Therapy

Being a little on the broke side lately I have found that being poor is a great experiment in creativity. I love how my work will change if I'm forced to work with what I've got. You would think that being able to get out and buy new supplies and make whatever you want would open up the opportunity to do really interesting work. Maybe it does for some people? I have found lately and many times in the past when I'm feeling the urge to create but I'm looking at a few scraps of material, some paint and an empty wallet that the work that emerges is usually different from my other work....sometimes that's great and sometimes not so great but at least it pushes me to look at things a little differently and that always feels good to me.

Mixed media on canvas

Things are changing so fast!

I can't seem to keep up lately by the time I'm just beginning to prepare for my next adventure it's already come and gone. Mind you I'm still going along with it just in a bit more of an unorganised tissy then I would like. The sketch above is in tribute to this new life. I've never been good at leaving things unfinished but needing everything to be perfect is going to give this little one a heart attack. So it's one step at a time into the world of laundry piles, unfinished art work and the dreaded unpainted fingernails. Wish me luck!

Nude Conte Sketch

A Simplicity Break

I have come to discover that a girl can only have so many fluffy pink bits of feather and boa flying around her studio before she needs to take a moment to mediate on the simple things in life. I am loving all the glitter and shinny things but as I am not a crow I thought it would be best to take a little breather for the day. Of course I couldn't get any more extreme then I already am so I took you from decorative nipple bits all the way to a chair. Maybe I thought you might need to sit down.

Melancholy

I don't remember myself or the model being sad when these were being sketched but now when I look at them I think at least one of us must have been. They make me very sad now not that I ever need a good reason to drift away in a melancholy day dream. I will admit that I am always strangely content when I'm just a little sad as if some how it's relaxing or just not as much work for me.

Conte Sketches

Miss Jezebel

This is a portrait of one of my childhood pets an iguana named Jezebel. I of course didn't ask if I could have an iguana I just brought her home and snuck her up to my room. I don't know how long I thought I could get away with keeping that secret. It turned out to be about ten minutes but my mother rarely ever turned away the stray or suspiciously acquired animals we brought home.

Pencil Sketch
Water Colour and Ink

How well do you know your bits?

I know you like the back of my hand. How well do you know your hand? I'm not sure I really spend that much time really looking at any of my bits and pieces. Do you? I guess the saying still stands because we never really know anybody that well anyway and you are most likely to be surprised by someones actions shortly after you tell them you know just what they are all about.

Pencil sketch hand study
Pencil contour drawing

Drifting away

Growing up my mom and I spent a lot of our summers in New Brunswick on the beach. I have some of my most vivid childhood memories stored in the beach file in my brain. This piece of driftwood lived in my parents front yard which was no where near the beach. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that my mother lugged that thing all the way back from the beach in Cape Tormentine.

Pencil Sketch

I don't need no stinkin flowers....?????

For must of the year I am a modern women with ideals leaning towards feminism and a pretty liberal political stance but I start to waver around February. I don't know if it's a mix of the winter blues and the insurgence of romantic propaganda or what. It might be that I hold such a strong noncommercial stance during the Christmas season and my birthday and maybe I should learn to live with more moderation. I've never been good at that I'm an all or nothing kind of girl. Anyway I've got a war going on inside me between the it's all made up by hallmark Valentine's day protester and the girl being carried away on the Harlequin romance cover.

Mixed Media, 16x20

I've misplaced my keys

Have you ever tried to figure out where the land of mismatched socks is that seems to be directly connected to your dryer? Or have you ever had one of those days where you can't seem to find your glasses anywhere only to discover that they have been on top of your head the whole time? Maybe you are one of the fortunate people who reaches into their coat pocket for gum to find a totally forgotten twenty mixed in with the old receipts and garbage. Don't you hate it when you loan things out to people and never see them again or when stuff just seems to disappear and you find it years later in the back of a drawer when it has long past any use to you. I'm feeling a little lost myself today and something of mine is missing that I would have liked very much to give to someone...it must be around here somewhere.

Mixed Media, 16x20

The Bag Lady

This is just poof to me how much I love simple things. I'm not sure why but looking at these paper bags makes me happy... that sounds crazy. Well I guess I don't mind sounding a little crazy. I have this theory that if you let the world see some of your craziness you won't go completely out of your mind from keeping it all inside. Maybe I can start some sort of study on the subject. Try it and let me know if it helps.

Pencil Drawings

I just need a little push

I'm feeling a little overwhelmed. I do that a lot. I think sometimes I dream a little too big and I can scare myself out of doing things because it all seems to be too daunting of a task. What does this have to do with fruit and vegetables? That seems like a fair question but I have no idea what the connection is. I'm just trying to find a brave moment inside myself to help me face the world once again. Maybe fruit seemed like a good diversion, something simple, nothing to get overcome by. Any tips you might have on breaking big goals down into manageable tasks would be greatly appreciated.

Watercolour carrot and apple

Tree of Life

I just want to thank my mother for always letting me and even requesting that I paint all over her house. This has been going on for a long time now starting some fifteen years ago and with another birthday coming up that makes me sound really old. I'll let you guess where this door leads I'm sure your fantasy will be more exciting then what the reality of it really is.

Mother's Cupboards

I painted these chickens for my mother a few years back and I hadn't thought about taking a picture of them until I was visiting over Christmas. They are in one of the highest traffic areas in my mother's house and I wasn't sure how much longer they would last. So I'll put them here in blog land for safe keeping. Happy New Year!

Big Plans

Have you ever gotten really excited about a new technique or project and had your head fill with all kinds of grand ideas? That happens to me all the time. I need to learn the love of sampling new techniques I'm sure that it would save me worlds of trouble in the long run. This isn't the first big project that ended up turning into the worlds biggest sample.

Felted wool dress

K.I.S.S.

This is just a little reminder to myself to keep it simple. Not everything needs to be overworked on the paper or in my brain.

Pen and ink contour drawings

Nativity

This is the angle that was on my mothers nativity set when I was growing up. She was pink hard plastic and really looked a lot like this. This attachment to the nativity at Christmas was not passed down to me but to the middle sister who has hung a life size picture of the nativity in her back yard. It's really quite something.

Water colour and ink

Going way back

I'm just looking through some older work again clearing out the stash of stuff. I've been doing that a lot the last few months. Moving always brings that out in me, organising and prioritising my things. No matter how often I move or give things away I can still never get rid of those last few boxes of junk. I guess it's not helping that I just spent the day at Value Village buying the oddest mixture of things ever put in one cart.

Deer sketch and etching
Boy sketch and lino block print

Ants in my pants

I guess it's no surprise that with my love for all things miniature I'm really into bugs. I think they are completely fascinating little works of art. It is easy to find inspiration in their interesting little faces, intricate wings and wiry legs.

Watercolour Ant

Calling me home

No matter where I have lived or how much I enjoy my life or work I always had a longing to come home. There is something about this place, the people and the ocean that always seem to call me back. A visit to the beach or a walk alone downtown is all it takes to recharge my creative thinking. I remember when all I wanted to do was get out of here and it took the experience of living away for me to really know how much I feel like a belong here.

Hand dyed dress with cut work embroidery

One of Three

This piece is a part of a larger collection of paintings that were inspired by a large photo collage. The photos of all kinds of natural elements were collected over a long period of time and slowly evolved into large mixed media pieces. Nature is always changing, growing and moving making it a perfect inspiration for art and living life.

Acrylic and metal on canvas