I don't know if "the mermaid" is a pilates pose or a yoga pose, but Claudine sat in such peace while we sketched her.   Try sitting in this for a minute, and you can imagine the stretch of settling in for 5 minutes, much less half an hour. Models  have a peace and tranquility that amaze me .  The feather earring was my idea.

My father  died last year.  He was a man of great dignity, integrity and love.  I think you can see that in my painting "Sixty-four years of Kisses".  During his last year, we came to rely on our hospice team to inform us, support us, console us, direct us.....and so much more.  They made it possible for Daddy to die peacefully and surrounded by love.  They have helped us live through so much grief.

This week, I’m painting these delightful kids from the Prince Kuhio parade last month in Waikiki. Definitely an exercise in dancing with paint – upbeat and flowing - the music went on and 4 hours later these children inhabited the canvas.  Being "in the flow" lets things happen that I truly don't recall being present for.  It's a good thing at times, with many shortcomings.  By the way, even though the painting start was  out-of-body, the finishing of it took lots of time and effort.  

I paint children when the storyline makes me grin or hits my heart. And these two absolutely did.  I chased them along the street till I KNEW I’d gotten their sweetness and joy.  If the painting makes you smile, if it looks breezy and happy, if even the paint strokes look relaxed and fun, if the colors are evocative without being exact – then you already know a lot about Hawaii.   That kind of spirit is uniquely Hawaiian.   

And, yes, the prints of this one are on order already.  Thanks for asking

Aloha!

 

 

About THIS PAINTING -  I began this work as an abstract "start".  I love the rich colors and interesting texture.  While some abstract starts have a definite orientation - i.e. I know which end is up - this one works in many directions.  After a few months of turning it around and visiting the page, I began to see the finished work.  It's a floor level view of dancing boots.  Can you find hemlines, boot tops, legs, and the moodiness of the dancefloor?  I've been adding whispers of these -not too much!- so you can see it too.  The idea of adding this story level is to provide the viewer with  an organizing way of looking at the work, but not so much that it detracts from the beauty of the start.

Here's a whimsical "portrait" of a life story.  Ed served in Viet Nam, and is really proud of his service.  He attended school on the GI bill.  He met his wife in college and she remains the love of his life.  He's always been a musician.  In grade school, he played drums before school, after school, until his folks made him cease and desist.  He went on to play in lots of groups around Chicago and to write music - very heady jazz.  

Today is day one of blogging - Thanks for the encouragement, by the way! - and more important, it’s day one of painting this year.  I’m always amazed at how quickly my body forgets how to paint.  The first days back after a break are always painful.  This break has been long, since Thanksgiving.

So here are the tried and true steps for starting again.  

Design your re-entry.  Choose a project.  Journal what you want to accomplish.

Set the stage in the studio.  Light a candle.  Put on music.  

Do a warm up.  

Use this day as an opportunity to be more conscious in the process.  

Rediscover the paint, the colors, the brushes, the body mechanics of painting.

Give yourself peace of mind and patience as a gift.  Don’t judge or criticize the early efforts.  

Schedule a good half hour at the end of the day to lovingly prepare for the next day’s painting by setting out your plan and your studio space.

Winnie died in September. Her lat months were so painful for her, and all I wanted to do was to cancel everything, slow down and spend my time in her company.  I'll forget or regret that time together.