Final Post

final post here please go to 
www.emeraldcraft.com

A new experience painting a "backdrop" for the play Cinderella.
Not sure if I would tackle this type of thing again HOWEVER I am not saying never.
The play was wonderfully funny and the children loved it !!
Congrats all !!

Moonlight Bay

After a few struggles with the tree........ I am happy with this piece.

A miracle

Miracles are the constant flow of Love emanating from the Mind of God. My next miracle is literally on the way. I need only stand firm in faith that this is so. And so it is.

Seems it has been a long time since my last post and my last spurt of creativity. And so a new year and a new post. My AA birthday today 17 years of sobriety, and I am grateful. The year has started out with news that changes things in my life......... and although change has been a constant in my life; I find the older I get the more difficult it gets. I find other peoples expectations of me is how "they" want me to be or think I shoulda, coulda, woulda been - if only I had done things differently.

My life was and is a compilation of my experiences.
Someone I once loved told someone close to me that I exaggerate; I know that this was so if I ever said anything about that person it would all be an exaggeration. I always tried  not to say things about that person however the person close to me now filters everything I say through that statement.
Oh this may not make sense to you however I see it clearly. I have no reason to lie or exaggerate; believe me my life did not ever need to be blown up or out of proportion.

And so a new year and change coming ........

 my miracle is on its way and that it is for the good of my life and the lives of those around me.

Purple Moon Painting with paper

Pink Moon ? Purple Moon? I may be coming to the end of this Dark Side of the Moon Series.

This has to be my best work yet !! Acrylic and Japanese Paper on Canvas. I am going to frame this with a floating frame and will re-post when its done .

Night Moves

 Last painting before my trip east.........

Acrylic with Japanese Paper on Canvas.

I am very grateful for this gift of creativity, it fills me up and lifts me up.

Moondance

Moondance .............. Using this Payne's Grey acrylic paint that was gifted to me and loving it. 
I love to paint on a black canvas however the grey is a bit softer and more interesting to work with.

Black Bird Singing in the Dead of Night

So out of yesterday .......... see below - comes this acrylic painting.
My first bird !! My first "song lines" creation. It is my intention to do some art with lines from songs on them.
I am convinced I am AADD just can't seem to stick to one medium or art form ......... however the goal is to create !!

black birds got me

One day workshop in Collage and texture.... my own critic says the birds are too much in the center of the piece.
Perhaps if i learn anything is to take more chances !!
So here goes .............

I started an acrylic painting of ( guess what ) a black bird ................still want the words there tho'

♪ ♫ Blackbird singing in the dead of night ♫ ♪

♪ ♪ Music and Art ♫ ♫

There is music in the air !!

I currently have art in two shows. 

The Art Space in Huntsville.

The Bohemian Cafe and Gallery in Bracebridge.

Friday I drive to Haliburton for an all day workshop at the Haliburton School of the Arts.


I am truly blessed.


A large thanks to all who support me on this journey.

opening Art Show

this is a view of the Art Space show opening tomorrow evening .......... more to come

Art in the Park ..........

 The Art Walk
Huntsville
July 9, 2011

Congratulations Huntsville on a very successful day!

 The 1st Nations area was a hit with the locals and I must say the fellow that did the Emcee position did a great job.


I had a successful day , sold a couple of paintings and many cards ........... folks seem to like my cards.

 Thanks to everyone who stopped by to see me and those who continue to support my work.

A special thanks to Terry Gill, my teacher, my friend and my earth angle .

Saturday July 9, 10am-4pm River Mill Park Huntsville / Muskoka

Saturday July 9, 10am-4pm
River Mill Park

Come for a stroll through the park and enjoy an eclectic mix of artistic experiences, live art and sales with over 30 participants.  Featured this year will be a Native Village offering Native Artisans.  The festival stage will be occupied throughout the day with Native Story tellers, drum circles, singing groups and dancers.  Featured performers will be John Somosi, The Singing Birds, Storyteller Tim Yearington, the BIG Drum Group and Terry Sahanatian.

come out and see my latest artwork !!

Indigenous/Androgynous

My latest creative flow has brought me full circle.
Masks and Feathers were a part of my early art experience.......... before I could even say the word "Artist"

MEDICINE WHEEL / SUMMER SOLSTICE

 The medicine wheel, In honour of the Summer Solstice. A time to celebrate the energy of the four directions. 

Dancing feathers, swirling in the dark circle of time.

Emerald

I am not sure what having a portrait of myself is all about, however the opportunity presented itself. A photograher
Shannon Stark, asked for a price on one of my recent paintings and so we traded !
I really very rarely take a good picture. I can't fake a smile.
I am happy with the photos. I look like myself - or at least how I see myself.

Dancing with the Wheel

 I seem to have a shift happening going back to the "wheel" the "circle" and feathers. These are things I painted a long time ago. The Native mood of my early work got left behind at some point and I am now moved to return to this work.

I love working with a black surface and using metallic paints. Now if I could just clean my drafting table off of all the "stuff" that has landed there in the past week or so ............... I could keep painting.

In the Flow

Will comment once I figure it out !

so this is my family home from a Disney Cruise

This is from left to right Keegan my oldest grandson, his dad Dave my daughter Liz, my daughter-in-law Chantal and my son Jeff, up front is Taryn and Aislin and Erika and Justin.
Aren't I blessed !!

Rambleings

 Today is my 1st day without a headache since New Years. The doctor tells me the non-narcotic pain medication that I have been taking apparently can cause headaches if taken for too long.
Why did I not know this, why have I not been told this before?


Only through my connection to Spirit can I recover. It matters not what I am trying to overcome I cannot do it on my own. I have experienced this over and over - experience is a great teacher however we must choose to learn the lesson or it keeps coming back.

I have been contemplating the thoughts of; am I depressed? am I sad? What is all this about? I have decided to take a herbal supplement called 5HTP to up my serotonin levels. In the program of recovery we are reaching for a state referred to as Happy Joyous and Free ................ how does one measure these feelings.

I do not have a lot to be unhappy about ............ perhaps a little lonely once in a while. Unhappy with my physical condition. Freedom?

It occurs to me that only through prayer and contact with Spirit am I truly content. By this I mean when I am praying regularly and trying to remain humble/teachable I am peaceful.


I have also committed to attend a grief group through Hospice Huntsville, I would like to explore my sadness a bit further. Many losses at once; even though it was 7 years ago, I lost my mother and my husband and my father within 20 months. Loss of a dream. My daughter moving far away felt devastating.

However the bottom line in all this is I look around the world and know that I am blessed; to live in this country, to live in Muskoka, to have a roof over my  head and a vehicle to drive, a closet full of clothes and a fridge full of food. This is more than most people of the world have. I am grateful.

It's all a process ............. of letting go

I am beginning to see that all of life is a process of letting go. It matters not what I  am trying to hold on to; or what  want to remain the same - everything is in process, ever changing.


The process of a piece of art I am working on, is frustrating at times, bringing self doubt and yet I press on.

Thoughts are never stagnant and yet thoughts can drive one mad when they take on an obsessive pattern, around and around in my mind. Luckily for me I recognize for the most part when I am obsessing. However the small stuff seems easy to let go of, to stop the obsession. It is the bigger stuff that apparently for me can move from obsession to addiction. The thing about addiction is it has a physical component to it. The one I struggle with right now is food.  I am obsessed  with food.
I am a recovering alcoholic .......... I have been sober 17 years and would no more want a drink that I would want to stab myself in the eye. I know drinking hurts - me and others. But what of food? One still has to eat.
However I know enough about addiction that this will kill me too. And I know that the mental obsession for alcohol was removed from me through the process of the 12 steps and with the help of a Power that I do not understand.
And I know that this same process works for hundreds of overeaters, folks who have had the obsession of food removed, who did it through the same 12 steps and the same Power and Grace that removed the alcohol obsession from me.
So what is it that I am refusing to let go of here ......... that is the question.
I stopped nicotine 7 years ago and have been eating my emotions instead of smoking them away. Instead of drinking them away. A friend I had not seen in many years told me I looked sad............

What is this sadness, grieving, heaviness? mmm heaviness !!!
more to come ...............

H.A.S. HEART Muskoka Art Show

My Painting shown below [ a couple of posts down ] called Moonset, has been chosen to be a part of the February art show at the Art Space In Huntsville. Being chosen by Brenda Wainman Goulet an artist who I admire for her Bronze Sculptures, is indeed a validation of my art.
I enjoy the process of creating so much that sometimes when I finish a piece I just think " well I like it" then I tend to second guess myself and think " will folks just think it's a bunch of paper" and the it's an easy process.

This is the second time I have been chosen in a juried show and with all of the artists there are in Muskoka I just need to feel honoured, to be a part of such a community.

These have been published before ...........................however here they are again

These are hand drums I made and painted years ago.

Happy Trees

this Painting with Paper is almost finished .......... I am not sure why it looks so blue when it is really green.

Moon Set

I have put a moon in this Painting with Paper

see the post below and note the change.

For the love of Paper

This is my newest torn paper collage called ........ for the love of paper. I need to photograph this again. I find this picture just does not do it justice and I plan on entering this for a juried show so nee a better photo.

For sale in Muskoka

These Antlers have been in my home for a long while and in my effort to be more minimal  in my space, I have painted them and they are now for sale at the Finds, downtown Huntsville.

In the four colours of the Medicine Wheel  .............with Feathers that are said to be messengers from the Creator. The four colours of man; black, white, yellow and red. The four directions North, East, South and West. The four seasons and round and round the medicine wheel. The four stages of life child youth adult and elder ...............

Painted Antler

In honour of those four legged that have given their life, in order that families may eat of their meat this winter. As I painted I was surprised that a "target" showed up as a medicine wheel OR was it the other way around?

Without judgment .............

I could Fly like an eagle ........................ with Gratitude

Well here is a picture of "the log"

Lots of memories for lots of folks........ took a Thanksgiving drive and stopped at Skeleton Lake to take this.

 

This is the Piece chosen for the Juried Show now on at The Art Space, the new Gallery here in Huntsville.

Muskoka Moon is Japanese paper on canvas. I am calling this art form Painting with Paper.

Love this picture from Peggy's Cove and can't figure out why I did not go there and meet some of the women artist's.

I have not posted in a long time, summer has been busy, which I suppose is a good thing.

Here is the poster for the Art Space, we are celebrating the opening and I am celebrating being a part of this show.

I have never been in a Juried Show, and so I am feeling recognized, as an artist.

Dragon Nights

I have added some weight to the bottom of this piece / if you look below you will see the lighter one.
Thanks Jane for the input.

This is in the process of being named .............. dragonflies apparently have a symbolic meaning ( or two ) one being change and one beign surfacing .........

Water Ceremony

Water Ceremony today at River Mill Park.

Pray for water everywhere ... around us - in us.

Working on this now.

I will ad another picture of the completed piece soon...........

It was silly of me not to take a picture of this piece after it had been framed.
It sold last week at the Finds Art Show and so now I will never have a picture, other than this one.
Now I need to do a themed piece for the Show in August called Art and Lyrics .......... so do I pick a song first and work from there or do I just do the Art then name it.
I suppose if that's the biggest decision I have to make today I am doing good.
Not doing much writing ......... lots of reflection though.

Golden Angel

Trying to get a good picture of this is almost impossible.


Using Metallic Paint is great, however trying to photograph it - a bit more challenging.

Muskoka Moon

Once again I have completed a piece only to have trouble in the pricing of it!!