#134 "Run With Me", acrylic, 16" x 24"

Today is a snow day in Bellevue. Such fun to sleep in, look out at the snow over a cuppa, know I won't go anywhere in my car today, have time to catch up on things like blogging. So here is something from another side of my psyche. It might be finished. It might not. It has been through several incarnations already...and maybe there will be more. (I was stuck for awhile, and realized the working title was wrong. I changed the title and was able to go forward). But for right now, this is it. When I do this kind of painting I feel strong urges to include some things and eliminate others. Among other attributes this cat is carrying 3 homes, a sign for transformation (the butterfly) and the bird that I have come to see as my guide. All of these are meaningful to me. I do not yet know what the bunny going backwards means. It shows up often. This time he seems to be just taking a ride. There are icons here for beauty, ideas, and growth. The painting as a whole feels cohesive to me. The Ray for the Day is "Run With Me".

#133 "Love Affair With Langley" calendar for 2012

Somehow I managed to forget to mention that I published a calendar for 2012 featuring 12 of the Langley oil paintings. Vista Prints did the work and they made a really lovely calendar for me. I am proud of this body of work. It is a great year when I make 12 paintings that I am pleased with. 2011 was one of those years. Think of it....that is one really successful painting a month (considering there are some months I don't paint....it's a better hit rate than that). The calendar was a big success. The two stores in Langley that carried it had to re-order and told me how much people loved it. The Ray for all the Days of 2012 is "Love Affair with Langley" calendar.

#132 "Waiting for the Bee Keeper to Return", oil, 16" x 24"

It has been 3 whole months since I last posted. The thing is...I love posting on this blog, so you know I have been otherwise occupied. The Holidays happened (I'm really glad to see them gone, even though I had a ton of fun with family and friends), and I masterminded a fairly major remodel for our Langley condo, prepping it for our final move there sometime this Spring. I also spent a couple of weeks in Mexico in October. So those are all my excuses. Now I hope to settle down to some kind of orderly painting life. I have had to come to terms with the fact that I am a seasonal painter. For years I have told myself I should be in the studio most days of the week. My muse awaits me daily, and so forth. The truth is I rarely paint from Thanksgiving to the New Year. I also don't paint much in the Summer. I can continue to beat myself up over it, or I can accept it as my natural rhythm. The latter seems the more sane approach to me. So this painting marks the beginning of Winter Painting Season for me. The challenge in this painting was that there was not a strong light source. It was an overcast day and the light was more diffuse. My task was to convey the feeling of a cool, overcast day. And, of course, this vehicle has quite a Iot of personality. I wanted to convey the feeling of a vehicle past it's prime and still beautiful. You've seen it before and will no doubt see it again."Waiting for the Bee Keeper to Return" is the Ray for the Day.

#131 "Lovely Ladies", oil, 24" x 6"

As a child hollyhocks were one of my favorite flowers. They grew in our yard in Portland and I played with the petals and the seed pods. I made lots of things from them but mostly I remember making lovely ladies with gracious skirts out of the petals and necklaces with the seeds. As it happens there is a magnificent stand of hollyhocks just outside Studio 106. This Summer I have gazed at them, photographed them dozens of times, made a few lovely ladies, and now I have painted them. This painting is on a 2" deep cradled board, so the sides are also painted. They just called for a tall skinny painting. I have another started on my easel. The Ray for the Day is "Lovely Ladies".

#130 "The Blind Leading the Blind", acrylic, 16" x 20"

I know. I know. It's been forever since I posted. But I have not been slacking. After all, I moved my studio and my residence in July. That took quite a lot of energy and thought. I have been working though. Both with the acrylics and the oils. This posting is another in the series of acrylic paintings that seem to be reflecting things that are going on in my emotional life. I love doing them, and they always surprise me. I think I'm pretty good at getting feeling into my oils and watercolors. That is, the feeling of the day, the moment or the place. But the acrylics seem to be a direct link to my most inner world. The Ray for the Day is "The Blind Leading the Blind".

#129 "Another Langley Morning", 24" x 18"

So this is #12 of the Langley Series. Again, a fun painting to paint. I am working on establishing a clear foreground, midground, and background. This scene is again from a morning walk. The view is across Saratoga Passage to Camano Island from upper 2nd St. Of course the angles of the foreground architecture is what mainly captured my imagination. Again, a little Thibaud crept in here with some bold lines of color. This painting really came to life in the last hour of painting. I brightened some colors, grayed some, and had fun with orange, turquoise and lime green. Yum. The Ray for the Day is "Another Langley Morning".

#128 "Brookhaven Morning", oil, 18" x 24"

Dear Sweet Patient Blogsters, Even while being in the middle of moving I have eked out some small bits of time to paint. I guess it helps to preserve my sanity. I have 3 pieces to share with you over the next few days. This one is number 11 of the Langley Series. There is also a number 12, which means I will produce a calendar of Langley scenes that I have painted over the past year. This one is another scene from my walk from our condo to Studio 106. These homes are called Brookhaven and are very sweet low income housing. I'm so proud of Langley that these homes are right next door to downtown! I seem to be channeling Wayne Thibaud with these paintings. It is very fun at the end of the painting to add a bit of color here and there. The Ray for the Day is "Brookhaven Morning".