The house is trashed

7 x 5 inches mixed media on paper. There is a bright glare to the right of the can that really is a dark collaged strip of text ...but I do not have time to reshoot and load today.
I am trying not to feel persecuted. But there are mountians of laundry piled by the front door from my son's arrival, and he and his friends have left dishes by the sink as well as a scoured refrigerator begging to be filled. Tonight I have my cousin, the artist, Fuller Cowles arriving and I really want to relax. But even the hot tub is draped in discarded clothes and miscellaneous items. The porch floor is covered in maple tree flower petals, and I don't know where any bath towels are!
Did I mention my coloring book deadline?
At least I got this daily painting done- I feel a little bit better. I also have an idea- instead of an image of myself with many different hats (i.e roles to play), perhaps one of me under a stack of many different crosses?

A Postcard to Wine About

sold
Spent the day with my father-in-law, taking him to dr. appointments. Everyone was running behind schedule so, while in the waiting rooms, I was able to stitch this little postcard for a show at the AIR gallery in Chelsea. (It opens Thursday June 26th from 6-8pm and will be on exhibit until July 19th)
If I felt stepped on today- I just let out a little wine.

Dreamer

8.25 x 5.25 ink and paint on canvas sheet
It's summer- and the fields beckon the dreamer in me. I passed a field today (at 55mph) that was acres of wild brilliant daisies! Just breathtaking. I wait all winter for moments like this.

Look at the bright side: the swing

6 x 12 acrylic on wood
For years I have been lucky to stay at home each summer with my kids- and I have soaked in the delights of whole days at the pond surrounded by laughter, insect buzzing, splashing, joking, the tinkling of dad’s fountains, and my mental diversion limited to judging dive or belly flop performances, helping young ones catch tadpoles (from a safe distance), slathering on sunblock across sharp shoulder blades, carving up watermelons, forgetting all about the house chores, the phone calls, the need to be anywhere else at all. It is divine surrender.
But the transition is hell. The kids suddenly crisscross my planner and wreak havoc on my daily plans. Appointments need to be made, then changed. My regular hectic and productive pace needs to slow down. Like this swing in the grandparents backyard. We've all been on it. And it is waiting...

Woman falling with life saver

Swan song...is it me? Is it a chemical reaction? Is it typically the third stage of any endeavor? These doodles express a little too much of what I am feeling- so the words beg a more ambiguous approach...

MY Egg

collection Suzy Strauss
Is it my egg?
The egg? Why...egg?
7 x 5

Birds returning redone

This has bothered me so I am playing with it- wasting time perhaps- have to run...

Horrors

mixedmedia on paper 5 x 7 inches
This image was bouncing about my head- I didn't do it the full justice though- as I had limited time today between the grocery store, an art opening starting at 4:30 (AT Maplebrook)- and an early school pick up for the kids, and also had to pick up other people's kids, and then cynically look forward to the long holiday weekend.

Color me with coffee

I have started a new series:
Little 5X7 painted, ink drawn collages- with words and sewing, to describe the poignancy of facing a summer of hostage negotiations,,,or, in other words, mothering restless and strange teenagers.
My kids are done with school in a week- and already the schedule is in chaos, I can hardly find my studio hours in a consistent manner. In addition to being flexible, I find this is a check point to reevaluate my identity and my roles.

Veggie Basket

Steps to the coloring book cover...
pen and ink, paint, and adobe photoshop

Inspiration by watching

I haven't posted in a while but I have been showing up for the Muse. The publication of a county coloring book in a couple weeks has me busy simplifying the lines of the countryside. It's been fun sitting in barnyards sketching the tractors and the spring lambs. My rooster escaped and when I choose to draw him it is only from windows into the thorny hedges that he models for me. Spring seems finally to have arrived- and with it many art tours and outside events. I went this past weekend on the CCCA open studio tour and to Mimi's place where her installations looked light and bright in her studio space. I was amazed at her thought process and have decided to purchase one of her smallest works. Try this link- I hope it works:
http://www.artscolumbia.org/ccca/index.cfm?method=Artist.ArtistDetail&ArtistID=523F0D46-115B-5562-AA59DF647DE1E57F&GalleryID=35E73C4F-115B-5562-AAD49D6B391D9140
I also went with my eldest son to Beacon to see the art stars of the grafitti world paint banners to decorate the old electric factory. Lady pink was there, along with ElbowToe, Rita, and others... It was inspiring and informative to watch them work.
I will post images of the coloring book soon. Thanks for your patience. Have a colorful day!

Vineyard

collection of Lodevole family


Acrylic on paper 10 x 7 and 10 x 12
I am lucky- like martha says in her comment yesterday- to be able to visit the farms of Dutchess county. It is stunningly beautiful outside. Today I visited Clinton Vineyard and drew the spring fields from a bench on the gravel by the wine shop. I didn't want to get in the way of Chris and his crew of lawn workers- they told me to stay off the grass. Of course there weren't any grapes on the vines just yet, so after the first drawing I had to run to the store and pick up a bunch, (probably shipped in from Chile). Then I painted them in my studio with the memory of sitting under my friends, Pino and Bonnie's, grape arbor last July...

Nest distracted

I am so excited about a new job- to illustrate a coloring book of Dutchess county farms for the Tourism Department. This morning I visited Elizabeth Ryan at Breezy Hill Orchard. She greeted me with the aroma of fresh baked goods wafting around her. We used to work the same farmers markets (from Union Square to Millbrook), way back, when my husband was Smiling Rick's Poultry, and it was fun to catch each other up. She had grown bigger-buying other farms and working with chickens now, for eggs and meat. Her cider comes in assorted flavors such as apple-berry, pear, and pomegranate! Her kitchens are humming with activity and she told me all about the weekend spring dance they just hosted. I am so excited for her. A couple years ago her place was destroyed by a huge fire, so it was nice to see her back on her feet. www.hudsonvalleycider.com. I drew some of the apple trees, but was distracted by a robin's nest up in the branches overhead. Watercolor 10 x 14 inches.

Time for a drink?

sold
8 x 10 mixed media on map
I am trying, on a worn spiral bound pad of paper, to track my money and my time- two very finite resources...It is in effort to organize my life on a more sustainable track. After two days, I do not know if I have the time or the money for a drink! It's hard not to be critical...shocked about the computer distraction throughout the day, and I feel guilty for standing by the chicken coop watching the hens play. Got to run!

Summer in the country

Two paintings from today...I am trying to make a good logo for the local farmer's market. I did the tomato first and was all graphic in intent and then the second image was inspired, just as I went to clean my brushes! The watermellon just scumbled tumbled out of my brush- I think I like it best...hmmm

Mother's day butterfly

SOLD Happy mother's day to all the mother's out there- this is certainly my favorite holiday. No two people have ever made me happier than my sons. Being their mother is such an honor and an education. There are times, as a mother, I have been confronted by situations terrifying and new... yet- the love inside our family has charted the territory for our safe passage. So perhaps the butterfly with the map wings is symbolic of my wings won solely by raising children.
My youngest serenaded my bedside coffee breakfast with an acoustic melody, and my eldest drew my annual portrait. What cherished gifts... what blessings!

Planting Seeds

SOLD- thanks Benjamin
I haven't done any major studio painting lately- Instead I use the time spent entering juried shows, applying for grants, considering jobs, submitting proposals,... planting seeds, as it were.
Also (!) today is my kid's school charity auction and as head of the decorating committee, I have spent countless hours preparing the props and decorating the space. This painting is a quickie that came to me as I dreamed within a quick early evening pre-auction party nap.
7 x 5inches map and paint on paper.

Butterfly self portrait on map

3.5 x 6 inches mixed media on panel
gretchen kelly asked if i was moving- judging from my posts...I am not really moving- just flirting with the idea of flight. Movement makes me both appreciate where I am and escape the weight of one location.

Suitcases are packed

6 x 12 inches, painted on maps on wood
I am suspicious of happiness.

Pack a trunk, on map, with movies

6 x 12 inches acrylic and collage on panel.
I have been looking about the house- this house we have lived in for 16+ years- and wondering how we will ever pack up and move. I am starting in the corners. Right now I have a huge tupperware-like tub filled with kid loved VCR movies...I wish the tub had a couple of belts like this trunk. Any ideas what to do with these near obsolete movies? The space emptied has magically filled again- a perfect cabinet spot for winter blankets and extra pillows. I am not sure of making progress.

Sweet orange on map of Florida

SOLD
8 x 10 panel wired for hanging. The oranges we are consuming are fantastic- here is one painted on a Florida map.

TWO Birds of Paradise, cup of Coffee, map of Copacabana Beach, Brazil

SOLD
This 8 x 10 is painted on a map of the Copacabana beach in Rio de Janero, and the reference to the "two birds" is to draw attention to the airplane in the corner as well as the flowers. Rio is where my husband proposed to me 23 years ago. I didn't take him seriously at the time. In fact...now it occurs to me- the "two birds" could be us as well, we were pretty wild and carefree. ANYWAY...my mind drifts. This could be just the little piece of "escapism" you need. It's on a panel that is wired for hanging and I am asking $100 which includes the shipping.

California living on map from Long Beach to San Diego with Surfer

The map is superimposed with images of surfing life and tropical idle...as well as random thoughts reflecting the playful idea of investing ourselves into a new location.
see detail
whole map panel is 10 x 11.5 inches acrylic on paper