Sometimes an idea works....updated and final

The other day I was practicing with Metal leaf on a rather small canvas.

(12" X 18")
Painting over the leaf is hard, unless the surface is prepared to accept colour.

Acrylics (if very watery as I choose to use here) will bead and clump but not stick.  

So I experimented with a variety of colours atop the Gold/Silver & Copper leaf.
I dropped the colour and then inserted other colours inside the larger drops and let it all dry.
When almost dry I sprinkled Gold dust randomly over the semi dry surface.

(New work)

I, was actually pleased with the outcome.  While some thought it could stand alone as it was, I wanted to add a dash of contrasting colour somewhere.
Because the  (now) background suggested a floral garden to me, I felt that maybe a Red Flower would be just the thing to bring this canvas to light.
Maybe a Poppie?

And I remembered....A while back (actually in an earlier post here ) I had painted three Poppies on canvas. 
While removing it from the stretcher bars for shipping, I noticed that somehow a very fine white line ran through the middle of the painting horizontally.
The line was visable only in the darker area, but very visible.
So that sale was off, and the painting stayed rolled up for a couple of years on the shelf. 
I could not bring myself to trash the painting, as I had done some of the finest brush work ever on these flowers.
So there it stayed.

Until last night.

I got the idea, that if I could cut the flowers out of the canvas and somehow superimpose them on 

the new canvas I would have the Red I wanted, the floral I wanted, and save a painting as well.

Now cutting any fine line out of a Canvas is not for the faint of heart.
It shreds, Will not stay in place, and is just about impossible to do.
But I did it.

 

 (The original painting) 

The next problem was how to affix the cut-out to the canvas, attend the loose threads at the edges 

give it some stiffness and bring it all together.

I decided to make a base with Goldens semi gloss gel, superimpose the cut-out on that,

 let dryand then cut it out again.  

This would give the cut-out some substance and stiffness as well.

I got my trusty pane of glass layered the gel on it, and lightly dropped the cut-our atop it face up.

(Bottom view of the gel process)

Then with a paint brush handle I gently pushed the
Image into the gel so it would adhere to the gel.
And now it is drying.  A long process to be sure, but when dry I will have to trim it again and decide where to go from there.
More to come on this.

( top side of the imposed flowers )


Well I got the Poppies mounted on the gel, cut out (again)
and mounted on the canvas.
I LOVE IT!
I do have a bti of detailing to do on the over-lay, but I can see this work is going to be just what I imagined.
Yes, I guess I can (sometimes) actually follow through on an idea!
I am a happy Artist this morning.
steps below.

 What it looks now!
The overlay is on and looks wonderful.

 you can see the white lines of the edges of the cut-out canvas here, I used a #0000 brush to
paint over the white, and I am pleased.

 Close up of the final work.
SOLD
Later all
Remember clicking on any photo will enlarge it for better viewing.
~~Kathleen

Night Skies (detail of Moon added)

I love the Night skies.
Here in the Northern section of North America we have beautiful skies.
We have wonderful cloud formations/deep blues and an ever changing vista when we look up to the Heavens.

My favorite, has always been the night skies.

I live just a few minutes from Calgary,Alberta, Canada,
We are still we are in an area where our skies are not marred by the glow from the urban centers.
The Nights here allow one to star gaze, watch the Northern Lights when they dance above us, and to enjoy the ever constant changing blues of the night.
My Latest:
"Night Skies"

Acrylics and mixed media on cradled Birch Panel

20" X 20"

Detail of the glistening snow below

The electricity of the sky amid the "Northern Lights"

Detail of the Moon

Hope you like it.
Comments/critiques always welcome

Later all
~~Kathleen

But, then again....Finished:)

For weeks I have been working on a painting that will entail the Northern lights.  They are wonderful and so magical.  Initially I wanted to paint  something that described a wonderful passage from a book I had read, but the Author never answered my request to use her words as an inspiration for the work.
As in totally ignored my request.
Sei la vie.
At least I cared enough to ask permission, where many would not.
No loss though.
So I had to take another look at how I could do it.
I had everything done, Birch Panel prepared and was ready to paint and assemble the work, but something happened to my idea.
It seems that a brush in my hand has it's own idea of what it will do, 

and,

 I started with a wonderful Green hue that had no business on a painting that would depict the night skies.
Then some Molding paste and a template over took me and then some Copper foil, and then Yellow.
A little bit of Silver leaf, and round indentations on opposite sides of the panel.

Yesterday while browsing my computer, I came across a wonderful site named

Paper Street Supplies.

http://collagesheets.paperstreetsupplies.com/digital-collage-sheets.html?limit=24&p=2

And I saw a couple of pages of Mushrooms and thought immediately of Spores and I bought them.
Making any sense yet?
It did not to me either, but this is a prime example of how some of my paintings actually happen.
I swear, there is something inside of me that takes no direction from any idea I may have,
It makes me produce Art works that are (eventually) pleasing, colourful and balanced in the end.

It is now all coming together now.
I am beginning to see the direction of this work and it, while being rather unusual, is going to come together wonderfully.

I have attached two photos of the actual base for the completed work and when there is more will up-date this post.

Acrylics/Mixed mediums on cradled Birch Panel.

20" X 20"

 The whole Panel
showing the different medias used so far.

A close-up showing the "spores" floating and the use of the molding paste used to get the effect.
Yep, this will eventually embody Mushrooms....
And if you were to ask me how I managed to come up with this idea, I would have to truthfully tell you.....
"I have no idea!"
~~More to come :)
Later all, Kathleen

HEY ALL, ADDENDUM:

 I have now applied the Mushroom applique.
I like the contrast in colour and the meaningful way the "spores" relate to the image.
Many touch-ups are needed at this stage so, again, I will up-date this post when finished
Have a good one all
~~Kathleen

So here is the final work.
All dry and looking wonderful.
Hope you like it!

On to the next one.
Later all
~~Kathleen

How it happens

Quite a while back my friend (and fellow Artist) John Roof Posted a photo of himself leaning into a huge blank canvas.
I was taken by the despondency of the image.
I have felt this way so often when facing a new canvas.
"Will it turn out okay?"
"Have I decided on the right colours?"
And then I pick up my brush and begin.
The end result, (for me at least) has very little resemblance to what I had originally planned.
I do not follow plans very well.  I am more of a "Let it happen" kind of artist.The end result of what I paint is always better than I had formerly imagined
(To me at least)

This is the photo that inspired me....

This is what I painted

(If you click on the image it will enlarge,)

It is Acrylics on canvas
12" X 18"
Using a Clear painted Matte gel overlay of the figure of John.
I used Brushes/Pallette Knives
Matt gel/Molding paste.
For the overlay of John I line painted his image on a 1/8" thick
strip of gel
and cut it out.
Once the actual painting was dry, I affixed the gel to it.
It is transparent because we bare our soul and whole self to the world with every work we produce.
Every work of art we produce shines through us.

I tried to convey the lonesomeness all Artists feel when they begin to paint.
What all Artists feel when they reach "the ugly stage"
"Why did I start this, Am I totally crazy?"
The fear when we stop of
"Is it done
is that enough?"
 And somehow the Joy and sense of accomplishment when it is finished.

~~Later all....

To the Skies and beyond.

I have always been fascinated by the sky.
I have loved following the Stars/Constellations in the night sky since I was a very young girl.
My grandfather taught me who was what in the night sky and how to always find the mythical

Gods represented by the stars. 
I still await the arrival of my friend Orion every Fall, and know that Spring is here when he disappears.
So naturally, in this day and age of Space travel I am a serious watcher of the NASA home page.
And, in particular the Hubble images that are so beautifully captured during its' travels

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/spaceimages/

Now, because of my age, I have seen many things that were never available when I was a child.
Flash Gorden had a rocket and his space travels were pure fantasy.
Wonder Woman and her Space craft....Well, we hoped.
Isaac Assimov introduced us to prototypes of the now IPad/Phone type
Hand held communicators.
The original Star Trek series followed through with all this
Supposed technology.
And boys and girls  read comics and Science Fiction pulps with Stars in their eyes....
Nothing beat dreaming of the possibility of being
"The one."
Nothing beat wanting to be on the "Enterprise" with Kirk and his fellow travelers.

"Nova1"
Acrylics and mixed media on canvas
16" X 20"

As is obvious, Space travel is no longer a little boys/girls dream.
Given the opportunity we all would have been Flash or Wonder Woman.
But who knew?

The photographs from the Hubble have fascinated me since they began to

appear. 
The pictures are of pure fantasy and riotous colours.
And, most of all,  they are beautiful.
They inspire me.

"A galaxy in flux"
Acrylics and mixed media on canvas16" X 20"



I can only imagine what my grandsons will marvel at when they are in their 70s.
Actually I cannot think of whatever new under the Sun will appear.

But it is there, I know it is there.
It is their turn now.
To marvel at this wonderful universe that is opening up.

Getting There.

It is a cold and dreary day in Southern Alberta, Canada this morning.
 If I was on the lakeshore of my childhood, I would be standing just above the sand watching the breaker waves roll in.
Wondering what makes them do that.
I have many images through out my life that are locked in my mind.
And, every day there are new ones.

I wonder how many memories  one can accumulate, and how one can translate them into an Artwork?
Then I wonder how I will do it? 

Then wonder if it will be pleasing?

Looking back at that child, I wonder how my life has evolved as an artist.

I had no idea then, that the Childhood thoughts would some day translate into Art.
I didn't even know what a paint brush was then.

The many barren years before I was able to express who I am in Art were cold and dreary for the most part.
I had a child, and the Sun shone again.
Having a reason is the answer.
Having and recognizing joy is what makes it all worth it.
Having like-minded friends helped me so much.

I suppose we are never alone, but just walking the path to Happiness/Friendship and Love.

And when we reach our destination it is a bit of a shock.

Finding out who we are is not always possible when we are younger.
Coping with life until we do is a bit harder, but can be done.
Accepting our happiness in later years is much harder.
But the end result, once accepted is 

WONDERFUL.

"Home at last"
Acrylics/Mixed media on canvas
12" X 18
The hieroglyphics (Kanji) are from parts of the Dhamapada

"Sunrise on Bamboo Garden"
Acrylics and Mixed media on canvas
22" X 30"

"SOLD"

Today's entry here is about my personal art.
Here again, some may not see it as art, others will love it. 

 But, the thing to understand, it that we can all agree to disagree.
This was one of the first larger canvas' I worked on. 
I have a great love for Gold/Silver and any metals I can work into my personal Art.
Like a Magpie, I love Bling.
I have worked with various forms of metals available to artists.

This canvas includes both the Gold and Silver as well as Copper, and a product that is a variegated metal leaf.
I lean very strongly to linear art, so this work began with a "representational" Bamboo forest on the left side.

over to the center and right sides I wanted to achieve a profusion of light.
This work took a while, but personally I like it very much.
I used Tar gel, molding paste and some additives to the paint to get a pourable quality.
What do you think?
Input in the form of comments/critiques are welcome
Remember to click on the photo to enlarge it.

~~Later all.

Art comes in many different forms.

Lately, a lot of my friends have been posting to a site called Pinterest.  

http://pinterest.com/

Seemingly, it is a site where you can post photos/pictures/images that they find pleasing to them.  

You can start various segments such as decor,food,art etc,
For years (well at my age it is for years) we have all, in one way or another collected images that please us.
In scrapbooks, actual books, and often in our mind, In our cupboards, on our Porches and in our gardens. 

Few people realize that when they do this they are actually defining who they are in an art form.
Art takes so many forms that it is often hard to imagine and segment each and relate to the individual process of gathering.

I belong to a small group of people on Facebook that are diverse in styles, but all have one thing in common.  

We Love COLOUR, and in one form or another we are artists.!  

We love different styles and each of us at one time or another has Waxed eloquently about another members art style.
One of the people is a quilter...a passionate quilter, and her use of colour and form results in wonderful creations....Common phrase re her Quilts is "Oh! I wish I could do that!"
She is modest, and in turn questions others on their abilities with paint.....
Another is making beads, beautifully hand rolled  colourful beads.....
Some do Portraits, others landscapes, and one a historical (through) art form depicting turn of the century small city life.
Yet, Art abounds in our lives.
the other day I saw an image of a Designer that just blew me away.
his name is
Roberto Capucci
One of his creations is at the beginning of this article.

http://www.philamuseum.org/exhibitions/411.html

He designs Dresses/Gowns that are considered Art Forms.
They are not always easy to wear, but they present a striking array of colour,shape and form.
All with fabric.
Each is hand made requiring (estimated) thousands of hours of work.
One wonders when anyone attempts to do something like this....
What motivates the individual?
What is it in that persons mind that sees fabric as sculpture?
that sees colours in such a vivid way?
We can only guess, but what is important to us is that he has done it.
That we can enjoy it.

The same might be said about the design of a cooking pot.
What shape and form takes place in the designers mind before the first mold is cast?
or maybe the shape of Garden tools.
Are they just functional or are they encompassing an art form that relates to the user, 

beautiful thoughts while working the ground.

A wonderful site that deals with shape/form and colour in all designs is

http://design-milk.com/

http://3.design-milk.com/images/2012/04/fluidity-dishrack-planter-2.jpg

They see basic art and beauty in many things at this site, and is well worth looking into.

We are surrounded by Art.  Some very good, some terrible, but each and every form leads us to the thought.
Who thought of this?

What motivated them?

How did this individual know this would please me?
Bears a lot of thinking in our daily lives.....

And a lot of gratification for sure.

Catch up time with my art. "Prairie Winds"

Note:
It is important to know, that by clicking on any photo in this blog you will go to Full screen of each picture.

While I have been getting back to blogging with observations and comments re the Art world as I see it, I have been very lax in presenting some of the works I have completed while I was away.  

So, I am going to interject some of my new art and present it to you for comments/critiques.

This is a real accomplishment for me.
I am just getting into a looser and abstract form now.

 detail of the painting
All the Wheat chaff and the seeds are ensconced in a Clear gel (Goldens)
so they are completely encased in medium here.
This took weeks of layering and drying to achieve.

 The completed painting
It was important to show the winds and sun and the impact they have on the fields as the grain grows and matures.
Methods and media used:
Copper/Silver/Gold Leaf
Goldens acrylic clear gel
Actual Wheat stalks/seeds and Chaff
Acrylic paints
please let me know how you like it!
~~later

It is all relevant isn't it?

While reading the other day,

 I came across an article that condemned a young mans apartment decor because he had framed photos  of semi nude women from a glossy magazine.
The photos showed a very tasteful display of five photos that were on a blank wall.
While the style of decor did not really appeal to me, I thought  

"what is wrong with that?"
He chose photos to frame, that while displaying partial nudity were not vulgar in any way!

So, what is acceptable?  Is a modern depiction vulgar while the Old Masters renditions selling for Gazillions of dollars are acceptable just because they are old and painted by a "Master?"
Was the young mans choice in art so bad?
He framed what he liked and what he could afford.

Many years ago, it was the Master of the house that displayed "His" preferences in art on his Manors walls.

So, what is art?
What constitutes a collection?
Who decides that it is good or bad?
Do we have to adhere to what is dictated as art, as opposed to what we like?

(The Blond Nude....Manet)

It is about time we opened our minds to the old adage
"Beauty is in they eye of the beholder"
It is about time we look at a young mans walls and appreciate that his five glossy photos lifted from a magazine were framed/matted and hung with care.
It is about time for us to realize that by not just taping them to his walls he was showing a lot of class and good taste.

It is time for us to come out of our glass houses and appreciate any young person that takes care while presenting any art form.

We may not like it, but we  (hopefully) will appreciate that this person cared enough to show he had good taste in his choice of display.

("Just the two of us" author or production company unknown)
~~Tomorrow all.

Sometimes it works, other times not, But today.......

Personal art in works:

I am working on a new idea right now.  It involves the far North, and the Northern Lights with a traditional Aleut dancer.
Now any that have seen the magical display that is presented by the Northern Lights knows that they are in a constant changing flux.
To try and represent them in a painting, one has to think in an abstract way so as to get the movement and clarity of them, all the while creating transparency showing them engulfing the land and sky.
I have been working on overlays of the lights, and think that I have finally achieved the look I want.
But.....again the proof of the pudding will when I bring all the elements of this painting alive on the Cradled Birch Panel I am using for this project.  Wish me luck today as I will be attempting to bring the whole lot together.

Farming:

On another topic, over the last four years, I have been documenting  the Seasons of Grain farming, by taking photos from our deck (which is about 25 feet above ground in the back) of our local farmer and his workers preparing fields for planting, actual seeding, spraying, and eventually harvesting the land.
I have always been fascinated with the huge machinery, and the grace with which these gentle giants operate.
Because of the height at which I stand, and the fact that the grain fields completely surround our home, I have a vantage point that is excellent for depicting the manner in which the fields are maintained.

Always in a very straight line, with a specific purpose in mind, over hills, atop rises and down gulleys.  Watching these machines is a fascinating thing, and hopefully I can impart the beauty of this tremendous operation.
To coin a very famous phrase
....."Nothing Runs like a Deere!"
(or the farmer that operates one)

Some time this year I will assemble the photos into a book.  A book that shows the great time, effort and Money that goes into a large grain farm.
A book that shows a farmer that has no problem stopping his Combine and picking up Little Boys so they can go for a spin with him. 
A book that shows him saying hello to our dog that knows and watches every vehicle he uses and laughing when the Dog gets very upset with a strange truck that should not be there.
Hopefully, I will be able to show the sensitivity of this man and his operation.  I so enjoy it!
Later everyone .

When is art a deception?

For a long while I have admired a certain photographers work.
I marveled at her detail and clarity, her ability to see beyond everything she photographs and her ability to capture colours.
As an artist (of the painting type) I can, and often do wonder at the many forms of art presented in different venues and styles.

Today I was looking at her latest posted photograph and asked her how she was able to photograph a scene and have it "Look" like a painting.
Her answer was "I take pictures as I see them."
Not an answer, but the best I was about to get from her.  

I was then informed (by someone else) that her photography was retouched in a photo type program that "Puts" different slants on the original picture.

Now, to my mind, if you want a painting, you paint it! and if you want a photograph you take a picture....but No!
What you do is take a picture and then manipulate it into a painting.
You pass it off as your own creation with no reference to the computer program that really made the image as it appears. 
To my mind this is lying, cheating, pulling the wool over the viewers eyes.
Yes, I know that a lot of photographers retouch portraits, and I can agree with this.
I can even agree with some colour manipulation, but we are not talking retouching here.
We are talking about changing the integrity of a photograph, turning it into something else and then sitting back and reveling in the accolades because your work is so unique and original.

If you are a photographer so be it!
And if you are a Painter, again, so be it.

But for a photographer passing off a manipulated photo as a painting is just wrong.
Worse yet, passing of a manipulated photo as an original work by yourself is just wrong and deceitful.
Especially since you do not even acknowledge the use of a computer program that actually does your work for you.
Is it a form of plagiarism?
Maybe a form of deception?
Whatever.

To my mind it is wrong. But then again maybe I am out of the loop.  I must say I was very hurt when I
                                           finally realized what she had been passing off as her work for so long.

How I feel about art in general for the most part:

You either like it or you do not, how you feel about it is important, and While others might love it, you might see nothing appealing in it
Even if "Joe Blow" from the worlds most prestigious Gallery insists that a work is the Best (insert accolades here) of the century, that will not necessarily make it so in your mind.
The Art world is famous for  stupid prices.
Sadly, almost all the work that is heralded as "collectable" at outrageous prices is for the most part abstract and without reason.


Real people buy art because of how the colours appeal to them/to work with the design of a room, or because they like Sunflowers. Real people buy art because they like the size, the medium or because this specific work reminds them of something. Some people buy it because a particular work makes them smile/feel rested/has a personal message.

Real people buy/like Art for personal reasons.

I paint because I love to paint. I work in many different styles and can replicate a flower in wonderful detail and or produce a work that denoted chaff from harvest blowing in the wind in a complete abstract form.

Art is selective and personal. So whatever you like or don't like, no matter. If it pleases you, that is good.
I guess what I am trying to say here is, No matter whatever others say, be true to what you like. Don't be scared to say "I hate that!" or "Not bad, but I wouldn't hang that!"

Feel free to ask "how did you do that?" even if you are not particularly drawn to a work as opposed to how it was created.
Be selective, and remember that just because Van Gogh' works sell for a gazillion dollars now, years ago he really was a starving artist.
And, I have to admit that I do not like a lot  his art.

So I have been away for a while. Learning new things and methods.
I have changed my style somewhat and have to admit that my many months painting"traditional" type art has helped me understand where I am now.
Bear with me while I get back into the wonderful world of Blogging, and imparting my thoughts and feelings re my art (and art in general) here.
It is good to be home, hopefully you will welcome me back.

"Rachels Muse I"

Many of you that follow this blog are aware that I have a dear friend that is an accomplished photographer.
And, you then, are aware that I often use a lot of her photographs as inspiration for a painting.
Thanking someone that inspires you is a very hard thing to do.

A while back Rachel posted a photograph that she took of her son holding his Oboe.
I fell totally in love with this Photograph and decided to paint it.
(What on Earth was I thinking?)
So this painting is for Rachel, Just because.

I am known for my inability to paint the human form.
Yep, even hands.
But I got to it, and after weeks of working on this painting (Some of which I was quite ill and did nothing), I am finally at the stage where I can begin to refine Jacobs hands.
Scary to say the least.
I have to finish the area where the reed is, and will do that a wee bit later....Kind of like a gift to myself when I finish those talented wonderful hands that belong to Jacob.

Hope you like it so far.
The background is not finished yet, but will remain painted in a matte black.
Please let me know how you think I am doing here, and anything as well that needs work.
Your eyes are important, as often while working on a painting such as this one cannot see the obvious flaws.
~~Kathleen

Getting it right

"The Edge"
Acrylics on Canvas
12" X 12"

Every once in a while, as an artist, I wonder how did another artist get that effect.
Not havng had any formal training in art (and the application there-off), I read a lot of art books, go and see other artists works at gallery's and shops, and try when I get back home to achieve the shading/shadows/light effects in a realistic manner.
Most often this exercise results in a lost painting underneath the blobs/and strokes that were to mean something.
So, I paint over it and away I go again.
Yesterday I painted this little Jewel.
Yep the lighting and shadows and depth happened as I painted, and it all made sense.
I finally did it without agonizing about the method.
Maybe one has to learn things, and just wait for the right time to implement them!
Enjoy this painting, I like the mysteriousness of it.
~~Kathleen

"Real Women VI"

The Sun, the Moon and the Earth join Forces

Acrylics and mixed media

on canvas

12" X 14"

Well, we have the Olympics being hosted in British Columbia this week. All of Canada is showing their Maple Leafs on their sleeves. (Yes, and our Hearts as well)
Enjoy them and appreciate the enormous amount of work these athletes put into training for these events.
Who wins is not important to me, as just being there as a participant means you are not only the best in your country, the world thinks you are the best of the best! :)
~~Kathleen

Landscape

"Frost on Larches"
Acrylics on Canvas
12" X 14"
SOLD

Gosh I have not done one of these for a long time.
Hope you like it.
It is based on the photograph I posted below when the Hoar Frost claimed our world!
Hope you like it!
~~Kathleen

"Real women V" (series continued)

"Assistance"
12" X 14"
Acrylics & Mixed media on canvas
She stands tall, she is proud, and she is a successful Business Woman!
She also walks with the assistance of a cane.
She faces up to her life, and makes it work.
There is nothing that she cannot overcome.
I like her stance.
Hope you do as well.
~~Kathleen

My World This Morning....

Hi all, hope you are having a fabulous day.
Being 65 years old, and having the luxury to enjoy so much is a real blessing.
As most of you already know, I am an artist.
Well, I am (at best) trying to become an artist :)
I have connected so very much with the constant changes Nature offers me every day.
Crossfield, Alberta, Canada is not far from the edges of the Great Canadian Rocky Mountain range.
So we tend to have weather anomalies all the time.
In the Winter we have just splendid Hoar Frosts, and this Winter, the Frosts have been spectacular.
Here are some photos I took this morning of the sunrise.
I am looking West to the Larches that line the frontage of the property.
So the Sunrise in all its' glory rises on these trees, and the end result is breathtaking.
Enjoy all....

Just before the sunrisePeeking over the horizon turning the Western sky a lovely Pink

(More "Real Women" after this interlude!)
~~Kathleen

Real women IV "Grandmother Moon"

"Grandmother Moon"
12" X 12"
Acrylics & Mixed media on canvas
SOLD

This painting embodies Gold and Copper foil (Representing Life energy) falling from the moon and embracing all women.
The seemingly awkward pose of the woman signifies the females desire to "Soak" up and embrace the moons importance into her life.

I began this painting with a specific idea in mind. I have been aware for many years that the Moon and Women have been closely connected since the beginning of time.
Almost every culture has a story passed down through centuries about the connection of these two.
When I had completed this painting, and posted it @ "Wet Canvas" for comments & critique from my fellow Acrylic artists, Bell Byrne recognized what I was trying to say and sent me an oft told story from her (North American) Native culture.
Her story connected so well with my painting that I am posting it here as a description.
So much of what we do in daily life is based on folklore.
I have gifted this painting to one of the best friends a gal can have....
Sharon Glover, a remote area nurse in the Northernmost settlement in Canada...Inuvik!
She, is a Native Canadian Nurse (extraordinaire) in this remote settlement.
We have planned to get together in April this year and catch up with each other and just be near for a while.
I miss you Sharon!

I hope you like it!
~~Kathleen

Grandmother Moon
(As told by Bell Byrne)

In a time before humans walked the earth and the spirits roamed the skies there was the daughter of the Creator. She loved the spirit that held the power of to create fire and wanted to mate with him. The Creator did not want the daughter to be near fire and asked her to leave the love she had for the spirit on a star and forget him.

The daughter disobeyed the Creator and secretly wed the fire spirit. The Creator was heartbroken that she had disobeyed and knew that nothing good would come from this union. The Creator had made her the spirit of water and the beginner of life.
Fire could bring water to a boil and at the same time, water could douse the flames of fire. There would never be any balance in the union.

To help, the Creator gave his daughter two babies to birth. Two sons to balance the femaleness and one to each carry the spirit of their parent. One son was to be the father of all humans and the other son was to be the father of all animals.

The twins fought constantly in their mother's womb. The brother who was to father all animals was impatient and wanted to be born soon. The brother who was to father all humans was patient and wanted to wait for his birth so he would know what his humans had to do to come to life.

One day, close to the day they were to be born, the anxious brother could wait no longer and pushed to get out of the womb. His brother was blocking the way out so he pushed against the side of his mother. His brother sensing that his mother was in grave danger, pushed his way out through the birth canal in the hopes his brother would follow. His brother didn't notice that he now had a clear path out the birth canal - he continued to push against his mother's side.

Finally, he pushed so hard he split his mother in two. As she lay dying, her father and husband held each part of her. Her husband's last gift to his wife was to make her burn bright as a star and her father - who was grief stricken could only mold her into a cold, dead ball. When all life left her, the father and husband took each part of her and placed her in the sky. Her fire part shone brightly and cast light on the earth and the desolate ball her father had placed beside the earth. Her husband called it the Sun.

The Creator grief was appeased when he saw how brightly the ball shone, he called it Moon.

Both the father and husband were angry with the twin that killed his mother. He was banished and made walk among neither the humans or the spirits. Because he has supposed to be the father of the animals, he tried to make one. It came out a mixture of all the ugly animals. It had a duck's beak, an otter's webbed feet, the fur of a squirrel and did not birth live children but laid eggs like a bird or lizard. It lived in neither the water nor the land but in both. We still see that animal today. The platypus.

The other son went on to father the humans and he lived a good and happy life with his wife and children. He was given a gift by the humans of an animal helper, the rabbit. In turn he gave the rabbit a special place in the universe as it would gladly sacrifice itself to keep the humans alive, it's meat was sweet, it's fur kept them warm.

The mother looks down on her sons from the sky. During the day, her moon half is always there and at night her sun half is reflected in the face of her moon half. She is there always.

This was told to me as a child by my grandmother in the winter times when stories were told. We'd only tell stories until the sap started to run in the Spruce trees and the geese came back. Then it was time to stop the stories and start hunting and building the salmon weirs.

Cheers,
Bell

"Real Women III"

"Every once in a while, I toss my memories in the air. And when they fall back into my mind, I have the joy of visiting them anew"

Acrylics & mixed media on canvas
12" X 12"
SOLDDetail of the Gold/Silver & Copper foil representing her memories....

This is a painting that I have become very emotionally attached to.
It tells of an older woman, and her joy in being where she is at the moment, and how she embraces the life she now has.
This is likely the most joyous painting I have ever done.
Her memories are revisited with understanding and great happiness!
Where we have been in life makes where we are now so important.
It takes many memories to make a whole person!
~~Kathleen

"Real Women II"

"Real Women II"
Acrylics & Mixed media on canvas
18" X 24"

Real Women II is a painting of a mature woman playing in her garden.
Nurturing her plants as she did her children.
Everything is a wee bit off balance, as in real life nothing is ever perfect.
She is at peace with herself, and has finally broken out of the dark place that dictated that she look and perform like the fantasy woman in commercial advertising.
She is probably overweight, has a few well earned wrinkles, but no matter, she is where she wants to be at this stage in her life.
The Gold and Silver leaf falls down over her peace of mind and
celebrates her absolute beauty.
She is happy with her lot in life.
I hope you like her....she is so like myself and many of my friends.
~~Kathleen

Real Women #1

"Real Women I"
Acrylics & mixed media on canvas
12" X 14"

Above:
The final painting

Below:
the background detail
before the glazes have been added

The first in a new series.....
I am trying to convey the real woman in a realistic way.
While the concept is somewhat abstract, the message is clear.
I have used a combination of materials in these works.
Gold/Silver & Copper foil, Gel transfers and glazes.
This conveys (hopefully) the comfort a mature woman feels
in with her age.
Washing her hair with a sweetly scented soap.
Or just the pleasure of being alone in a tranquil spot.

My interpretation of this collection:
This series of paintings are very important to me.
As a maturing woman, I find that society tends to rest too much on the " False Beauty" of young women who have done nothing to deserve it (they were born with it) and they take for granted that this type of beauty is forever, and Society discards the beauty amassed by a woman of years.

Most of the mature women I know, are confident lovely people that have an unbelievable amount of beauty & intelligence within and without!

Real beauty really lies beneath the outer layers of anyone.
We, as a society, have to learn how to recognize it.
Nothing about the aged body is symmetric. Least wise mine sure is not.
I am not looking for perfection here, as perfection belongs to the young.
I am lauding the Mature woman that has accepted that she is who she is.

The Hiatus is over!

What we have been seeing for the last four days.....A Hoar Frost
to end all Hoar frosts.
To view these and any photos full size in this blog,
Please click on the picture.

For those of you following this blog, I do apologize.
I have been busy with real life, and just had to change some of my habits and reorganize others.
Hopefully now, everything is in working order and I will be back to doing my normal things again!
Blogging (this one) is at the top of my daily "To Do" list.
I have been very deeply immersed in my art as of late.
I have been working on a new series of paintings.
These paintings all depict "Real Women!"
Not the women one sees on TV/In Magazines and or any type of advertising.
I am talking about the Real Women Of our normal every work day life.
Like you & Me.
Women that have larger than depicted stomachs (Horrors!) and a bump on the nose
(as opposed to a Nose Job!)
Thick ankles, maybe short women. women that do not have perfect hair, and rough skin on hands due to real work.
Women that deal daily with a disability in a world that is not built for anything but the
(supposed)perfect human to navigate.
So, understandably, I have been totally engrossed with this series of paintings as they are all dear to my heart.

I am sincerely going to maintain my blog with no less than three posts weekly.
As some of you are aware, not all my posts are about art, but as well, my everyday life.
I am surrounded by beauty and a very rugged rural area.
I am living with my daughter & son-in-law and two wonderful grandsons
(ages 7 & almost 3 years of age)
So life is never boring and always changind.
Welcome back my friends, I will try to give you a few minutes of enjoyment through my eyes & words a few times each week!

Sometimes you just know....

A couple of entries below this one, I posted a finished painting based on a childhood

memory of chasing fireflies in the moonlight and running through Grannies Marigolds while doing this.
(please scroll down to see the completed painting)

It is one of the fondest childhood memories I have.
Granny thought that children should never be chastised for following their dreams, so we did not get into trouble for running on her small flowers.

The original finished work was very well received .

Many,many people saw what I did in the painting.
Yet, something held me back on signing this work.
So I set it aside.

A few days ago, I got the idea that the painting lacked movement.
But how was I to add movement to this type of painting?
The painting as it was, consisted of many layers of applied acrylics, using many different methods.
This painting was a wonder of texture and colour.
Anything added to it had to be abstract yet definable. (is that a word?)

I decided on a type of free form Sprite for my figures.
I posed them in a Joyous dance pattern.
As if abandon was the norm and peace and happiness was the main goal of these two figures.
They are painted in the Yellows and Ochers that I used for the fireflies.
They have definate shape and form, but look as if they could change shape in a second, and dance more.
Like children chasing after Fireflies in the dark.

This painting (to me) represents Hope and Joy.
This painting represents love of a grandmother that understood the significance of allowing children not having to worry about Marigolds that get trampled while chasing a dream.

I hope you like the final outcome of this painting.
It pleases me to no end.
~~Kathleen
Please note, while being almost impossible to photograph in true colours, I was finally able to get one photo that is true to the original colour of this painting!
so I present;
Marigolds and Fireflies
16" X 20"
Acrylics on canvas
Click on photo to enlarge

When you need the best....

"Lawn Boys"
Gayle Vogel Kirby

20" X 20"
Acrylics on wrapped canvas

For the longest time I have wanted to paint my grandsons.
Not just paint them, but create a work of art that shows the devotion these brothers have for each other.
I have to admit, first and foremost I am not good at painting the human shape or form.
But I was willing to attempt to do this.
So I tried, and tried, painted over and tried again.
Nope this was really not my forte!
Accepting the inability to do some things is not a flaw.
doing mediocre work is.
So I stopped trying.


Instead, I decided to travel a new avenue.
Yep, I called the big guns and asked for help.
I contacted an artist friend of mine.

Gayle Vogel Kirby is an accomplished portraitist.
This lady has a wonderful talent in the way she depicts her subjects.
She brings out the colour/life and essence of everyone that she paints.
She sees in colour and paint what we could only dream of.
and she sees so well.

Please take the time to view her blog and enjoy her wonderful art.
I am honoured that she accepted the request I put to her.
I am more-so honoured that she depicted my grandsons
with such sensitivity.
Thank-you Gayle, so very much.
~~Kathleen
Gayles Blog can be seen here:
http://gaylekirbyart.blogspot.com

"Marigolds and Fireflies"

I have been working on this for a long time now!
Everytime I think it is done, and put it on the rack,
Something draws me back to it.
And I "fix" it a wee bit more.

I think now that it is done.
It is representational of a childhood memory
A memory of my brothers and I chasing Fireflies in the evening.
I remember that once we ran through Grannys Marigolds and her response was that
"Everything was fine when children chased Fireflies"
To her, in her advanced age, Fireflies were Magic, and children should chase them in the evening.

This painting really says a lot to me.
It shows the magic of the night and the wonderful
lights of hope that come with the dark.
~~Kathleen

Re anonymous comments

I have received (over the course of this blogs life) many anonymous comments.
For the greater part (99%) they have been very positive, only three have been hateful.
I do not publish anything that is Anonymous because I believe in putting ones money where your mouth is.
I have a few loyal followers, that as well, blog on Blogger. Some that do not.

I believe that this is a fair attitude, and I want to treat everyone as equals.
So, while I do appreciate your taking time to read this blog, then commenting, Yes, even positively, without a name or a reference blog in return, I will not make your words a part of this site.
Be well all
~~Kathleen

"In My Opinion Only!"

I know of a few artists that trace.
That is, they find a photograph they like, use their enlarger projector, and trace each and every detail onto the canvas to paint.
Now while I feel that this is a perfectly acceptable method for Faces & bodies/birds/botanicals, I do feel that for the most part originality is severely lacking when this method is used in landscapes and paintings of the sort.
What one ends up with is a perfectly executed copy of a photograph that has no passion of the artist in it.
Every blade of grass, every leaf, every stone and every tree is perfectly copied.
They might, just might add a stone, but for the most part that is it.
anything more for these artists (sic) would be all too much of a deviation from transcription.
For all intensive purposes, they copy. (Again, my opinion only)

If you cannot be original when you paint landscapes, and have to copy why bother?
Why not use this tree, that field, another sky and that dog, put it all together as a totally original work of art?
And, No, I am not speaking of using a grid. Using a grid still means that the artist has to use originality, and for the most part the end result will always show changes from the original reference work.


If you are scared to try and let what you actually see (and feel) show up in your art, why bother?
Everything that I (and many artist friends) paint is a compilation of many ideas/images that I (we) have in my (our) mind(s) and from photographs that I (we) have taken.
Just look back in this blog, and you will see some terrible paintings that (at the time) I was proud of! :)

At the moment I have two full computer discs of clouds/skies/sunrises/sunsets that I have taken over the years. I often use them for reference. But I never trace them. I figure out how I want the blues to look and work from there. Same goes for trees/grass and buildings/mountains and the like.
I have many many landscape photos that I have taken on disc, then there are the birds/animals and people that I have on disc as well. All are photos that I have taken each is different and grabbed me at the moment for one reason or another.

The florals that I do are supplied by Rachel (whose virtues as a photographer are extolled much earlier on in this blog)
For my self, re imaging, the one exception has been Florals. All the singular florals that I have done are very much in the image of the original photograph. I do not trace them and never sketch them on to the canvas before I begin, as I am terrible with a pencil. My rough sketches usually begin with a brush and I work from that! Refining the flower as I go! Actually a lot of times I have changed the colour of a botanical as I worked on it.

Which leads me back to my original thought......

Why bother?
I suppose for some, originality is not an important issue, but for me lack of original thought shows a total lack of passion in the completed work.
There is a gentleman artist friend, Mike Baxter.
His art can be seen here....
http://baxterpopart.blogspot.com/
whose blog I follow, that paints incredible works of Pop art and women.
Some of these works can be semi erotic, but they are tasteful and fabulously painted.
I know that Mike uses a projector, but for his style of art this method not only works, it is essential.

Passion in art is essential, the buyer sees the lack of this, the viewer sees the lack of passion and the end result of the lack of passion is a well rendered technical use of paint.

I have been experimenting with new art styles of late.
I have finally got my studio comfortable to work in and now I can sit (or) stand and paint with comfort and ease.
I have a habit of painting backgrounds on Canvas' long before I have any use for them.
I do this mainly because I dislike beginning any painting on a white canvas.
So, often what I end up with has no relation to the original background, and as well the background is totally different in the end .
But for me it is a starting point.

I have never painted any fabric before. At least not any that has been recognizable as such.
The painting below is in the very early stages for me, and hopefully it will end up as an admirable work. It is a compilation of different images that I have collected, and while the end work cannot be attributed to any one factor, each and every element is a new thought.
Mind you, after years of a childhood growing up beside a lake, the image represented here could have been a part of any day of my life as a child.
I can only strive to do as best that I can with these ideas.

I like to try new things, and am never sorry for anything that I have attempted. There are quite a few works that I have done that do not exist now, as I really thought (before I painted them over) that the end result was not acceptable, was not really of a standard that I wish recorded for posterity.
Yet, I have never hidden my Faux Pas' from people, I just tire of them, paint them over eventually, and go on with the learning process.
It is from them that I learn.

Originality and Passion are essential to good art.
Individualism is essential to good art.
New ideas and methods are essential to good art.
Transcribing a picture is not.

~~Kathleen

ADDENDUM:
Just to clarify, I often use Ratios to ensure that the translation of a floral photographic image
relates in direct proportion to the size of my canvas.
While I do this, it is only with registration marks at the top middle and bottom as well as both sides.
The rest I do by instinct.
~~K

I have begun again!!!!

I have had a hard time painting since I have moved. It is a compilation of many things, but again, I have to adjust as well. Placing blame anywhere is not productive, so, I am instead, looking for solutions.
Up 'till now I painted when the whim hit me. Now I am regulating times for this. If I paint longer so be it, but I am not going to paint any less than the time I have prescribed myself.
I got a wonderful book from the library the other day.
It is by Chinese Artist Lian Quan Zhen.
The book covers the art of Chinese water colour techniques for painting flowers!
(ISBN #978-1-60061-088-2(hardcover paper)
Using some of the advise from this book, combined with lessons from a class taught by a friend Kathy, I have begun this:
A Dragonfly on foliage.
It is acrylic on Canvas
16" X 20"
I will post updates as I complete each stage from here on in.
Have a good one all!
~~Kathleen