I’m waiting for the acrylic paint to dry fully (it takes about a week) so that I can paint over it with water-soluble oil paints.

The red will show through, in some areas.  It’s a great effect, borrowed from something I read when I reviewed Monet’s correspondence and notes, many years ago.

During the winter, I almost bought a new easel.  Then, I looked at the price and decided that I could keep using my field easel for awhile longer.

This morning, I woke up and realized that I’m not painting as much as I would if I had a real easel again. (I didn’t move the old, rickety one from Texas.)

So, I went to Dick Blick and ordered the same easel as my mother uses.

It’s a truly lovely easel.  My mother likes to sit and paint at hers.  I tend to stand up and walk back and forth, painting and then seeing what my work looks like, at a distance.

That’s partly because my work tends to be somewhat Impressionist in color.  I use bold colors and subtle colors, and all of them together so — close up — the painting doesn’t always look like much.

My family and the people who collect my work talk about the ’sweet spot’ being about 15 or 20 feet away from my art.

Anyway, I’m excited that this easel will be here in about a week.

I’m ready to finish several paintings, but I’ve postponed them because the field easel isn’t sturdy enough.  Oh, it works great outdoors on uneven surfaces, but… I need a real easel.  This one is a beauty!

And frankly, Dick Blick’s price was about 1/3 the cost of a comparable easel at most art supply stores… even the discount art supply store that I usually shop at in Portland, Maine.

(I looked far and wide for a better deal, and couldn’t find anything close.  I even had an alert at eBay, so I was notified each time an auction featured an artist’s easel.  No luck.)

Here’s the easel description from Dick Blick.  If you click on the “Buy” button, it’ll take you to the page where you can see more about this easel, and then browse the others that they carry.

(Shopping tip:  I used the code CCGC and the $5 savings almost covers the $5.99 shipping.  But, before you leave the Dick Blick website, be sure to look at their Clearance items.  There’s a portable, hardwood Julian painting box that’s 81% off right now… about $20.  That may be singing a siren song.  I’m thinking about it.)

I spent far too much of the past year working on other people’s goals and neglecting my art.

Oh, I have no one to blame for that.  I made some poor choices.  A harsh wake-up call made me pause and check the credentials (and track records) of the people I was working with.   That was an even more harsh discovery.

I went through several weeks of being very angry.  I hated my art from that time, so I cut it up for a personal installation.  (The pieces are gorgeous, out of the original context.  Suddenly, the art is about color! Those pieces will become part of very different art.)

Then, I needed a few weeks of hasty damage control.   Until the facts are more widely known, there’s only so much that I can do.  But, I also don’t want to invest more energy in… well, a disappointment.  (I mean, what’s the point?  I was one in a series of gullible people. )

I’ve decided to retain my naivete, despite the obvious risks.  I think that my sense of wonder is a large part of what makes me an artist.

Among my favorite quotes, “The dignity of the artist lies in his duty of keeping awake the sense of wonder in the world.”  (G. K. Chesterton said that, and many other inspiring things.)

So, I will continue to be an idealist.  It’s part of who I am.  I don’t claim to be a great artist, but I like this: “No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist.” Oscar Wilde said that.

I think that’s germane to what I’m realizing:  When I’m immersed in “real” life, I seem to stop making art.  When I pursue art for its own merit, the world seems endlessly beautiful to me, and I express it in my paintings, my art journals, and my fabric art.

The paintings I’ve started in the past couple of weeks… they’re totally different.  They’re wonderful. They draw a little on the my Bush Park painting (on my homepage, as I write this).  I think I’m heading towards more lyrical art… less literal.

I wish this past year’s lesson had been more quickly learned, but this is all part of life’s journey!  As Tammy Faye Bakker once said, “You cannot go forward looking in the rear-view mirror of your life.”

Anyway, I’m restoring this website now.  It’s one of many projects that I started but didn’t have enough time for, this past year.

The drawing at the upper right corner of this post shows the computer in my studio.  I sketched it this morning — as a contour drawing — while I was waiting for my computer to boot up.

I’ll be posting fresh art in the upcoming week.

The location is in Kennebunkport, Maine, across the street from the Bush compound.

I started painting at this location as part of my “look the other way” series. For that series, I chose subjects that are a 180-degree turn from popular tourist vistas.

When I started painting at this location in the early 1990s, George Bush (Sr.) was President, and tourists would drive past his family’s compound… and totally miss this lovely salt marsh across the street.

As the seasons changed, I became even more appreciative of this salt marsh. As an artist, I was (and still am) enthralled by the myriad colors in this setting. But, I also like painting in this relatively isolated location because–as a woman, alone–I always feel safe, knowing that there are cameras and security guards keeping an eye on me.

This salt marsh has changed over the years. The trees are larger and more mature. A new house on the other side of the marsh–barely visible–means fewer deer on that side of the landscape.

Today, even more people want to see the Bush compound. The street can be busy at the peak of tourist season.

But, the salt marsh is still one of the loveliest along the Maine coast, and this location continues to be among my favorites.

This oil painting is 8″ x 16″ on canvas board.  It was completed in May 2007.

Collection, J. Watt, California

I painted this over a series of afternoons, en plein air (meaning: outdoors, on location).

It’s one of my favorite paintings, and it was displayed in my living room when I lived in Texas, as a connection to New England’s magnificent landscapes.

As of late 2008 (shortly after our move to NH), this painting is still in storage.  However, I recall that it’s dimensions are about 16″ x 20″ on canvas.

I thought that the challenge fabric was insipid. I struggled to find a way to use it.

Weeks passed and the deadline loomed, and nothing about this fabric inspired me.

Then, I realized that I could work in contrasts: meek with wild, and traditional with jazzy.

The finished wall hanging is 32″x52″, and at the time I called it, “Threads of the Past, Visions of the Future.” It is pieced and appliqued, with some stenciling (the small yellow dots) as a
surface treatment.

This quilt took top marks, winning an award for originality and design.

Today I call it, “Baby’s Blocks, Gone Wild” and I’m eager to do more with contemporary twists
and traditional designs.

In this painting, I wanted to capture the exhilarating freshness of Glastonbury in the spring.

The scene is the Tor late in May when the flowers are in bloom and the grass is a vivid, new green.

This oil painting was painted in an Impressionist style.

Close to the painting, the colors are broad and almost abstract. From 30 feet away, the painting looks photographic.

Like most of my work, this photo doesn’t accurately represent the range of colors and depth in the painting.

Collection, Vernon and Barbara Pope, Kansas

(I know that it looks the same, but you’ve probably noticed that it loads faster than the older version.)

I’m in the process of restoring the art to individual pages at this site.  This involves a lot of cut-and-paste work, and I’ll continue restoring the articles and images as time permits.

I’m very pleased with the new hosting, and look forward to building this into a great art website and a resource for friends, fans and collectors.