My Forgery

The exhibit this month at The Artists Gallery is "Fabulous Forgeries", where artists re-create the work of the masters by using the master's style, or taking the master's work a step further, or re-creating a master's work with a touch of humor to pay tribute to that master.  My own style most closely resembles that of Georgia O'Keeffe, so I always choose one of her works as my tribute.  I had the privilege of visiting the O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe several years ago, affirming my belief that she is one of the great American painters of the 20th century.  I am in awe of her intimate relationship with nature and her unique ability to capture that on canvas.  Her work is so compelling to me that it is never far from my mind and heart.  This year for my painitng, I chose to create an original compilation of her paintings by including a portrait of Georgia O'Keeffe taken from a photograph by John Loengard, along with four of her paintings.  They are Red Amaryllis, Sky Above Clouds III, Near Abiquiu, New Mexico, and Grey Cross with Blue.  Copying another artist's work is not only a learning experience but a kind of spiritual connection like no other.

Zinnias

Here is the painting I didn't get posted for the latest blog.

A New Year

Okay, a new year and a new goal for my blog....to be more faithful to my blog commitment. So, here goes..... I have posted a new painting of Zinnias, finished about a month ago. Seems funny now to be painting zinnias in the middle of winter, but they do brighten the grey days of winter cold and snow. Actually, I had the photo of the zinnias for a couple of years and had always planned to use the photo as inspiration for a painting and then my friend Claudia Finn inspired me with her beautiful paintings of zinnias. Inspiration often comes from other artists. I remember hearing that when Picasso went to visit other artists, they hid their paintings because if he saw them, they know he would copy what they had done. I like to think that was true inspiration from one artist to another.
A couple of posts back, I was writing about feelings of doubt and fear. So, I got out one of my favorite books, Art and Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland......always good in times of doubt, and we all have them. To summarize some points that hit home.....making art is chancy and it's revealing and personal and a lot of hard work. There is always uncertainty. Challenging your fears about artmaking is part of the process. Good art is not made without lots of work ....follow the path of your heart....make "your" art.