A New Year

It's a new year and a time to again resolve to be more diligent about writing my blog.
I have spent some time re-reading my notes on blogging and pondering just what my blog is about.  I chose the title for my blog "In the Moment" to write about not just my painting, but about what I am doing, thinking, making, and discovering at any given moment.  I have spent most of my life planning the next day, the next week, the next month, but as I get older, I want more and more to just be in the moment.....to appreciate the here and now. 
Mostly my blog will be about painting, my passion.  But, I also love to knit, crochet, bake, work in collage and mixed media, and try lots of new things.  I have a new grandson who is occupying a large portion of my heart right now......so my blog can be about all of those things.

My newest project which turned out a little funky is felted flowers that you see pictured in the post.  I love the colors and curly petals, but they didn't turn out exactly as I had expected.  The movement of the petals is simillar to the movement that I capture in my paintings, so I think they relate.  I am going to work on them a little more and make pins for my artsy friends.  I hope they like them.  Check out the patttern for Lion Brand Wool. 

New Birth

Last week, my first grandchild was born....a little boy, so sweet and so small.  I think about him all the time and every time I close my eyes, I see his little face.  It was love at first sight!

I follow Donna Iona Drozda's blog, Following the Moon, and in her last post she wrote about celebrating the arrival of a new natural year and about renewal and the birth of new things.  I can not think of any better way to celebrate a new year than with the birth of a child and I find it a perfect way to reflect upon the experience of rebirth and renewal.  To associate that with my ART/LIFE, I purchased a Visual Journal sketchbook and plan to use it to capture images of  the new grandson, Owen, as he grows.  I will photograph or sketch him each month for at least the next two years creating a visual journal of his early life to be given to him on his second birthday (or maybe I will continue it longer?).  The first of such images is pictured here as the first installment in the series.  It was created from a photograph taken shortly after his birth.  Charcoal was used for the preliminary sketch, then collage materials and finally acrylic paint.  I will post others as they are completed. 

The Clock is Ticking

Make every minute count....the clock is ticking. This is my collage project from my Artful Women group on Friday. We chose a photograph of a bird and used other collage materials and paint to create a bird medallion. Each month this group of women inspire and challenge me with their knowledge of materials and techniques and their ability to stimulate creative thought.