Oh Frabjous Day!

I managed to get one reasonably decent photo of the second painting I've been working on for the Poetic Visions Exhibition. So, here it is! This one, too, was finished just in time for the varnish to dry before taking it in today.

Inspired by one of my favourite poems, "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carrol, I had fun painting this. The poem is chock full of nonsense words, leaving much up to the imagination of the reader. This is my interpretation of this delightful poem, based on the author's definitions of his made-up words.

Here is a snippet for your amusement:

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"

Toves are the badger/lizard/corkscrew creatures, the mop-like birds are borogroves, and the lost-looking green piggy things are mome raths. That is just the beginning of the fun!

You can read the entire poem and the definitons here.

This is not one of my best paintings by a longshot, but it was fun to do and a chance to explore some new techniques. It will likely end up being painted over at some point in the future, but for now it can hang in the exhibition and hopefully make some folks smile!

NOTE: This painting is currently on exhibit at the Classic Theatre in Cobalt, Ontario. It is currently for sale, but will not be available to ship until the end of March.

Details and purchase information available here.

Tea and Oranges

Finished just in time for the deadline tomorrow, this is one of the paintings I am entering in the Poetic Visions Exhibit at the Classic Theatre in Cobalt, Ontario. Artists are invited to interpret a poem of their choice with a painting or drawing.

This is my interpretation of Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne". I am an avid Cohen fan and often paint to his music. I've had the phrase "and she feeds you tea and oranges" stuck in my head for quite some time (isn't that called an earworm?), so thought I'd get it out of my head and on to some canvas. I didn't do any preliminary sketches, just started painting. I'm not completely happy with it, although there are parts that I like. I did learn a lot by painting it, and am happy to say that my tea and oranges earworm has wiggled away to places new.

"Tea and Oranges" will be on exhibit starting in March at the Classic Theatre. It is for sale, but will not be available to ship until the end of March.

Details and purchase information are here.

As soon as I can manage to take some decent photos of my other Poetic Visions entry, "Oh Frabjious Day!", I will tell you about it, too!

It couldn't weasel it's way out of this one!

From time to time we see weasels on our property. Haven't seen as many since we got rid of our chickens and pigeons, but H saw one the other day on his way out to feed the critters.

There is a flock of wild pigeons that like to hang out on the rafters in one of the run-in sheds. H said this weasel ran across the paddock, up the wall of the shed and sunk it's teeth into a bird almost in the blink of an eye. It then ran down the wall, and proceeded to drag the bird across the paddock, into a hole burrowed into the snow in the shelter of a fallen tree. I think the pigeon is as big as the weasel!

It was very determined, and totally focused on getting it's prize to safety, totally ignoring the human and ponies who were watching in amazement.

We are planning on building a chicken coop and getting some laying hens in the spring. I think we will have to do more research to come up with a weasel-proof design!

I've been back in the studio, painting like a fiend, trying to complete two paintings for the Poetic Visions show coming up in March. The deadline for submitting paintings is February 24th, so I'm feeling a bit of pressure! I'm hoping to finish the first one today, then it's on to the next one!

It Never Rains but it Pours!

Well, it's not actually raining, or pouring, it is -38 celsius without the windchill, and some obscene number with the windchill. So, housebound yet again...

But it is raining and pouring art projects. I seem to have all of a sudden racked up an incredible number of portrait commissions, as well as several paintings for shows with rapidly approaching deadlines. Maybe a bit too rapidly for comfort! It's a good thing I work well under pressure.

Here is the reference photo for one of the portraits I am starting, Keady and Blue, two lovely German Shepherds. This one will be in graphite, which I haven't worked with for a while so I will have to get out my pencils and do some warming up sketches before I dive in.

This commission is from a repeat client, a gift to her son. I just completed another portrait for her last fall, a gift to her son-in-law. This was a black lab done in acrylics. You can see it and the reference photo here.

I also have to get going on two show paintings which are due on the 24th of this month, and I which I have yet to start. Well, they do have titles, does that count as started?

Off to the drawing board I go!