It's Spring and I am at a loss for words

How can I be at a loss for words when all around me is inexpressible beauty?

Just when I thought the harsh winter would never ever end. Just when there was finally one day of 78 glorious degrees in April, followed by a snow flurry and icy conditions two days later. Out of firewood, studio too cold to work in, floor boards creaking and breaking. Cats burrowing in their hay boxes, wondering why the heck we ever moved out of Florida.

All of a sudden those hidden treasures from under the surface have begun their triumphant emergence through the soil. The birds are resuming their harmonious melodies. The front porch is again stretching out its arms for us to come, sit, drink our white wine, enjoy the star studded night sky without having to wear a parka and wool socks.

"So then the year is repeating its old story again. We are come once more, thank God! to its most charming chapter. The violets and the May flowers are as its inscriptions or vignettes. It always makes a pleasant impression on us, when we open again at these pages of the book of life." Goethe

So yes, I am at a loss for words.

One of the great Pantone colors for spring is called Freesia. It's yellow, it's right out of the garden, and we are seeing a lot of it this season.

Freesia brooch upycled artist palette

Freesia dangle earrings

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Where it All Started

I have always believed that people love to see behind the scenes in the artist studio. It’s like looking behind the curtain and seeing what goes on backstage, to see how the art is crafted, what tools and materials are used, and how the artist thinks. To this end, I am thrilled to unveil a new video that tells my story of the origins of Parts of Art. A big shout out to the producer and videographer @Moguefilms . Here are some of the pieces seen on the video. Want to see more? visit my shop here

Just add paint!

It’s just that simple when painting with watercolor. This is how I start my day in the studio. Open to a new page, fill a brush with sparkling clean water, and fill the page or pages. Then, add watercolor paint and let it do its thing. The daily studio routine is this: clock in at 9 and paint that page in my journal. I realize that the painting on this page could become a beautiful fabric design, a batiked collage, or an amazing painted wall hanging. But my POINT is that I start my studio day with water on a page and go from there. As far as the illustrated journal, yes it’s true. Any thing done on these hallowed pages could become some great masterpiece someday. But that’s clearly not the intent. The journal is the place to play, to experiment, to express, to answer the question “what if ?” It’s about the inspiring and refreshing place my mind enters once that water on the page turns to color. It’s where it starts. Does it matter

The Making of a Show piece

Earlier this month I made the decision to compete. The competition is for a monetary prize that will be awarded in an upcoming show. This is an art show in which I have participated for the last three years, and, for me, the awards are fairly substantial. I am not usually one to go after awards, but I figure I’m going there anyway, so I might as well compete. The other motivator for me is that I need a new jury image or two. Somewhere along the line I learned that jury images need to show a constistency; the pieces need to look like they are all from the same DNA, so to speak. I have had a concern that my jury images are too dissimilar, and someday I need to make them more cohesive. So someday arrived this week. I had three days off work, so I scheduled studio time to design and build a show piece that 1) could possibly win a prize, and 2) be photographed for a jury image for next year’s shows. I thought I would show you some photos of the w

Parts of Art

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