A DAY WITHOUT PAINTING IS FUN!

If you're stopping by to see more art, I hope you'll enjoy the change of pace that I'm posting here today. This was 'VE' day - for Volcano Eruption. As you can see in the photo below, all went as expected. We even had a newsgirl, with her yellow microphone, on the scene to give us updates about the situation as it unfolded.

Any creature that didn't evacuate this one-of-a-kind, artistic, hand built mountain was destroyed by a rumbling blast and prolific lava flow, which triggered a major mudslide that seemed to move part of the mountain. It could be years before things grow in that area again!

It was an exciting day overall that also included delivering trees and some shopping earlier with Grandpa. After the volcano completed its outstanding performance, we all headed to the pool for a two hour swim, followed by dinner on the deck of steak, corn on the cob, and chocolate milk. We enjoyed the sights and sounds of nature all around us even though we were continually 'visited' by a mammoth wasp that actually landed briefly on my arm. Yikes! Life is so good!

BATIK AGAIN

This batik became a challenge, mainly because I tried to paint and wax on a very, very thin rice paper called Ichimatsu. Since I chose a subject with so many right angles, using a washi paper with the tiny squared pattern in it seemed like the natural choice.

This photo isn't the best to capture the painting, either, since it was taken several years ago. 'Ichimatsu' means 'checked' or tiny squares, and it's a fun word to roll off your tongue.

Every layer that I waxed and painted on this surface had to dry completely before it could be handled, or it would easily tear. Any rice paper can tear, but this was pushing the limit.

The final mood of the painting suited what I was after.... an empty chair in an antiquated and poorly equiped kitchen. I liked the way the blocks of lights and darks helped create movement in the picture too.

"COUNTER PRODUCTIVE" Transparent Watercolor and Sumi Ink on Ichimatsu Rice Paper, adhered to 140#CP Arches about 13 x 18" COLLECTED

SCULPTURE & FLUID ACRYLICS

This past week has been bubbling over with activity - but not on watercolor paper. We have two of our grandkids here, and the project was to make a volcano and let it erupt. We'd tried it last fall with a makeshift volcano and had no luck getting the baking soda and vinegar to spew out of the volcano.

Tomorrow's the day we will try again - but this time with a 'state of the art' volcano, carefully crafted out of plaster wrap and paper maiche, then covered artistcally with snow, a mud slide, a mountain stream, many crevasses and rocks, plus adorned with dinosaurs devouring the lush vegetation growing on the side of the volcano. The kids built the whole thing then painted it with my fluid acrylics and did an awesome job. They are really proud of what they've done, too.

I'll let you know how well the newly created volcano erupts and if any of the dinosaurs survive. Our oldest grandson is going on vacation with us later this summer, and is especially excited about it since we'll be staying on two dormant volcanos, Mt. Mazama and Mt. Hood.

FLORAL BATIK

I just got back home from a gorgeous lake setting in Michigan where I enjoyed a relaxing and inspiring weekend with one of my favorite art 'cronies' (my husband's terminology.) Lynne is a gifted photographer who has incredible timing with her camera and is able to see (and capture on disk) aspects of nature in her own unique way.

She has hummingbirds EVERYWHERE! She fills her feeders with a 3 to 1 water to sugar ratio, and it does the job of attracting them constantly, even during torrential downpours. There was quite an array of wildlife to enjoy - cranes, herons, frogs, turtles, butterflies and song birds, as well as exquisitely beautiful gardens at Linda's home to explore. It's an excellent fishing lake for catching bass and for watching storms roll in across the lake --- WHEW! Exhilarating.

We never did make time to produce any works of art, even though I packed all my painting and batiking supplies. The batik shown here was painted several years ago and belongs to Lynne and Jamie now.

It's sometimes a much needed inspiration to just unwind and share with friends rather than to spend the hours producing paintings. Either way, we would have fun together. Not only can Lynne take great photos, but she's become an excellent cook, too!!! So I was well fed, got my batteries recharged, and now have a great weekend full of memories. Many THANKS!

"HE LOVES ME..." Transparent Watercolor and Sumi Ink on Thai Unryu Rice Paper, adhered to 140#CP Arches about 15 x 11" COLLECTED