My First blog

Well, this is my very first post. I have been inspired by a two other artists to try my hand at blogging, one is Tracy Helgeson, an artist I met at the Vermont Studio Center and the other is Adria Arch, an artist who belongs  to the same co-operative gallery I belong to, the Bromfield Gallary. I love both of their blogs and their art. 

Today I had my first physical therapy appointment after having  knee surgery on March 20. I was feeling a little discouraged before I went, I thought I should be just about back to normal now, but my expectations are a little high. Evidently being able to walk up stairs using both feet is quite an accomplishment for someone so recently operated on. So I guess I will go easy on myself.  

Since the surgery I have been trying to paint at home. Which would be okay if I had a real room to do it in. But I have to make do with my dining room, which is smack dab

 in the middle of my house,. Essentially, it is the hallway for the house, can't get anywhere else unless you walk through the dining room. It is a recipe for distraction.  I

 did manage to complete a painting that I started up at the Vermont Studio Center. It is from a series of paintings I call the Redemptive Powers of the H

ula Hoop. The project began two years when I was a resident at Jental, an artists residency program in Wyoming. They had hula hoops there, for the fun of it, and just for fun I decided to take pictures of all the 

residents hooping. When I looked at the pictures, I noticed that after the first few attempts, the body and facial expressions would relax and a childlike posture would come over everyone. I think in order to hoop, or attempt to hoop, you have to access that child in you who first tried it out. From the pictures I started making these little icon paintings, they are white gold leaf, acrylic and gouache with swavorski crystals on wood panels, 4"x8". My goal is to complete a hundred of them, so far I have done abou

t 20, but I just took a lot of pictures of people attempting to hoop while I was in Vermont and can't wait to get started on the new Icons.

Of course I am really good at distracting myself and while I was in Vermont I got an idea for another way to use the hula hoop images. Which is the painting I just finished while I am recuperating at home. I call it Lana set free it is Acrylic on wood panel, with swavorski crystals, 18"x 24"  and was a lot of fun to do.