Surrender's Strength

With my paintbrush, I ground myself by sinking roots deep into the earth, uplift myself by stretching to my fullest height towards the light.

With gratitude.

No Longer at a Distance from Life Itself
6 x 6"; acrylic, latex, and oil pastel on gessobord
abstract landscape
2019

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art history:

Little Neck Road, 2015,
lies underneath No Longer at a Distance, 2019

Dialing In

At first, I fight and resist and strike out and punch and rant and thrash and gain no ground. I think I'm up against an immutable law of physics.

Then, exhausted to the point of stillness, I see that I have created my own uproar, am up against my own mind.

Again.

I let self-compassion wrap its arms around me.

Also again!

I dial into being present to simple pleasures:

• managing the intricacies of using a rewards card and my credit card successfully at a gas pump on the way home from the gym on an unexpectedly balmy predawn December morning;

• collecting from our mailbox a bank statement, a payment, a magazine, and a postcard featuring a first-day-of-issue postage stamp;

• building layers and layers and stories and stories into a veritable skyscraper of a new painting!

Reading the Braille of Bark and Lichen
6 x 6"; acrylic, latex, ink, and oil pastel on canvas board
abstract landscape
2019
sold

art history (backstories can be read at links):

In the Wake, Long Lake, a study
9/19/15
first layer/one story

In the Wake, Thinking about Watters, a study
9/20/15
another layer/another story

In the Wake, Emmy!
another layer/another story

layers painted over In the Wake, Emmy!

painters' tape on top of layers

Reading the Braille …

Art History

I took at least one art history course in college: American art, I think.

Do I remember anything from that class that I could tell you? Nothing comes to mind.

Maybe I'd recognize a few correct details if presented with a multiple-choice format?

Hard to say.

But I digress. The art history that has me captivated at the moment is that of this little painting. It has brought me such satisfaction in the past few days. Inspired by a here-today-gone-tomorrow mini-tutorial offered by Amanda Evanston, it offered me the perfect balance of messy-intuitive and intentional-but-largely-uncontrollable.

Soooo much joy!

The Many Grays of This Winter Morning
6 x 6"; acrylic, latex, and pastel on canvas board
abstract landscape
2019
sold

the art history:

Camp Root System
9/4/2015

layers painted over Camp Root System

painters' tape on top of layers

The Many Grays …

Negative Space, Positive Space

Just have to post this next step in a piece that is still in process—as I played for a few minutes in my studio creating negative and positive space on my canvas, I moved from a negative internal space to a positive one! Grateful!

work in progress
6 x 6" canvas board

Seeing

Practicing seeing elements of visual language, turning my attention to a work in progress that's maybe halfway to its eventual stopping place. Up to this point in the process, my intent has been to establish multiple layers that cover the canvas vs. to make a composition.

I notice:

• cool color palette
• predominantly matte paint, with black splatters of gloss
• black spatters mostly of similar size
• black spatters that create contrast
• a shadowy hint of the circumference of a circle whose diameter is about 2/3 the size of the canvas, located roughly in the center
• scribbly lines
• repetition of small mulberry squares throughout, all same size
• depth created by layering
• texture of canvas evident in varying degrees
• no particular directionality

work in progress
6 x 6" canvas board