Everything is Coming Up Roses!

This week's exercise was roses!  Now, I love roses as much as the next girl so I had to go for it.  A 'pretty' stylized face, even made it onto the piece.  Not my usual style but it was really fun to create.  Maybe I will let this lady visit my village with all the imaginary characters.  She would like it there!  This is in my fancy journal (see below) so it will be in my book maybe forever.







The picture below will give you an idea where the new series is going.  Spirituality is always the theme in my work.  Fences are appearing along with the ladders, so we shall see where this journeys.  Think I need to lighten up the colors a little, as they are a bit intense.  Must be an intense time in my life.  Nahhhh.....

"Silencing the Mind"

This was an exercise in being expressive.  That is second nature to me when I paint, so I LOVED doing this.  I probably tightened it up a little too much.

I am titling this piece, "Silencing the Mind".  A special friend inspired it. She is a very spiritual, prayerful, and powerful embodiment.  So, this is in honor of her.

The colors in this piece are rather unusual but I do love to push the boundaries.  They work, I think, I hope...... :-).,......di

the good news, the bad news.....

The bad news is I had hoped to have at least 24 portraits done by this time, this year.  The good news is I have 12.  Can't be too hard on myself: knee replacement, tons of company, put up two shows, etc.  Life is life and I have to admit that I have painted some other paintings since the first of the year also...SOOO..I love me, cutting some slack, and keeping on, keeping on...  These are all inspired by different techniques so they are quite varied, which of course, is a good thing and a bad thing...hmmmmm

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.....

I am in a 'class' in which we are being challenged to create art pieces that are in our own 'style' but inspired by a master artist.  For the month of September we are doing Botticelli.  Of course, he is out of the Renaissance Period, where perfection and symmetry were revered.  I immediately thought of his great work "Primavera (Spring)" which has the three graces dancing in it.  NOW.... in my work, perfection is not found, I chose instead to revere wisdom, aging, and sisterhood...so that is where I went in a different direction.

The title of my piece is "Inverno" which is Italian for winter and I celebrate the later stages in life.  My figures are not elongated, nor perfection, yet they are kind and wise.  I stayed with a muted color palette referencing a later stage in life and Botticelli's three graces palette.  I chose not to make the women old but just more mature and less idealized.  In this piece I celebrate the ties that bind, the cords that interweave, and the connection among the sisterhood.

My 'style' utilizes simple shapes, layered color, and a narrative approach.  Hopefully, you can see a little of Botticelli's influence in there.

Thanks for listening.....Di