sketchbook time

Took Phillip to get his haircut today, kept myself busy with this - sketching from a photo - while I waited. I want to start including some sparrows in my work, in reference to Matthew 10:28-31, where Jesus talks about God taking notice of even little birds, so how much more he has his eye on each of us... It's as much a reminder to myself as anything, to remember that God is in control and he's got a plan for me & my work.

student work

Today I got a chance to see some of my students' work at Mira Loma High School. It's currently hanging in the office & looks pretty cool...

I'm pretty impressed with alot of these pieces; the students really took the assignment seriously and put themselves into them. I had such a great time doing this and I couldn't be more pleased.

artists at work

I've been working with high school students of art teacher Allison Stiles at Mira Loma in Sacramento this week, creating mixed media collages that relate to the artist's notion of family or home. Today I finally remembered to bring out my camera & catch creativity in action...

It's always exciting to watch students' ideas come to life! As I finish my pieces that I'm using to demonstrate the process, I'll post them, too.

and more field notes

Some days the same old thing looks suddenly different... but it's still the same old thing. (You can click on the image to see it larger.)

summer song

I've just been using every spare moment to work on canvas - and I put the varnish on this one Thanksgiving morning before we went to my in-laws for dinner. It's called "Summer Song" which refers to all the birdsong I could hear coming from the trees when I was taking the photos and journaling that day. My new record sized canvas at 30x40", it has two silver gelatin prints collaged on it, as well as my requisite leaves and weeds in heavy applied texture. I'm having so much fun working on canvas, I don't think I'll ever look back...

And here it is on the wall with some of my other new canvas works - I've temporarily moved my studio across the hall at the SAC, next month I'll be moving downstairs, then no more musical studios...

crocker holiday

My Thanksgiving weekend tradition now includes selling to happy holiday shoppers at the Crocker Art Museum's annual Holiday Arts & Craft Festival - it's a great time & I always meet new artists and see plenty of wonderful artwork.

This year I'm across the row from my friend, Alister Oliver - who gives a crabby look for the camera in fun - really a fun guy with cool photos.

more field notes

Compared this leaf sample to earlier sample & sure enough, same species.
(click to see the image larger)

road home

I finally got a shot of this piece, "Road Home." As soon as it was done, I was asked to show it at an exhibition themed "Hope" at Oak Hills Church in Folsom. It expresses the expectant hope of heaven, the believer's true home. At the core of all of my artwork is a longing for Eden, which also looks forward to the time when heaven and earth come together and the world is made new again. Getting out with a camera and journal and letting God speak to me through nature, then transferring that experience onto canvas, is my way of walking and talking with God in the garden and fills me with hope for more to come.

(You can click on the image to see it larger.)

under the shade

My newest piece - on my biggest canvas to date, 20x30" - I incorporated more texture with acrylic modeling paste as well as with the actual leaves and feather collaged onto the canvas. This is one of my tree story pieces, "Under the Shade" that tells the story of Gideon when he was visited by an angel under the shade of a great oak tree. When you click on the image you can see it larger and you can then see some of the text in the leaves of the tree.

field notes

(click on the image to see it larger.)

field notes

You can click on these to see them larger:





Found a couple trees I don't usually see, so I had to get samples & double check my first reaction later - I was right both times, not too shabby.

the right path

I recently finished this piece and titled it "The Right Path." I've included Biblical text around the top edges, which you can just see if you click on the image to see it larger. It says, "I am like a tree that is always green; all your fruit comes from me... The paths of the Lord are true and right and righteous people live by walking in them." (Hosea 14: 8-9)

strawberry trees

The Strawberry Madrone trees have fruit right now - making it obvious exactly why they are called Strawberry trees - haven't tried eating one myself, but they are certainly pretty.

tree lovers

Found the evidence of true love at Central Park (in Davis) today...

in progress

Working on a piece at the home studio -

more park trees

I found a Hackberry seedling in an interesting place at Chestnut Park this morning...

Nestled in the crook of a very large Italian Stone Pine.

Been seeing some London Plane leaves like this one at Arneson Park that hang a little different than others, as they're shaped a little different, so I asked Rob if they were a different species -

But he said he didn't think so -

tree hugging

Out hugging (and mapping) trees at Chestnut Park in Davis again today - found a couple I couldn't ID on the spot, but figured out later...

This is a Bay Leaf Live Oak, I matched the leaf sample to one I found at Capitol Park in Sacramento - my journaling pays off.

Rob helped me ID this European Hornbeam, with it's very distinctive growth habit.

Sometimes it's not so easy, though - now this tree is homework for Rob; he needs an excuse to go to the park, anyway.

completed

After just a little more work, "Road Home" is now complete - and headed for exhibition - to see it a little bigger, you can click on it.

living with it

When I'm working on a piece, I often need to live with it for at least a little while to make sure it's done.

Right now I've got "Road Home" on an easel in the family room for review...

trusting

So finally getting to the last canvas collage piece, which I've titled Trust.

The title comes from a couple verses in the Bible, which are incorporated into the piece itself. It says, "Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on (the right road.)" That's Proverbs 3: 5-6 in the Message & a little of my own flavor - other translations say God will direct your path, or keep you on a straight road, so I've altered what I incorporated in my artwork to reflect those other translations & explain why this image spoke to me about trust -

It's been a long time issue for me - or not, actually - I always used to trust & have faith completely that everything was going the way it was supposed to. Easy to do when things are going well and everything is smooth. Not so easy when it feels like life has been turned upside down, but that's what I'm deciding to do -

tree hugging

Another day of tree hugging, and a couple more that made my head puzzle - but not for too long - and this is how I learn -

Staring at this tree, I really felt like I should know it, but I was drawing a big fat blank - sometimes these things happen.

It turns out to be a Liberty Elm, a new variety of the American Elm, advertised to be resistant to Dutch Elm Disease (so why does it attack other elms, too? ;)

This was at Cedar Park, along with some Deodar & Incense cedars, and I figured it was another cedar, but which one?

Rob filled me in: Blue Atlas Cedar - and now I know & will try to remember.

more midtown alley

Got over to the midtown alley project where I put paint on the walls, along with a few other local Sacramento artists - looking pretty cool so far - click on an image to see it larger.



A close up of my piece of the wall - I'm just so tickled to have put photos there!



The far right hand section - including work by my friends Michelle MacKenzie (who got back to finish her piece, too) & Brenda Boles.



"My" section of the wall, including the Bug (with lots more Crest Theater detail now) by Allison Carlos & Sophie by Steve Memering (yes, she's his dog.)




Farther to the left, but not all the way - I decided not to shoot in the shade, just lazy today I guess -