Heading into Fall

The year of COVID… what happened to Summer? or Spring for that matter?! Next week is the official start of the Fall season and time is just passing. Because I participated in an online workshop with pastelist Karen Margulis end of August I plan to now put into practice some of the underpainting techniques she…

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Mountain Escape

Longer than I ever expected, COVID 19 continues to change the way we are living. Summertime is when I would normally be busy exhibiting in outdoor art festivals, welcoming thousands of patrons and visitors during festival weekends, but we are in some kind of new normal. Large public gatherings have been put on hold indefinitely,…

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Art Therapy

These are difficult times, and right now it can be a challenge to find understanding, peace, and a better way of life. Surrounding myself with the arts has always been the best way for me to live a full life. I continue to paint, be creative, learn from others, share knowledge, and hope by offering…

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A New Normal

Because of COVID 19, artists have had to find ways to adjust to the way we exhibit, teach, and even reconnect with the creative process. It’s been a challenge, to say the least. For me, after a few weeks of disbelief and confusion about what was happening in the world, I was able to tap…

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Knowing Place

I have been working with soft pastels lately, and revisiting a favorite subject… wildflowers in nature. This new series of paintings is inspired by summer visits to Baroda, Michigan. I first created a small mixed media painting using photo transfer techniques, encaustic medium, and oil pastels. I focused on dimension and textures plus I became…

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Downtime and the New Year

2019 is coming to an end and I can not believe how quickly the time is passing! I survived my first participation in the One of a Kind Holiday Show and with much success will look forward to returning next December. The attendance was incredible, I loved that the show was four days long, and…

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Survival…

Survival of the fittest! It is always a physical and mental challenge when I participate in summer outdoor festivals, from the packing and loading of work to exhibit, the loading of tent and panels required in order to hang and display work, to the unpacking and setup at the actual festival, and then the re-packing…

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Revival; before and after

Springtime is when I have to start planning my exhibition space for the upcoming summer festival season. It forces me to review art inventory, and re-assess what paintings are “show worthy”, and those that need to be re-worked. Ever since I started incorporating alcohol inks into encaustic medium, I have found a new way to…

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Summer Inspiration

I recently visited the Chicago Botanic Gardens knowing I would find visual inspiration. The colors of gorgeous velvety red roses in the Rose Garden, to the perfectly manicured bonsai and pine trees in the Japanese Garden, were a gift. In the English Walled Garden, I watched as wedding vows were exchanged, the scene felt like…

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New Oil Paintings

I continue to be inspired by my visit to the Burren in County Clare, Ireland last September. A new body of work is slowly starting to emerge in my studio, and I am in the midst of it all. One of the challenges for this series has been my desire to incorporate a variety of…

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