The boys looked so handsome, and Willik had said Phoenix looked like a boy model.  So I decided I should take some pictures.

This one was my favorite.  Just look at the love on Phoenix’s face.  Willik often does not realize how much his brother adores him.

Since they were posing, here’s one more.  They are indeed, quite handsome, aren’t they?? I guess I’m biased!

The, the back up photos from April.

This includes April 23, 24(Easter), April 25th(my birthday) and April 27th.

As you can see, I’m missing some days in there…. Life must go on, even if I did not snap a photo.

Soon,we will move into May….

I fell asleep while crocheting, which was what I was going to take a picture of…

So, I took a pic of it this morning, first thing, just to keep the groove alive…

And then, all day I’ve been painting.

So today’s picture has to do with painting.

In January, I vowed to make at least 5 handmade things to the first 5 people who vowed to do the same, and post the same vow as their status.

Today, I finished the first painting which I am giving to one of those people.

It started as a failed attempt to do something, and turned into a great texture for this…

Here’s the painting halfway done…

Here’s where I started this morning…

Tomorrow,when the painting is fully dried and signed, I will post a better picture of the finished piece.

What do you think of it?

right click on this picture, then click on "view picture" then use the + magnifier to look at each piece more closely.

I seem to enjoy a bit of torture, when it comes to coordinating projects for church. I take on a huge project which nearly kills me with the amount of time and effort it takes to get it done.
The last few weeks have been exactly that.
I was asked by the pastor last year, if at day camp this year, I would be willing to do art, instead of craft. I was thrilled with the request, even if part of his reason was to save money.
He talked of a mural, or something big….
Fast forward 6 months, when the planning for day camp started. After talking some to the children’s director, we came up with this idea of individual canvases joining, but having each child’s art, with one big drawing to connect them all…. And that’s what I did.
Unwrapping 350 canvases that were double wrapped was a lot of work, as was doing a number grid system on the back of all of them. I was blessed with many hands, which helped to lighten the work.
Another able-bodied carpenter made a plywood wall that would hold all of these canvases spanning 19+ feet across and 10 feet tall. But then there was the issue of how we would get these to stay on the wall.
We’d agreed on velcro, so my wonderful husband gave up many evening hours by standing on a ladder, and putting 190 feet of velcro to accommodate all the canvases and he made sure that the lines were straight. We also had many hands putting velcro dots on the back of the canvases.
When the wall was up against it’s “permanent” home, then I went to work putting all the blank canvases on the wall. I projected my original drawing and stood on a ladder for several more hours to draw the whole thing. Then 350 canvases had to come down off the wall, so that we could pack them all for the children.
All during this, my parents were kinda enough to keep my boys with them in NYC for the week, so I could do all this prep work.
The moment of truth came last week, when we then started to have the kids paint.
They painted in the black shapes/lines which I’d drawn for them. They were only given black acrylic. Many had never painted on a canvas.
The black dried overnight, and we then had color out for the children. They were artist, and could choose to paint their canvases any way they saw fit, except that they had to leave the black alone, and not leave any white on the canvas. They followed my instructions perfectly. But at this point, I still did not know how it all turned out, and how things would all line up.
Wednesday night, when everyone else was gone, we had about 6 or 7 people who came out to help me put the canvases up. Many hands again made this go quick and smooth, with a lot of good organizing by my sister Raquel, who came up from NYC for a couple days to help me, along with Diana, who is the kinda person I need to have on every large project from now on.
As we put the canvases up, it was amazing to get to see the “mural/mosaic” wall unfold. The pieces were all lining up. Even some colors lined up. The black lines were there, and they met up with the next canvas.
The children did not know what the “BIG PICTURE” would be, but I told them I was going to be surprised as well, with how it turned out. And I was.
I could not be more pleased with it. It was a joy and a pleasure, and all those hours of planning, prepping, worrying and prepping, and planning were worth it.
I hope the children do continue to think of themselves as artists, and I’m glad I had a part in helping them see that we are all part of something bigger, and God instilled creativity in all of us, because He is the greatest artist ever!!
Here are some pics of the mural. If you’re in PA and want to see the real thing, drop me a line, and I’ll take you to it. It’s much better seeing it in person. But make it quick, because I don’t know how long it will be on display.

Oh, yeah! When this was over, we also made sketchbooks and had drawing lessons on shadow and light, and drawing a friend!
It was a great artistic week for 300+ children! And I loved every minute of it!!

I think I did..

All day today, I spent preparing to paint.

I laid out all the elements, and played around with placement.

I glued the quote strips onto the board.  Made sure all the papers were flat, no bubbles, and then I had to wait for everything to dry.

While that dried, I worked on a drawing which was an additional element to the piece.  Figuring out the best size and placement was probably the most creative of today’s efforts.

After everything was dry, graphite paper was my friend.  I transferred a large enlargement onto the wood panel, making it the final step before painting.

It’s been an interesting day.  Several hours spent doing lots of tedious steps which will make it into a great painting.  I’d almost forgotten what it takes to get ready to paint.  On one hand, there’s this overwhelming desire to just be able to put paintbrush to paint, and go at it, but my logical side knows what a difference having everything in the right place will make in the end.

Tomorrow, I hope to start putting some color in.

Tonight, some quiet, and maybe a little ice cream.  Skinny cow ice cream.

I’m almost done with the barn and corn watercolor.

I spent some late night hours painting today, and it was fun.  Sometimes it takes me forever to get to the “drawing board”, but once I’m there, I love it so much, I wonder why I do this to myself.

Another thing about this painting is that, I am using a new surface.

Instead of the typical watercolor paper, I am using an aquabord.  It’s a composite surface that acts like watercolor paper, but it’s mounted on a masonite board.

I’m still unsure whether I like it or not.  It sure is different than paper.  The good news is that it doesn’t buckle.  The other thing is that if I do it right, I don’t even need to frame this piece.  The thing that is hard is that the surface allows you to go back into the color and lift it up.  But it doesn’t soak in the water and pigment, and so it takes some getting used to.

Here’s what it looks like as of now:

This post is a long time coming.

This month I intended to make four paintings at least, of a theme I called “the country life”.

While I have tried to use any spare moments to paint, I found myself doing a myriad of other things, meaning I’m way behind.

The beginning of the month was taken up with some prep and some research for this theme.  I spent several hours driving around, getting pictures of the  country life around me. That was pure delight.  Unfortunately, morning would turn to noon day lighting, and that would be the end of the shooting.  Rain and overcast days also kept me from more photography.

Other things came up, such as working on a sculpture I’d committed to paint for our church’s kids’ choir, weekly bible study, helping with some kidztown stuff, graffiti retreat weekend, and today, a sick kid at home.

I’m excited to be done with this first painting.  It was a joy to paint, although interrupted far too many times.   I look forward to your comments and criticisms.

I’ve already started working on the next piece, and promise to put a progress update on here soon. Hopefully it will get done much quicker.

If you are interested in purchasing  this piece, or any other, write me and we can discuss prices.

If you would like to see more of my work go to gallery and click on individual pieces to get a closer look.

I also  do commission work.  Drop me a line if there’s something you would like to have as an original piece of art.

Drum roll please….

The old Jerusalem unveiled…

13feet x 36 ft latex/acrylic on muslin

54 hours of work, more or less, from start to finish, including the time when I first drew the scene on paper, based on what Pr. Randy gave me.

This is what he first gave me..

It was alot of fun and alot of work.

I had great help from Darla, Pastor Tim, Pankey, Katlyn, Samantha, Andrew, Beverly, Nancy, Becky, and Joanne.

I used a variety of old latex paints left over from other projects.  I think I went thry some 20+ different half-used gallons of paint in order to make the colors needed for this project.  I did use 3 different new colors for the buildings.

I painted on the floor as well as on the wall.  I spent several hours on a ladder.

I can’t wait to see it surrounded by the other things which will make up the stage scene.

Thanks for all the prayers and encouragement.  I felt them.

I pray it brings God glory.

(click it to see it large)

I often have a hard time keeping track of how long it takes for me to do things.

But yesterday, my time was limited, so it was easy for me to see how much time was spent on something…

I spent about an hour and a half at the church, while Phoenix was at school.

This is what I did…

It doesn’t seem like much, since all I was doing was adding in all the brown shading and details, but you have to remember that this section is approximately 36″ x 24″.

Unfortunately the morning has gone, and I’m still at home.

I will have to spend the rest of the day there.  My arm will tire, and I hope it will be mostly done by this evening.

Check back for updates.

Thanks for keeping up with my progress.

Here is a chance for you all to see it too.  Let me know what you like, and if there’s any last things I can improve on.

You can also see the scale of this thing with me standing there.

Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers.

Now, I think I have had all the help from other volunteers I can, and I have to do the rest on my own.

The buildings need to be one unit, and I need to do all the details myself.    I won’t be able to get anyone to do it like I do it, or to do what I want, cause it’s just too hard to explain.

Also, I think tomorrow afternoon, the mural will be going back up on the wall, which will make it a bit more challenging to paint, but it will be okay.

Here are 2 more pictures of the progress:

I’ve been working on the mural for the whole weekend.

Thursday I mixed a couple colors. Friday I painted all day, with 5 volunteers, down to 2, down to 1, by the night time.  I was at the church from 9:15am to 10:40pm with an hour respite.

On Saturday, I was there from 9:15 am to 4:40pm.  At first 2 volunteers, then one, then me, all by my lonesome.

I was working up a headache all weekend, and I still have it. Saturday night it was particularly brutal.  I went to bed with a headache, and awoke on Sunday morning with it.

The mural is coming along nicely.  All of it is covered, but now all details have been going in.

That is a picture of what it looked like as of Saturday night.

I managed to get a couple more hours of painting in yesterday afternoon, but I’m not sure when I’ll be able to go there again with this snow.

I will only have the occasional volunteer from here on out, because very few people feel comfortable putting in the details.

Little did I know what I was getting myself into.  I had said yes to painting, and leading other volunteers, to paint the backdrop for the Easter Musical which the choir and drama team will put on.  I had no idea it would be over 11′ x34′.  That is 11 feet by 34 feet, people.  Say it with me, “that is gi-hugic!!”

Anyway, not only that, but the choir director didn’t have much else to say other than to tell me they wanted it done on some sort of material so that they could reuse it–oh, the pressure!  And that the pastor would give me a picture of what he wanted.

He soon handed me a picture of old Jerusalem which he’d found, and said that was what he wanted.  He wanted it to be dismal, and of course, that is when I learned the size of the thing.  I would have to adapt this scene to fit this long landscape horizontal shape.

I worked on the drawing, and showed the pastor, to which he seemed pleased.  It took me a while to find a place to buy the material from.  After doing a couple days worth of research, I settled on using a muslin.  I would paint it on the floor, and it would get hung up afterwards.

The muslin’s arrival was delayed by several days, and when it did arrive, it was apparent they sent us much more than what we paid for.  That was okay, but this is when my work began.  I set out with a helper, to cut the fabric after having to use a big tape measure twice for the length.

After cutting, Pastor Tim hung it up on the gym wall.

Then we got the projector set up and pointed to see what size my drawing needed to be once on the fabric.

Armed with a big fat permanent marker, I set out to trace what I had prepared.  After a few adjustments, I got going in stride. 

Within an hour and a half, I had the whole thing sketched out, to the surprise of many.

I’m sore from climbing on the ladder, and squatting alot as I sketched.  The pastor liked it, which is really the one I’m aiming to please on earth, besides myself.  I pray God is pleased with my efforts and my service.  The outcome is less of an issue for God, I think.

I also searched throughout the many nooks and crannies of the church for leftover paint.  I have many cans which I will attempt to use and make interesting colors from, tomorrow.

Friday the painting starts.  I will have volunteers willing to help.  I’ll have more pictures friday or saturday.

Keep praying for our efforts.

So for the first time in a loooooooooong time, I had a big chunk of uninterrupted time.  And I decided to work on my painting.

It felt really good to have that time.  I felt like I was able to start to get into a zone.  I’m looking forward to more days like that.

Here’s a close-up picture of some of my progress..

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There’s still much work to be done to get it finished, but this day felt like a nice chunk got done!

And thank you Mrs. Hitch for taking Phoenix!

The barn/garage has lots of little problems, and it would take several thousand dollars to make it work.  We’re not sure it’s worth fixing.  In the meantime, we had to spend money on a car instead, so no studio for me there.

But as many of you know, I was given a gorgeous, huge easel.  But what to do with it, when I don’t have a studio.

Well, as it stands, the only place it fits right now is in the dining room.  And the dining room, is the only room with no furniture, because we did not yet purchase a dining room set.  And I think for a while, we will not purchase one, and I will continue to use it as a studio…

So, this is how my free time was spent today.  Painting.  Fun times.  This is what I should do everyday.  Then, who knows what the end of the year archive will look like….

This painting is referenced from a photo taken in Venice, almost 10 years ago. I started this painting last year, before the move. then I worked on it for a few hours last week. Hopefully it will be finished by the end of the week.

But it makes me thing of St. Francis.  In paintings like these:

More updates on the painting as I get more done. Any comments or early constructive criticisms welcomed and encouraged!

Here it is.

It’s inspired by a picture I took when I was on a mission trip to Indonesia, 2 years ago.

It was a year after the tsunami, and this was one of the places affected.  There used to be things, houses there, but it was all devastated.  I heard many stories from people and how the “sea is coming”, and their attempts to run to the hills.

I was there at sunset, and there were many palm trees.  And that is all.

It’s good for me to keep some of those images fresh in my mind, so as not to forget what happened there.

Even when on this day, it looked so beautiful and peaceful.

This piece was a challenge from an artistic point of view.

It’s made on a 10×10 canvas with Caran D’ache watersoluble wax crayon.   It was my first time using this material as the main material for the whole piece.  I struggled to make it work, but I’m glad I did it.  It was weird because I would color with it, and the use a brush to smooth it out and blend it.  But at times, this would end up lifting up the paint, which was very frustrating.  This is one reason why it took me long to finish it.

It’s not a great photo, because the piece was bigger than the scanner, so I had to do it in 2 parts.  I will re-upload with a photo of the piece later.

I’m fairly happy with the final result but would love any comments and critiques.

Any body have any places they would like to suggest?

I am, however, experimenting, and using my awesome new easel, so, those things are great things.

Just to keep you checking in, here’s me, working on the new easel.  Isn’t it awesome?!!

Any guesses as to what place I’m painting?

yes, that is an awesome giant easel.

And it wasn’t just purchased for me, it was made, by none other than the ever-talented Greg Lopez!!!

This is a counter-weighted easel, which means I can easily move it up and down and forward and backward with just one hand.  It was based off some other easels I’d seen which were in the thousand dollar range.  I intended to at least pay for the wood, but instead, I was told it would be a housewarming gift after we moved.  Talk about a housewarming gift.

It’s amazing.  Made from douglas fir wood. it can get up to 8 feet tall, able to have large paintings, and small ones too.  I can’t wait to try it, and of course, the Lopez’ get one of the first paintings.  And that is still just a very small way of saying thanks!  Greg, you are like a benefactor to my art, and every painting made on that from now on, is because of your efforts, friendship and belief in my abilities to create.  The words “thank you” seem like a very small, and week way of saying what I really feel.  But Thank You!!!

Now we really need to make that barn a working studio, cause I can’t keep this easel in what is to be a dining room.

5″x7″ watercolor on 140lbs. watercolor

A quick piece, loosely based on a cemetary which we can see from the boys’ playroom window.

It’s a quiet place I walked to, while I was birdwatching.  I also watched this squirrel rest here for a few minutes.

After fiddling around with it for about an hour or so, I figured out that the coffee was not giving me the contrast I needed for a monochromatic piece.  I then picked a dark sepia colored pencil, and worked thru part of today to finish it.  I still intend to do another place tonight, but this is yesterday’s posting– belated.

I’m happy with the piece as a whole.  I enjoyed restricting myself to one color.  And although the experiment didn’t work, I’m still glad I tried.

Has anyone worked with coffee before?  I have some seen some great things, but could not reproduce the same results.  Any ideas?