Today was not wasted, I used pencils instead of paint.   Tomorrow it's back to my brushes.  

"A single rose can be my garden...A single friend, my world."  - Leo Buscaglia

I applaud your curiosity, thanks for checking out my blog.  So, I have talked about the composition of "West of Eleven" in an earlier post.  But you may be looking at it and wondering what it means.  The overriding message is this: Creativity is always tethered by the practical.  I'll leave you to wonder about the rest.  Have a great holiday weekend and congratulations Dr. Mackin.  

"Life is like music, it must be composed by ear, feeling and instinct, not by rule."  - Samuel Butler

I really need to update my portfolio on this site.  Sorry, it is one of those chores I just put off until I absolutely have to do it.  Maybe next month?  I didn't get to paint as long as anticipated today, that was disappointing.  But I have discovered some new paint combinations and wanted to get them down on worksheets.  It will have been time well spent in the long run.  The light was promising this morning, but turned to gray and dull before I finished.  It is after 10:30 p.m.. so I think I shall put my feet up and relax for a couple of hours.   Back to my brushes - tomorrow!

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."  - Aristotle

I have completed my caption for Splash 15 - Hoorah!  That was harder than I expected it would be.  Not that I couldn't write it...but which version would I send.  One version hit four of the topics but still held together well, but I preferred the other and sent it in the end.  It was a broader take on the whole creative solution theme but I included a specific technique and it is definitely personal.   I'll file the other just in case.   Anyway, I'm happy that I can now return to my brushes!  

"The minute one utters a certainty, the opposite comes to mind. " - May Sarton

Shortly after hearing about the tornado today in OK I got my Uncle on the phone to find out if he and my Aunt were okay.  They are fine but I couldn't talk to my Aunt because she wouldn't come out of her closet.  We lost power for three hours when the storms rolled through here this evening.  There was a tornado warning and the sirens were going, but we only lost some trees in the neighborhood.  We turned on the flashlights and played cards, not looking forward to the bad news that would accompany the return of electricity.   As the thunder and lightening continue outside, my thoughts are with those in Moore.  

Painted all day today.  Not the best light, but okay.  It was 90 degrees today.  Less than two weeks ago we had snow.  How weird is that?  Back to my brushes.

"Bulls do not win bullfights, people do.  People do not win people fights, lawyers do."  - Norman R. Augustine

I visited the Mooresville Artist Guild newsletter "Palette Patter" for May and see my painting "West of Eleven" is included in their AWS 146th International Travel Exhibit article.  Here is a link:  http://www.magart.org/images/stories/PalettePatter/PPmay2013.pdf 

Visited the 21C art museum yesterday with two great friends.   I deconstruct every painting for them and tell them how it was accomplished just before  they are ready to move on.  They tell me it gives them another layer of appreciation.  I was gratified to see some watercolors included.  I would have to say that the light/film installation is my favorite.  Like an amusement park ride, I love the way my brain experiences movement through sight.  My least favorite, that would be a toss-up.  I found the odd placement of the stuffed ravens scavenging  meat in the restaurant unappetizing.  It was like having lunch in a Hitchcock film.   Only thing worse would have been sitting underneath it.  The chandelier with wigs... I'd like to shake the hand of the person who has to dust it.  Love "Gust of Wind", but the experience is ruined by the incredibly foul language running in the film alongside it.   Why trade wit for the F-bomb?   Think green when speaking.  It will make an immediate impact in our world.  

"I want all this loud profanity in the street stopped.  I want people to think about choices."  - Bill Cosby

 For the first time in three years I cleaned out my palette.  There was some paint in there that was so old it would not reconstitute after sitting in water.   I have heard two different tales about filling your wells and working from that or always putting out fresh paint.  The first story is that tube paints are actually made to fill pans and are supposed to dry out and then reconstitute.  The second story is that pans are made with a different formula.  I don't know what the accurate tale is today.  It might be both, but it doesn't matter.  I do what works for me.   I like filling my wells and letting them dry out then reconstituting.  For my sketchbook and miniatures I make my own pans for a portable palette.  I purchased the empty pans from Kremer and got a wonderful portable palette there as well.  Love it!  But do what works for you.  Back to my brushes.

"It destroys one's nerves to be amiable every day to the same human being." - Benjamin Disraeli

Hope everyone has the opportunity to spend time with their mother, the mother of their children, or someone who has a mother-like influence in their life this weekend.  Happy Mother's Day!

"There is nothing in the world of art like the songs mother used to sing." - Billy Sunday