Like Crazy People, Only Saner

Seriously, you really do have to be a crazy person to stand out in 26 degree weather with a wind chill of 14 for 2 hours painting. Fortunately I have a friend who is exactly this kind of crazy person. Otherwise I'd be questioning my own sanity. The thing about Plein Aire painting in Michigan in January is that it's FUN. Seriously. Try dressing like the Michelin Man and then wielding fragile sticks of pastel with double-gloved hands trying to coax an image out of the frozen numbness of your frontal lobes! It would be so much easier to hang out in the relative comfort of the studio, but where is the living on the edge in that? Anyway, while the work produced in these cold alla prima sessions isn't likely to win any awards, its really the essence of the experience that matters here. Thats the icing (literally!) on the cake.

Sun on Sand and Snow - North Bar

Finally, the illustration projects are wrapped up for now and have had some time to get back in the studio. Am posting another 6x12 image in the canvas reclamation project. This is a study done for a larger painting (24x48) that I'll eventually be posting as well. 

Three Small Gouache

alla-la-la-la-la prima. 5 minutes x 3 = 15 min.; mix, decide, apply, finish. breathe.

God Helps Those....

who help themselves. After all, dog is God spelled backwards. In a weird way I'm sort of proud of him. I guess all those agility classes paid off.

Big Red Barn

Eight Days to Dry

Old Mission Peninsula, a little different format. Must remember to bump up the drier in the medium as its been 8 days and still not completely dry. Oil on a reclaimed panel.

Watching Paint Dry

Finally dry. I have a number of new paintings kicking about the studio as part of my "Save the Canvas" campaign, but in the category of nothing ever goes as planned, this group of work is being a bit temperamental about drying. Apparently I must of not added enough galkyd to this last batch of medium.

Bad Paintings of the World.....

Unite! There is hope for life after bad art. Presenting painting number 2 in the canvas reclamation project; The End of Old Mission in October. The painting that is now securely entombed forever (hopefully) under this new offering was an abomination, an affront to my own artistic ego, i.e., it was a painting that for various reasons DIDN'T WORK OUT. Paintings that don't work out can be problematic. After all, just what do you do with them? I mean I really don't want them hanging around my studio bumming me out, providing me with tangible proof of that day's particular artistic ineptitude, nor do I want to lavish them on friends & family who will gasp at the magnitude of such an extravagant offering and then promptly stash them in a closet or worse yet become garage sale fodder. So just what becomes of those "process" pieces? I have it on good authority that one nationally known (who here will remain unknown) painter was cavalierly just throwing his "process pieces" in the trash, only to one day find the garbage man rifling through the best of the worst paintings! Hello EBAY. Said painter has found one more reason to love his table saw. Other painters archive and store the stuff, I choose to reuse, much to the horror of my husband. SO that conversation went kind of like this...Me -"blah, blah, blah canvas reclamation project." Husband - "You are DOING WHAT to finished paintings???" In his ever optimistic way he suggested that a mythical someone, somewhere, just might want to buy one of those process pieces. To which I suggested to him that he sign HIS name on them. And I see he has yet to take me up on that! :)

The 15 Minute Oil

This painting is part of what I am now referring to as the "Canvas Reclamation Project". Canvases, that for one reason or another, don't really like the painting they've been presented with. Underneath this study was a painting of the lake Michigan shore line. While the actual scene doesn't include any lake view or tree line to the right, I liked the way these parts of the underpainting came through and decided to let these sections stand as they were.

The People You Meet at Lunch

Just another day in the life. We headed out today for lunch to Ada Bike and the Schnitz Deli. On the drive out we started noticing a huge police presence down the entire route. Annoyed by all the road closures we took the back road into Ada and pulled into the bike shop. Where we were met by....more-better-serious police, bomb sniffing dogs, metal detectors and my personal favorite, a handbag search. After the Secret Service liberated a wine opener from my bag we were allowed into the Great Hall of Bikedom. As it turns out, we weren't the only ones in Ada for lunch, as evidenced by the Presidential Motorcade's arrival some 10 minutes later. And sure enough there is the Leader of the Free World heading up to the Schnitz Deli for lunch. So I see where my lunch is heading and it no longer involves dining at the Schnitz. I'd like to take this time to thank Ada Bike for the Bag of Starbursts I had for lunch. But I digress. Anyway, after his lunch GW made his way down to the bike shop where he shook hands & chatted us all up. Note on meeting the President: my biggest regret was that I wasn't wearing my "Hot Chicks for Obama Pin". It was on my other coat. Damn it.

The 15 Minute Gouache

Time to post something from the art category. This is a 15 minute gouache study from yesterday. I actually did two paintings - the gouache and a small oil, of this image. Will post the oil once its dry enough to move. My focus right now is - the bravado of the start & knowing when to stop.

Podium Girls-A New Twist!

I always wanted to be a Podium Girl! I did, I did, I did. I got my chance a little belatedly Friday night at the "Welcome Home & Medal Viewing" party for our friend Mackenzie Woodring. Mackenzie was the eyes for fellow cyclist Kara Whitsall at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. How cool is that??? Even better, look what they brought home:
Gold - Women's Individual Time Trial B&VI 1-3
Silver - Women's Individual Road Race B&VI 1-3
Bronze - Women's Ind. Pursuit (B&VI 1-3)