Beginning

  

 beginning

6" x 6"

acrylic on paper

It's March, but I feel like my year is just beginning.  January started with wedding activities for our son's February wedding then our whole household suffered with the winter flu which disrupted all regular activities.  Now that spring has come forth with new growth I too, feel like I'm finally emerging into 2011.

The image above is one of twelve that makes up a collection of images and reflections inspired by Medieval Books of Hours.  The collection is titled icons of time: a visual marking of the hours which is a reminder that every hour of the day should be a time to pray. They were made last year while I was re-reading all my books addressing contemplation and meditation.  While applying what I was reading, I slowed down enough to become watchful of the time and color changes throughout my day.  That practice began a renewal process in my spirit.  These works are visual expressions combining color with the symbol of the unending circle to visually move the viewer through 24 hours and ultimately 365 days of the year.

I'm now in the process of deciding how I will present these images in a format that could be available as a publication.  A friend recommended www.blurb.com as a tool for online publishing and I'm investigating the possibilities of making a visual journal for personal reflection and writing.  I enjoy finding new ways to share my art and make it accessible to more people.  Stay tuned to find out what and how I decide to do that.

New Works and Thoughts

I'ts about time I return to blogging.  I'm surprised I've waited this long.  I've been privileged to spend a lot of time in my studio the last couple months and have completed several new works except for final presentation.  I've been working on some calls for entries to three FL Museums and have one more submission to complete.  They all were listed about the same time so I've tried to make decisions about what goes where.  I'll be sharing where these are later, if I've found favor to be accepted in any of them.

I also visited the Florida Museum for Women Artists in Deland, FL where I have several friends exhibiting in a special Witness to Creativity show which allowed visitors to observe the art-making in progress for a week.  Go to  http://www.floridamuseumforwomenartists.org/ to check it out and if you're in Florida, be sure to see it.

I took a one-day Letterpress and Bookbinding workshop at Rollins College under Prof. Rachel Simmons a couple weeks ago.  It was tedious and time consuming but I'm happy to have printed four copies of the small four-page book and now I'm finishing it by adding color and illustrations and vellum.  When the pages are completed, I'll bind them and will have four limited-edition books!  I'll try to post a couple images when completed.

I've mentioned before I've been inspired to do a series of paintings based on the 1947 discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls by a shepherd boy in the Qumran Caves near the Dead Sea in Israel.  I'm so caught up in this work and have been consumed by studying the archaeological implications of this unearthed evidence that the Scriptures existed, were hand-lettered and preserved in clay pots down in these caves for years!  God's hand at preserving them is evident.  I've posted one image of QumranEleven: unearthed evidence I. It's been a new experience to incorporate "automatic drawing" that I learned in my Feb. workshop which gives a sense of "language" even though there are no recognizable words on the page.   I have so many notes to accompany the works--presently seven and potentially eleven to complete the series.  I'm contemplating the manner in which they will be presented and how I will compile all I have learned.  Writing about my work and inspiration is defintely closure for me in the process of art-making. 

QumranEleven: unearthed evidence I

acrylic with gold leaf on paper

14.75" x 9.5"

I'm also heavily in the middle of another series inspired by the Medieval Books of Hours, mentioned in a former post.  These are small, 6" x 6" images and I'm contemplating how they will be presented along with the writing of all I've learned. Then there's the 2010 Christmas card I've begun to make.  So much, so few hours in a day. . . .sometimes I'd like to have energy to work into the night.  But, I'm still trying to establish balance and quiet/meditative time so I don't miss out on what comes across my life on a daily, hour by hour basis. Challenging.