To Do List

Its Friday evening. I love this time of night. Dinner is over and done with and its time to sit back and relax. Tomorrow I plan to do a thorough clean and get our house back in order. Some washing is needed too. The weather is getting warmer so I should get it all dry. I love the smell of fresh washing off the line. There's nothing quite like it. My garden still needs a lot of work but it will have to wait a bit longer. Still haven't finished the shed clean up. Its funny how the list always seems to get longer instead of shorter. No matter how much you do there's always more waiting to be done. Oh well right now I'm going to watch a little of So You Think You Can Dance. No 'to do' list tonight.

The Tablecloth and the Giant Peg

Bob is home and is doing well. We are hoping this is the end of it. He's sick of going to hospital and he wants his life back. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and well wishes.

I'm working on a new piece. The canvas is on the large side as usual. I can't get my paintings to work on a smaller scale. The canvas is 101.6x76.2cm (40"x30") and I started with the theme of washing on the line. I always start with a photo. I can see what composition works and change the subject matter etc. Anyway after quite a few photos and strange looks from my son as I was standing on a stool in order to get the right angle of the washing line, I settled on a photo of a red and white checked tablecloth being held down by a peg (see image below). Now you think this would be an easy thing to draw but as I found out today the red and white checks take on all sorts of odd shapes depending on the fall of the fabric.


What I decided to do is to depict the checks in various altered and stained newspaper so after taking photos I went to work on some papers to make sure I had enough to choose from. It will probably look more like a patchwork quilt than a tablecloth but that's ok. At this stage the background will consist of text being stamped on with medium. This forms a bit of a resist when you paint over it and the result should be some subtle text showing through in the 'sky'. I won't have any of the buildings or other things in the painting. Just the tablecloth and the peg. As the canvas is on the large side the peg will be huge. It will be about 35cm in length which is roughly 14". My love of inanimate objects continues and this time I'm showcasing the humble peg hehehe. A giant humble peg, wooden of course, all grey and weathered. I wouldn't use any other. Anyway the papers are prepared, the image is drawn onto the canvas so I'm ready to get stuck into it but not till tomorrow, I'm done for today.

Heatwave Continues

We are now in day 7 of our heatwave and the weather forecast tells us there is no relief until next Saturday when it is forecast to be 30C (86F). The last few nights have been cooler which makes for a good nights sleep and a happier outlook. Instead of being over 30C (86F) overnight its been around 25C/26C (77F-79F). The garden is holding up alright. Things gets a bit droopy in the afternoon but they are surviving. I'm glad I picked all the peaches when I did. They would not have lasted in this heat. The computer however is not doing too well. I'm having trouble with it crashing and not loading and freezing (hehehe freezing, there must be another word) and its all due to the extreme heat.

On the art side of things my creativity is flowing again YAY! Ideas a popping into my head and I'm feeling like my old self again. The only problem is its too hot to paint. The paint dries too quickly and I end up making a right mess of things. So instead I've been preparing some papers and working on backgrounds that don't need such careful consideration and drawing on images ready to paint when the weather settles down. I don't get a lot done as I feel a little lethargic and am constantly resting with a cool drink of water under the air conditioner.

Well I'm off to do some housework before the heat really sets in for the day. At least the washing doesn't take long to dry.

No Art Till the Chores Are Done

My peach tree is full of blossoms. A true sign that spring is here.

The exhibition committee at Gallery M liked our proposal and liked our work and although we haven't been notified officially I'm fairly confident that we will be able to hold our exhibition there next year. We had an exhibition meeting on Wednesday night so we could catch up on plans and ideas and where we are up to in terms of our work. Zoe was secretary and thoroughly enjoyed her position hehehe. We voted on the name for our exhibition which is "Peeking Through Someone Else's Window". Its basically inviting the viewer to take a look at our lives and the things that are important to us from the mundane of the every day to our dreams and aspirations. The exhibition will be about the importance of family and friends and what "home" means to us. I think its very special to have three generations of women working and exhibiting together.

My artwork has been flowing rather nicely lately. Finished the background of a new piece yesterday. I know artists have times of drought and times when everything just goes right. Having a solo exhibition in the SALA Festival meant less time at the easel so not much creating was going on leading up to the exhibition. Returning to my everyday life was a bit difficult after all the hype and organising etc but now I'm back on track and my art is flowing so nicely I can't wait to get to the easel. I don't feel like stopping even when I know I must attend to the everyday life chores like cooking dinner and feeding Jack the dog who doesn't like waiting for his food. Chore for today is the washing. No art till the washing is done! Off I go!!!!