Art Show Sunnyside Museum

Well, it's another day in paradise for me :D I've really been working hard at balancing my life. The results are amazing. Regular time painting, focusing on writing, still getting editing job done. Head editor stuff is taking an enormous amount of time, some of which I resent as it sometimes feel as duplicate stuff I'm having to do by doing things that are frustrating and give me literal splitting headaches, but since balancing, it's less intrusive and I'm more productive. So, even in your day job, learning to balance and make time for what's important, you will improve.

I've strived hard in writing and painting. Lately, both had fallen to the wayside. But no more. First thing that's happened, is I've made time to do stuff daily. Made a schedule of sorts. Business morning, arting afternoon. And it really is a basic as that. A tight schedule wouldn't work for me as my needs change. But, I've had time to swim with my kids, and my husband and I have had a little time almost every night that I've been able to spend with my husband doing nothing but watch Bones. (He's going to kill me for getting him into this when he reaches the episode involving Sweets and not making it. LOL) That's huge to me. Spending time with my family is important, even if my kids are whining about chores every time they're asked to do them! lol

The change has led me to really focus and look at what I want which led to me seeing and taking time to respond to announcement of a call for artists from my home town. The Sunnyside Art Commission and the Sunnyside Museum are working together. The artist reception is my first not school related and I'm nervous!

I have six pieces looking to be in the show. Here's the one that made it to the front page of the Daily Sun News:

The original photo was done by my friend Toby. He lives in Scotland, where my heart is...um, Scotland, not Toby :P This photo doesn't do my photo justice. You can get an idea of it here, as well:
http://www.dailysunnews.com/news/2015/apr/09/prepping-museum-art-show/

It's something I may not have seen or participated in if I hadn't made my focus change. I want to create art, both visually and with the written word. I love to edit because it improves my craft and allows me to help a lot of writers make their dreams come true, but I love writing and painting more, because I truly believe that stories and paintings can change a person at a soul level. That it's more than about the story, but about the love, the loss, sadness, happiness, fantasy, the time spent going to a new place in your heart and soul, somewhere that you may not go without the author or artists leading you there. I believe that I can speak to people's soul, and that is my calling.

Mondays, I'm going to make a concerted effort to be about art. I will be sharing my artwork and talking of some of my favorite authors, both alive and dead :D

Here's a photo of a work in progress (original photo by Justine Littleton):

I am currently waiting for it to dry so I can do the next stage. I usually work on my photos, but one, my hearts in Scotland and Toby's photos and willingness to allow me to paint them, soothes my soul. Two, I needed more inspiration and asked friends if they had photos. Justine is a client and was nice enough to send me a bunch. I love lighthouses and the ocean, making this a natural choice for me.

Something in the picture has to call to me in order for me to paint it. It's not the same as simply enjoying a pic. It's something different and intangible. I'm not a realism painter, nor do I do copies. I like to say I'm an expressionist impressionist. Basically, if I don't like you or the subject matter, the pic won't be as good as my emotions will color through. I also do a bit of abstract here and there, but that style is style derivative of my main one. Here's an example:

A very up close picture of an Iris. Oil on canvas, mainly done with a palette knife. (This one is sold.) It's part of my Ode to O'Keefe line. I have a canvas up to do another one this week, so I hope I find the right inspiration as I'm itching to do some of this bold style.


I hope that you enjoy my new art series and that it soothes some part of your heart and soul. Please notice the new subscriber list. I'm just starting up and will be doing news and more details on their, as well as book releases and when paintings go for sale.

Photo a Day in April

Well, I did it. I decided to start the photo a day challenge for April after the last minute? Why? you may ask, as I did myself. Because. April has traditionally been so sucky that I coined the hashtag #effoffApril for it. I'm not going to recap those here. If you really want to know, you can go read my blogs from around that time and you'll get a good idea.

This year, I'm going to do something fun. I love photography, but I'm out of practice, AND I've gotten lazy. I scrapbook so I can cut out anything I don't like. Half my photos or better are for painting purposes and I can change coloring, composition, erase, etc anything I don't like and if I don't want to do either one of those, there's always photoshop. See how easy it is to get lazy with your photography? I don't have the best camera out there, but I have a decent one borrowed from my MIL.

I'm going to take pics everyday of the things they say to get back into the swing of things, or rather, OUT of the swing of things since I can't seem to hold the damn camera steady. Here are the first four days, including today's entry:

!st day-a reflection of you. Now, if I had a stash of chocolate somewhere, with a can of Pepsi and some fabrics, paints, papers, etc. I'd be all about that. But alas, the chocolate is no more. Why is the chocolate always gone??

Obviously, just the tip of the iceberg. I took others, but my hand shook too much. Sad but true.

Next up, is color. So many ideas so little time. I went with my makeup:

That was Day 2's Challenge. Yesterday's challenge was mail. That was too easy since we rearranged things.

Looking at it on screen, I kind of like it :)

For today's challenge, we had to do someone we love. Or someone who makes us smile. Now I can't remember, but my family is always a good choice either way. I took two pics. One of Edward  holding Isaac, but my hands shook again :(( boo cuz I would have liked that one for my scrapbook, and one of Patrick. Here's Patrick:

I like this one. He knew I was taking his pic and subtley changed his pose into this. I like it lots :) He's been a big help while his brothers were so sick (recovering nicely, BTW)

I hope you keep checking back and help me to tell the past April's #effoffapril as I bring happier memories into this year's April. Have a good day ;)

I don't know

LOL I've gotten so that thinking of a title for my posts is most annoying. Sometimes, it's easy, like the featured writers, and sometimes, well, yeah. So, instead of letting the lack of title stare at me accusingly, I'm writing I DON'T KNOW. I feel a little like Doctor Who in the Sicerats(sp?) Christmas episode.

Yes, I want to blog today. Wanted to blog lots of days. But what, exactly, am I blogging about? A little while ago, I decided to make my blog more focused on life and less focused on my writing. Well, I do have a job, kids, etc, but it all revolves around how I see the world as a writer and painter. It's an interesting influx. See, I see the world in pictures and emotions and feelings that I want to write about. I was told once that usually, that people who see things in pictures are slower (*I* am not, even with my meltdown after losing my thyroid. I FEEL slow compared to how I used to be, but I'm not slow.)

It's an interesting way to see the world. I've found a few writers/painters who are the same way. I don't know (ahha! I can let my title stand! :D) if they've ever thought about it quite this way. *shrug* However, try it. Do you remember things in Black and White visually and/or emotionally? I tend to remember the emotional stuff better now. It's like the extra adrenalin that runs through me during an extreme emotion helps my short term memory to temporarily work the way it's supposed to and send it to long term memory. Something that doesn't happen as well as it should since I had thyroid cancer.

Anyway, I grabbed the camera and found some beautiful after rain pictures: Here's a sample (you may use them for your desktop or something, but please do not market/sell, reproduce them! Thanks!)

I love the lighting! (Pssst, I'm not putting my very best ones. Thinking of selling prints on Etsy of those ones!)

I love this picture :)

I realized I could steal a few minutes on the way to/from work and get some grea summer to fall pictures for my painting and that's what I've done!

And I'll give you one more (it's really hard not to post my favorites :)

Okay, that's enough for now :)

I have a painting commission for a friend I'm starting tonight. Should have started last week! NO more procrastination! GRRR LOL

How's everyone doing on there personal hobbies/careers/goals?