A Weekend of Rest, Movies and Books

The weekend that just past was extremely relaxing for us and I can't say I really accomplished anything at all which was fine by me. I did get caught up on Lost which I am now officially addicted to. I never began watching this series until about a year ago but still only pretty much off and on. Then we started renting the third season and that was it. Will have to finish up before January 31st as Kelly tells me that is when season 4 begins.
I'm also reading this fabulous book "The Other Boleyn Girl". I just can't put it down....talk about a page turner. Read about the book and the movie here www.sonypictures.com/movies/theotherboleyngirl
Highly recommended
We also watched "The Village" on television while we ate Salt & Pepper potato chips (yes, I know this is so bad for my waistline but it was fun at the time). I heard it got very poor reviews but I genuinely liked it. I thought it said a lot about how fear can basically immobilize people and how easy it is to control others through the use of fear. Interesting concept and a great look at the human condition.
Today I'm back in the studio with two other pieces in the works.

The Blue Door

I just completed this piece a couple of hours ago and have decided on the name "The Blue Door" maybe not too creative but descriptive none the less. I've thought about doing an entire series on just doors. Something so intriguing about what may or may not be behind them. This was inspired by a photo I took of a doorway in Sinta, Portugal. I love the rough, textured look of the stone on the walls and the beautiful potted flowers on the stoop. So very welcoming!

Today the sun is finally shining which always puts me in a good mood. I heard snow and ice were on the way tonight but in this moment I see sun and I'm hangin on to that.

I'm also figuring out my dinner party that I had elluded to last post. I read Eat, Pray Love before it became the sensation it is now and loved it. Since everyone I know is now reading it, I decided to have a dinner party for eight of my friends who are just finishing the book. All women from a variety of backgrounds and careers but all good friends for sure. Kelly will be there of course (anyone who has been following along with my blog will know Kelly), Judy who works in management for the actors union in Toronto, Joan who is finishing up her PhD in archeology, Liz works with troubled teens, Anna owns the local newspaper, Sarah Jane works in career counselling, Amy works for an engineering firm and Marilyn is the founder of the Livingstone Theatre Project and who is also leaving for Africa at the end of this month. What an interesting group.
Everyone will be assigned a dish to bring for dinner. The meal plan will revolve around the three places Liz Gilbert visited during her year long trip...... Italy, India and Bali. I will be making the pasta (ok, Tre Sorelle will be making the pasta, I'll just be picking it up), Kelly is bringing Tiramisu, Joan will prepare a Balinese appetizer, hoping Liz can do her fabulous Indian Curry. That's as far as I've gotten but will throw the rest of it together today. I absolutely love dinner parties..........delicious food, good wine and a continual flow of great conversation. Cheers,

Sleepless Nights, New Ideas, Great Dinner Parties

Last night I tossed and turned for what felt like hours. My head was just buzzing with new ideas and possibilities for work which was of course good just not at 11pm. So as I lay there I tried the "deep relaxation breath"...nope, still not feeling tired after 82 of them. It crossed my mind to try counting sheep but come on.....does that really work? When I eventually got around to trying to visualize the only visualization I could summon up at that moment was me working in my studio so at around midnight I gave up the fight and headed in to work.

I received an email from Carol Currie yesterday at the Carriage House Gallery. A textile collector bought my piece "Two" on Saturday night and would like me to contact her with the possibility of acquiring more work. Fabulous!!!! Carol also wants me to think about either participating in a group show or doing a solo show with the gallery this year. No wonder I couldn't sleep.

I also started thinking about what piece I would enter into the Zephyr Gallery's "International Women's Day Show" which is fast approaching as well as a juried show I'm interested in at the ACA Gallery in Toronto. "Bend, Fold and Manipulate" is an exhibit in which textile artists, through their work, will suggest the possible steps in a plan for how we, today, can be coaxed into turning in a new direction so that tomorrow we learn to lay together and interlace our freedoms to handle and manage and live in global peace. I love the ACA Gallery because of their commitment to change in the world. Much of the commission they collect from sold work goes to support social and egological projects. That is something most of us can get behind.

Next post I'll blog a bit about an "Eat, Pray, Love" dinner party I'm giving for eight of my friends at the end of January. Should be a blast. Whatever you do today........ enjoy!

And Then There Were Oils

I had been happily playing around with my acrylic paints last week when a friend of mine called to ask if I wanted her oil paints as she just didn't have the time or desire to use them anymore. Being a hoarder of all materials pertaining to art, I of course said yes. Well let me tell you ......... oils are just wonderful. Unlike acrylics they simply glide onto the canvas......just like butter and the colours...... oh don't get me started. It is simply a feast for the eyes.
So once again I find myself preoccupied with something other than my own work..... but am I having fun.

I have on more than one occasion glanced over and seen the piece I am halfway through completing and then I feel guilty because I know I need to get to it. I feel as if I am in this wildly exciting period where I've actually taken time to experiment. I'm figuring that everything I'm learning right now will in some round about way contribute to my own art when I get back to it.

A New Year Right Around The Corner

I'm hoping this post finds you thoroughly enjoying the holiday season. Now that Christmas is over I'm back at work. My family was up for the holidays and left on boxing day so by the 27th I began cleaning up my studio and happened to come across this 6"x6" canvas that I had stored away in the closet. I pulled out some paints, sketched a rough outline from a Toronto photo I had taken and started painting. It was such a departure for me from what I usually do that I had a great time just "fooling around" with paint on canvas. Sometimes it is so freeing to just do something for no other reason than that it is "fun". As you can see it is only "in progress" .... don't know when I'll get back to it but perhaps one day soon.

I have no plans for New Years as I am not a New Years "party person"...... funny but I never have been. Christmas has always been the biggy for me. But whatever your doing have fun, laugh a lot and appreciate the joys and challenges of another year.

The Generosity in a Cup of Coffee

Yesterday I heard this beautiful story that happened in a Starbucks in the U.S., maybe it was in Pennsylvania...not quite sure. Anyway this story really put me in the Christmas spirit and reaffirmed to me what the season is all about.
It happened in the drive through that a woman pulled up and said she not only wanted to pay for her coffee but for the coffee of the guy behind her. So when the guy behind her pulled up to the window the Starbucks employee explained that his coffee had been paid for by the woman in the car ahead of him. Well, he decided he would then pay for the coffee of the person behind him and so on and so on and so on. This chain continued for two hours at Starbucks where people were doing something simple but kind for another human being. I love this story because it brings home the fact that showing a bit of kindness to another means so very much even in just receiving a free coffee.
So in the vein of this generosity I too would like to do something kind for one of you. Anyone who leaves a comment on my blog today or tomorrow (Saturday or Sunday) will be entered into a draw for a piece of my art. It will probably be an older piece but a piece of my art just the same. I will put all of your names into a hat and have my daughter swish them around and pick one. I will announce the winner on Monday morning (December 24).
Thank you to each and everyone who reads my blog. I have received some wonderful comments about my work from people who don't even know me but it has meant so much. Have a wonderful weekend