Diary of an Arts Pastor: On the vocation of an artist: Part II

I think all my artist friends who read my blog will find this blogger's information very interesting so I have posted it here.  Diary of an Arts Pastor: On the vocation of an artist: Part II: René François Ghislain Magritte (1898-1967) "All art is an imitation of nature." Seneca (4 BC - 65 AD) "Man is god over all the mat...

DANCING WATER

IT IS RAINING, AGAIN!  This is wonderful since we haven't had rain for a week and the temperatures have soared into the high 90s everyday.  Most summers we are blessed with mild temperatures of mid-70s and low 80's.  The air conditioners (if our homes even have them) are rarely turned on during a 'normal' northeastern Wisconsin summer.  I am so relieved to have the rain for the moisture it gives to the plants in my gardens and the more normal temperatures it will bring.  The waterfalls will be rushing and dancing once again and the trout will be swimming in larger pools of water than have been available to them for a few weeks. 

HOW SWEET THE SOUND

It has been a hot and dry summer here in Wisconsin.   Everyone but especially our farmers are concerned about their crops, live stock and the seeds they are growing for next years crops.  Living in Northeastern Wisconsin we are blessed with lots of lakes and rivers plus seventeen named waterfalls.  (You can even get a map and take a self guided tour by car to see the falls, but it takes an entire day to visit them all.)  Not only are the falls beautiful to visit and paint but their streams feed rivers that then produce our hydroelectricity for our communities.  Today our electrical and crop concerns have been minimized since it is finally raining on the land and into the streams so the waterfalls are rushing once again.  The sound of the rushing water over the rocks is oh so sweet.  I hope all of our other Wisconsin Counties receive rain today as well.

Tractor Break

We need rain in most of our counties here in Wisconsin. The grass is 'crunchy' under our feet.  Ozaukee County, where this painting was painted really needs rain.  With irrigation most of the crops are growing well, but rain is still needed.  My garden here at home is being watered today from our trusty Simer water pump that is in our lake, for irrigating my neighbors and my gardens.  We are so lucky to have this water source and the pump!  Since we have a well for our drinking water we wouldn't be able to irrigate the garden from the well without fear of lowering our water table. 

WHO'S GUARDING THE HENHOUSE?

I just returned from the 2012 Cedarburg Plein Air Paint Out.  It was a hot week for painting in Cedarburg this year, since temperatures were in the high nineties everyday I painted.  The painting that I am posting today is a painting I did last year at the 2011 paint out.  The rule for The Cedarburg Plein Air Paint Out is to finish the entire painting in --- WELL ---  plein air or completely outside with no tweaking in the studio.  This painting just wasn't finished when the light changed, so I enhanced it in the studio a few weeks ago.  I offer it for sale now while I finish putting in a late garden instead of painting today.  

CURTAIN CALL

It is always fun to open a box and find a surprise.  Well, this morning as I was packing up my painting gear, for my trip to Cedarburg, Wisconsin; I discovered this painting.   Since I will be packing and then traveling I won't be painting until I get to the plein air paint out.  So today I am posting my found painting, Curtain Call.  (I think the daffodil looks like it is taking a bow until it blooms again next spring.)
To follow all of the artists who will be painting in Cedarburg this year, go to www.cedarburgpleinair.com. 

Hypnosis Dots

This week on The Daily Paint Works website, Carol Marine, sent out a challenge.  The challenge to all painters was to include dots somewhere, somehow in a new painting we would create this week.  It sounded like fun!
Besides I had been wanting to paint one of the water glasses that came with our cottage and the bird salt and pepper shakers that are part of my salt and pepper collection.  (My Grandmother, Minnie, collected salt and pepper shakers and now I do too.)
So I put out my paint and began painting.  Soon I was seeing dots before my eyes even where the dots did not exist.  To finish this painting I needed to rest my eyes from time to time from all those dots.  The dots were hypnotic.  I was so glad the challenge didn't include counting the dots or connecting them!