’ too] to go back to Italy and spend some time there. [Our horses and dogs and cat don’t think it is such a good idea…!] I looked over the area where Les and I used to live in Umbria and Tuscany. It has grown up so much since we were there…. villages are now cities. Cobbled stoned streets are now highways. Maybe we should stay where we are and just remember it like it was? Oh, but wouldn’t it be great to be painting in Italy again???

Getting Back to Normal

2009-07-06T06:29:00.001-07:00

After delivering the “BIG” painting to Freeport, my studio time as been sporadic at best. I manage to clean up a bit of the garden overgrowth and we mowed lawn in shifts with the sun. I captured back the book I was reading “Casa Rossa” , which was stolen by my husband while I was slaving away in the studio on the “Big” painting. But I also started two small caseins of JRT’s…. and a graphite commission of a paint horse. So I have been busy, but not over productive.

Here are a few shots of the gardens as they turn into jungles around the cottage.

Today we have sun…so I am headed out to muck stalls and walk dogs.
Then back to work…I have to paint!

Could It Be More Gray Out?

2009-06-29T12:27:00.000-07:00

There has been a serious lack of sunshine lately. My flowers are wilting...veggies are not growing...and I think we all, at Cob Cottage, are starting to grow mold! Nellie tried to soak up some sun the other day when we did have some rays bathing the farm. But the sun was short lived and now the farm is cloaked in fog and drizzle blankets the fields and woods.

I am still working on the BIG painting, but I am starting some small ones too, because my muse needed a change from big. Every evening I have to dismantle my easel and prop the big painting against the cupboard in my studio, so that we can get through the studio to get to the bedroom. I am thinking my studio was not meant to be housing BIG paintings.

And the first sunny day ....I am headed out to work in the gardens and soak up some rays. Nellie knows when to grab her chances...I was too busy painting on the Big painting!
Live and learn!!!

Sometimes I Mess Up

2009-06-25T13:48:00.001-07:00

I don't know what I did, but somehow I messed up the last blog entry and had to re-edit it. It doesn't take much to "mess up" my brain sometimes...........any how......Here is Addie in her E-cone, being the brave Corgi. She will do anything for a snack....in true Corgi fashion.

The sun is shining out in Morrill, Maine this afternoon, so I am going out and mow some lawn.
I need a studio break. Addie will take a nap.

Working Like A Dog

2009-06-25T13:23:00.000-07:00

I have been working like a dog lately…. and if that saying was really true, then I would be napping all day long and only getting up to eat or go for walks! At least that is how my two pups live! They have me well trained! But the truth is that I have been working every day …all day…painting on a project that is a stretch for me. But stretching is good. It helps us develop muscles! And this work also makes me stretch to paint, as the canvas is a BIG 4 foot by 4 foot. I will post the image at a later date and tell you more about it. Let it suffice for the time being, I am working like a dog! My artwork for the Equidae Gallery show [held in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., during summer race season] has arrived at the Gallery. I booked a B&B room for our stay August 6th through the 8th... and am looking forward to some site seeing in Saratoga. This is my first time seeing Saratoga and I have been told it is beautiful. That and horses galore…Heaven!
The casein pictured above is one of the paintings that are going to be hanging at The Equidae Gallery exhibit. It is a 9 x 12”, glassed and double matted. It is one of my favorite ones…It is titled
"I Can Do It Myself". AND.... Doing this big casein canvas painting I am doing now, is in a way proving to myself that I can do it!

Knowing Where I Am Going

2009-06-15T07:03:00.000-07:00

I have been asked by so many about my process of painting, how do I paint? How do I pick my subject matter and how do I approach a work?

Writing my process is the hard job...[ Can you say Aphasia?].......
but maybe showing it might be easier for me!

I recently started a large canvas of a horse and rider that I saw when I was at the Kentucky Horse Park. I was down there for my solo show at Gallery B in Lexington, in May.There was a hunter jumper 3-phase going on at The KHP that peaked my interest, so I sat and watched it for a while. I watched the stadium jumping and the warm up arena where there were various equestrians warming up, practicing and some were even taking last minute lessons with their trainers.There was eye candy for me everywhere and so hard for me to focus on what I felt I needed to capture. But this one rider and her horse kept piquing my interest....they had movement and excitement. So that is how I pick my subject matter ...to start. Above is the charcoal sketch I did on the 40 x 30" canvas.

Then I go in with my colors to give it some design....some definition as to what colors I want to use ..the darks and lights, and the entire composition element of the work. I have decided the depth of the work and where the light is coming from.

With casein, I have to wait while the paint dries between phases.....before I can go back in to glaze the next color over or if I want to intensify the current color. In my process I glaze, cross- hatch, dark over light...or light over dark...what suits my purpose. There are NO rules...and with casein I can do thin washes , graded washes,or do scumbling or broken colors techniques. I sometimes add a bit of acrylic into my casein paint....sometimes I add a larger concentration of casein emulsion into my paint. What I do in one painting is not necessarily what I do in the next.
I guess that is how I address life. There are no rules. Life changes and should the input and out put.

So this is where I am with this painting so far. Have I answered any questions?

Poppies Are Red

2009-06-11T12:56:00.001-07:00

This is the time of year that I really wait for all winter. As colors start popping in the gardens and the eye is drawn to each splash of red, and blue and yellow. as each perennial flower opens, announcing it's blooms. These days the poppies are singing their song with a complimentary note from the Shasta daisies. I have been forcing myself to stay in the studio and work on the commissions I have to finish for clients... and on the new works in the making.

Addie [ our eye impaired Corgi] demands time for walking and loving as she heals... along with her bored companion, Nell the little terrier-ist. So on my breaks from the studio, we walk around the gardens and make mental notes about what needs to be done to maintain the flower beds. It is an never ending labor of love.

So here is a sneak preview of what is happening in the gardens as I write. Enjoy .....and I need to get back to the art work at hand!

A Small Gem of a Jack Russell

2009-06-07T18:16:00.000-07:00

On my trip to Kentucky I met two new Jack Russell's and this is my first painting of one little lady who was a JRT to the core. She entertained us as she ran around her yard...a perfect lady!
This is a small [5 x 7"] casein on board. It will be available on my website in the Small Works Collection.

My studio is a mess...I am finding it hard to find my paint! Tomorrow calls for a clean up, I am sure! meanwhile, our Addie seems to be doing so much better. She is being her usual bossy Corgi self and walks around the house like a queen in her E-collar. Her cohort in crime is fascinated with Addie's new collar. She is acting like she wants one too. That could be arranged!!

Kentucky Sunrise

2009-06-05T05:29:00.001-07:00

This is a detail of the finished "Kentucky Sunrise" casein [18 x 18"] on canvas. The entire painting shows a panorama of the fenced fields at Darley Farm in Lexington. This stallion is Hard Spun who stands at Darley and who was an undefeated Stakes winner as a two year old. The power of this man, even standing as stud, is undeniable. The morning that we visited him he had just rolled in dirt....living the good life at this point in his career!

More handsome studs from this farm are in the works. So many and so awesome! I will be posting the whole view of the painting on my website. But we are still dealing with a sick Corgi and farm chores and life that just seems to keep getting in the way. Blog entries will be short and sweet for now!

Collar-ed Corgi

2009-06-02T15:34:00.000-07:00

She looks like the girl in the bubble!!

After a week of worrying about our Addie's right eye......and many visits to the vet's, today Addie had surgery on the eye and is now resting peacefully at home, even if a bit miffed at having to wear a silly old collar that certainly detracts from her beauty....and her ability to scoff up her food. She is a Corgi you know!!! Nell, the resident JRT, thinks Addie looks silly in this collar!! And how can she , in good terrier fashion, bite Addie when the collar gets in the way??

We had so many good folks contact us with prayers and positive thoughts during and after her surgery, that we want to thank everyone...we know it helped!!!

Even now it means a lot of hand walking the two dogs and doling out meds....I should be able to get back into the studio to finish up some almost completed works and start on some new ones.

If life doesn't keep getting in the way!!

Trivia Galore

2009-05-31T11:04:00.001-07:00

Well, I received the new palette and have filled it with some of my casein colors that I use. I almost don't want to touch it now, as it is so nice and pristine. But I know I need to "bite the proverbial bullet" and get down and dirty with it. I just needed to show everyone how nice it looks!! :-)

I have been busy going through the pile of photo shots taken in KY during our visit. Here is a shot of Bobbye and I in front of the American Academy of Equine Art. Bobbye and Ed were our hosts and tour guide during our entire stay. They gave us a royal tour of equine highlights in Lexington and Louisville; and then in Cincinnati we got into the arts and architecture of that great city. We can't thank them enough!

I have been painting some, but the past week was also taken up with caring for our Corgi, Addie, as she tries to get over a bad eye infection. Part of the ordeal is also keeping the puppy, Nell, away from Addie as the poor girl heals. Like kids!

Back to the drawing board now as I finish up a casein painting of a Lexington thoroughbred stallion who posed for me ....I know he wanted to be painted! I am putting the finishing touches on it now.

Small Dog Equals Small Casein

2009-05-25T11:46:00.000-07:00

This little JRT is our Little "Nell" on our deck, as she watched the comings and goings of the birds from their feeders behind the house, this past winter. It kept her occupied on warm winter days. This casein on canvas is only 4 x 4" and it will be put up on my website.

I work in my studio this Memorial Day listening to the wind whipping outside and knowing that tonight I need to cover all our annuals and veggies that have been planted due to the predicted frost. This is a common occurance in Maine....It is only spring still!!

Happy Memorial Day

2009-05-24T12:57:00.001-07:00

Our flag is flying high this weekend. It actually flies all the time. But today we stop and take time to honor the veterans and to also remember family and friends who have past. We all are indebted to the veterans who fought for our freedom... in America and abroad, in the past and still today. Some of them are from my family.....and today is a day to take time to remember them and what they have given for us and future generations. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Our spring is in full swing here in Maine..finally. My lilacs are perfuming the air and my perennial gardens give me so much joy ...either looking at them ..or working in them. Every year I say I will not get anymore new plants, but I can't stop myself from picking up some new flowers or ground-covers to round everything out! So far this spring I have added a new bleeding heart and a different Monks Hood. Don't ask me varieties..I just know color!! Years ago I worked in a commercial green house, and then for a nursery, but names escape me now. I just know color!!

This above is my "Look Into Garden", with the first blooming old fashioned lilac. I look down into this garden from my kitchen windows and it is a joy all year long with interesting landscape even in the middle of winter.

And then below, the view now from my studio, shows the round veggie garden that we separated with an arbor that will be shaded with grape, clematis and then morning glories later in the season.I get to look out at the horses as they graze in their fields. Mares on one side ...geldings on the other.

Now I better get back to work on painting on this glorious day of remembering and honouring!

Back Doing What I Do Best

2009-05-19T12:54:00.000-07:00

I enjoy my family, our home, gardens, animals...my life ! And everyday I feel blessed with this life and the life experiences I have had. And because I am feeling such a Pollyanna today, I have to admit I am SOOO lucky being an artist, painting what I love and having folks who enjoy my work.

The crab apple tree outside my studio window is all in blossom with sweet smelling flowers and even the plum trees have blossoms...not as many as last year. This will mean less plums to harvest for us. But the birds will have their crab apples to eat all through next winter.

But for today I don't want to think about next winter. Last year's Maine winter is still to vivid in my memory!!!

Touring Thru Kentucky And Solo Show

2009-05-14T11:27:00.000-07:00

May 2009 is a very month busy it seems. I feel as if it has me sort of hanging on to my hat!

Our trip to Lexington has come and gone and I am still dizzy with all the images captured in my head and on film from the whirlwind tour of Lexington, the Kentucky Horse Park, the horse farms and Keeneland and then over to Louisville and Churchill Downs…then following the Ohio River back to Cincinnati [Actually out side of Cincinnati in Ryland, KY.]

Here is a photo of Bobbye and I hamming it up at KHP! [me on left]

The opening reception at Gallery B of my solo show was fun, looked great and brought sales…. and after the opening we were taken out to dinner by the Gallery owners…to an Italian Restaurant,” Portofino”. Very appropriate for me, I am thinking!!! Portofino is one of my most favorite spots on the Mediterranean coast.

Me [a very tired me] and Marci

One wall of my show at Gallery B

On Saturday morning Marci, the director of Gallery B met us at our hotel and we headed out for a tour of Daly Farm, Sheik Mohammed of Dubai’s stud farm where I was able to get some great shots of some of the Thoroughbred industries best stallions…
[i.e. Bernardini, Hard Spun, Holy Bull, Rockport Harbor] courtesy of Gallery B! From there we headed out to Keeneland to grab a hearty breakfast at the famous racetrack restaurant. We walked around the stables and the grounds of Keeneland for more shots that I know will give me reference for future paintings. Then off we went to tour Cobra Farm and the broodmares and new foals. I also got some new JRT shots…great!! Then we headed to Louisville and Churchill Downs for afternoon races… a bit of betting …and a Mint Julep of course!

On Sunday we were back at Ryland and so went into Cincinnati and “did” the Art Museum and our hosts, Ed and Bobbye Winterberg gave us a grand tour of the city highlights. I loved the Victorian brick townhouses there along the Ohio River! We got to enjoy an art fair in a park along the riverside. And then to celebrate Mothers Day we headed to an Indian restaurant and pigged out on curry and Nan!!

I have a wealth of new reference shots to create from…. and I happy to be back in the studio and working on ideas. I arrived back to several new commissions, new show invites and looks like the summer is going to be busy.

Today I delivered my above casein of my mom riding a pig...it's titled "Poor Girls Pony" to the 2009 Festival of Art at the Huchinson Center in Belfast. Maine. That show opens today May 14th through May 17. Tomorrow we got to the opening reception for Jamie Wyeth's new show at the Farnsworth in Roclkand, Me.

Yes..very busy!
I guess I wouldn’t want it any other way!!!

Be Aware This May

2009-04-30T08:02:00.000-07:00

May is Stroke Awareness month. It is also the month that my solo art show titled ”Finding My Voice” opens in Lexington, Kentucky at Gallery B, with a reception on May 8th from 5-8 pm. The works in this show were recreated over that past two and a half years…since August of 2006. That date is pivotal in the theme of the show. But let me digress…read my blog entry of May 19th, 2008 that explains a lot. ....

"What May Means To Me Or Why I Blog" MAY 19TH 2008

May has always been a special month for my family…spring is in full swing, my husband’s birthday falls in May and of course so does Mother’s Day. But this year [and last year] May has taking on new meaning for us, as it is designated as Stroke Awareness Month.And we are very aware about stroke. Now.

On July 29th of 2006, my husband and I, along with my sister who was visiting from California, were all headed from our farm in Morrill, Maine to my eldest brother’s home in New Hampshire to celebrate his 70th birthday. It was a surprise party for him and for the first time in a long time, my siblings and I were going to be together to party and have a good time. We arrived on time and I got out of our car to greet everyone, feeling so happy to see us all together. My sister-in-law, Bev walked up to me and started talking …I could hear her, but I couldn't make out a word that she was saying. I didn’t feel right, but was busy looking around at everybody when I realized I couldn't see my right hand or arm and I couldn’t figure out where they were…and I was still trying to understand Bev. She sounded like a slow broken record and her words were all jumbled to me. I looked around for my husband, Les and when I saw him I asked, “Where’s my arm? And he said “By your side? What’s the matter?” Then I guess everyone saw something was wrong with me. I remember them helping me into the shade of a huge tree on the grounds and helping to lay me down on the ground. I looked up at everyone…I didn’t know what was happening. I couldn’t really talk and tell them what I felt and a sea of faces looked down on me. But through it all a strange feeling of calm and peacefulness filled my being and I knew it would be all right.

I was suffering a stroke.

I missed my brother’s 70th.To make a long story short…I was rushed to a hospital in N.H. and then was transported by ambulance to Portland, Maine, and admitted into Maine Medical Center. This was done in order that I should be closer to my family and doctors.Tests were started. The left side of my brain had been ‘attacked’ when the blood flow was interrupted or stopped due to a blood clot. A significant part of my left temporal lobe was affected and this left me with right-sided paralysis and Aphasia. Aphasia is a condition where language problems make it difficult to talk the way I used to and makes writing very difficult for me. Something that was so important to me in my life [I have worked as a newspaper reporter and fashion editor in the past…and wrote poetry.] .... was now something that was so difficult. My understanding and comprehension of speech were unimpaired, but speech itself became hard as my speech related muscles wouldn’t cooperate and my brain could not find the words to say what I wanted to. But what was more important to me, as I lay on the hospital bed with my family around me…could I draw??? I managed to get the nurse to understand what I wanted…. a pencil and paper. She brought them and everyone looked on as I sketched an eye, a horse head……….okay… I could live with the limitations I had a this point. I could draw, and this would mean I could paint. Life was good!!!

In the week that passed in between hospital tests, MRI’s and blood work, I sketched some, slept a lot, but I knew I needed to get home, to our quiet farm where I would be alone with my husband, see my Corgi and our horses, see and smell our gardens and get down to the business of getting better…. to getting ‘Kathi’ back!

This year and half that has passed has been difficult. Our horses became my therapy, as I brushed them while walking with a cane, my hand and arm gained strength. I cleaned stalls needing the muck fork to help stand up with. Throwing hay and lifting shaving bags became my upper body strengthen exercises. I had a speech therapist come and work with me in our home, who helped me start to get over some the Aphasia problems…and an occupational therapist to help me get my hand coordination back. And I painted…and drew and I slept. I slept a lot. I still sleep during the day needing naps to replenish my energy.

I started a blog after my therapist suggested that I do it as an exercise to recapture my language skills. Each and every blog entry has my recovery in it. Metaphorically each of my paintings tells of my struggles and my victories...most in the form of equine art.But through it all I knew that my attitude about what I was going through was more important to me that what had happened to me. My recovery depended on my attitude. I cannot control what happens to me in life, but I can control my attitude. And that is my life’s mantra now……….’if it’s gonna be..it’s up to me.’

And I have also been blessed with a wonderful husband who has been beside me through it all. Les has been the wind beneath my wings.So in a nutshell….that is my story. Why I blog.. and the road leading up to the beginning of my blog. That is my story and I am sticking with it.

SO…. next week, May 2009, we head down to Lexington, KY. for my solo show and a chance to explain to folks about stroke and the ramifications of it on it’s victims and their caregivers. I am one of the “lucky” stroke survivors…After a life time of suffering TIA’s [ little mini strokes ] and not knowing what they were really about…I feel a need now to tell more people about stroke and it’s symptoms. If I had paid attention to the TIA’S over the years before, maybe today I wouldn’t have the language skills deficit and the right-sided physical problems that I have today. What I didn’t tell doctors kept me from having the care I should have had before the stroke even happened. If I can help one person from experiencing stroke…it is worth it. Folks just don’t know ……maybe I can help?

But on the bright side….I do hope to see you at my reception…May 8th…5 to 8…be there!!! I will be looking for you!!!

New Series & New Schedule

2009-04-27T07:21:00.000-07:00

This morning the skies are a bit gray. We have had some glorious weather prior, with the maple buds bursting, giving the woods around our farm a lovely pink cast The pussy willows are beyond cat paws stage and now hang down with a light yellow glow and spring is really in the air. It always amazes me how spring is heralded in with mostly yellow colors. At least in my gardens. I delight in the changing colors as the spring and summer processes. Love it!

I have decided for the most part, from now on I will work 5 days a week in the studio and will allot my weekends to spending time doing other than studio work. I think I have earned it! And we will see how long I can stick with it!

This is new casein, pictured above, that I am working on…It is a Work In Progress. A “WIP”. And then I have also been asked to do more dog 'works'…so need to think on that a bit. I have willing subjects just sleeping around the house!

But my heart is really into a new series I am starting, exploring and thinking on.. On the other hand…I have vowed to do some plein air work this summer…[ I said that last year too?]
But the BIG question plaguing me is what to pack to clothes for the KY trip!!

It Might Look Messy

2009-04-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

But there really is a method to my mess...it works for me. I think I have explained before, in previous posts, that I do not paint in the time honored traditional ways. My palette is not set up traditionally. My entire studio is none conformist! The story of my life!!
I have been asked by several folks, artists and clients, to show a peek at my palette…so aiming to please.. here it is! ” Ah?” You say…..”It’s a mess!!” Maybe by some standards it is. But the most important fact is that I get the paint out of this shamble and do manage to put it down in the right spots on the canvas or board, or paper!
The other question I am frequently asked is "What colors do you use?"
At any given time I might be using Naples Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Red Scarlet, Ultramarine Blue Deep, Cobalt Blue, Cerulean Blue, Paynes Gray, Shiva Violet, Raw Umber, Venetian Red, Halftone Black, Golden Ochre, Raw Sienna, Terra Verte, [ I LOVE Terra Verte!!]Cadmium Green and of course Titanium White. I don't use a Ivory Black but will often mix my own black black if I need it.
All these colors are employed my casein painting...and I use them on canvas, paper, gessoed board...I love them!
I also love watercolors , but that is another ball of wax!

So my palette might be messy...I agree!! But I think this painting [ "Driven" ] is neat! I am hating to part with it. I sometimes get that feeling about a finished work and hang on to them...this is one of those! But"Driven" is slated to hang in the Gallery B show next month. We are starting to pack works that will be shipped down to Lexington over the next two weeks. My shipper is snoring on the couch at the moment! So I will continue to paint!

Doesn't "Driven" look lovely framed?

Moi AKA Karen

2009-04-15T11:42:00.000-07:00

Years ago..in another life...I painted models and drew models. My entire day was drawing and sketching models. Part of me misses that..but as my life and surroundings changed, my subjects also changed. My days were filled with horses. I became an equine artist!

I have a dear friend, who is also an artist...and I just finished a painting of her. Karen means a lot to me ...we have been a lot together over the years ...and I wanted, for some reason, to paint her. Here she is. This is a 12 x 12" casein on board. She has challenged me to let her paint me. She asked for a recent photo....HA! Like that is going to happen!!

But I want to say that I am still enjoying painting folks.... or dogs.. and of course, horses. But it will not be just about horses anymore.

Can't STAY Inside Today

2009-04-14T11:30:00.000-07:00

Things were getting heated downstairs as I worked in my loft studio...the pups were wrestling and Addie ,our PWC was being terrorized by Nell the JRT. Sometimes I think they do this to get my attention, just like my kids used to! It works! So I headed down to break it up.

The sun was so inviting so we took our lunch and sat on the deck getting some of those rays we were not blessed with during the winter months. Nell is a Florida girl...she LOVES this weather!

Sitting and listening to the brook bubbling by and the birds singing.... Things we just dream about during Maine's chilly snow filled winters.

So after our sunbath and lunch break I went back up to my loft to work on a casein painting I am doing and happened to look down to see who was scratching at the back door wanting to go out. Who else but the "beast"!! So like a good mom that I am ....out we went to rake the front gardens and enjoy the day some more. Really! This weather is our award for having survived yet another Maine winter!!! At least that is what my canine companions tell me!!

And I agree!!!

Framed Again

2009-04-13T10:53:00.000-07:00

The past few weeks have been riddled with the distraction of getting a solo art show together of my works for a lovely gallery in Lexington, Kentucky. Gallery B is hanging a show of my artwork that has all been produced since my stroke in the summer of 2006. As I pulled all these works together, I see a definite change in my work since that life changing event ...yes, I have been able to paint since, during and before....but there is a certain "Je ne sais pas que" change in it all. I can't wait to see it all hung in one gallery to make a collective statement. Opening reception is May 8TH at 5-8 pm. I hope all you blog followers who live around Lexington will come and see me and my work....and a portion of all sales will be donated to the National Stroke Association

The Show is called "Finding My Voice". Like many victims of stroke, I was left with language skill deficits ...spelling, finding words, numbers and writing all became hard or at times impossible..but my Lord, my art,our horses and dogs, my gardens, some really great friends and the quietness of our lovely little farm in Maine healed me and life does go on...And golly gee!!!! I am having a solo art show in Lexington, KY....The Heart of Horse Country, USA!!

Two of the smallest paintings are pictured above. These are both from my 'Shades of Black' series, and are done in casein on board...the paintings are only 4 x 4"...neat little squares! This series is a study of light and shadows on black horses at different times of the day and different seasons.

I am excited about the upcoming show..but our farm keeps me grounded.....with cleaning stalls and shedding out dusty winter hair-coats from 4 equine beasts and two canine beasties.

The Equestrian

2009-04-06T11:44:00.001-07:00

I am painting today when I should be getting things together 'better' for my solo show with Gallery B in Lexington, KY. in May. But I really believe one [ meaning me!] needs to paint while the muse is hot. So I finished this mixed media painting [ 10 x 10 1/4"] of my mother as "The Equestrian". As I explained before in an early post on my blog, and will explain again.....I am working on a series of works depicting my family and times in their lives. I feel a need at this point in my life to make a statement about my family's past. I am hoping that someone will connect with this statement and understand what I am trying to say. At times I don't really know What I am saying?!! So good luck to us all!!

The wind has kicked up a notch here on the farm and gray clouds have replaced the sun that shone earlier. Spring is being it usual fickle self. I don't mind though as the promise of bulbs bursting and flowers blooming is so evident! So while the weather brews a storm, I will take care of things that need being done for the May show and think about what I plan on doing in the gardens when weather permits. It will at some point! It always does!

Feeling "Driven"

2009-04-03T12:26:00.001-07:00

The rain is coming down and hopefully will melt a lot of the piled up snow in our barn yard and gardens. I took a break from the studio yesterday while the sun was out and got some raking done...and today I suffer for it. Guess I discovered muscles that weren't worked over the winter, even with daily workouts mucking stalls!!!

This morning, before the rain started, I was able to get a shot of the latest casein off the easel, a 20 x 16" done on board....and I am calling it "Driven". This painting will be going to my solo show next month. The show is called "Finding My Voice" and will be hung at Gallery B in the city of Lexington, KY. I am so happy to say that a portion of all sales in this show will be donated to The National Stroke Foundation. I will be post more on it later.

I have quite a few shows on the agenda this summer and will keep you all up to date on my website Events page. It seems lately that I am juggling too many balls in the air!! But I plan to keep them all airborne! suffice it to say..."I am "Driven!"!!