"Community Garden New Years Day"

Glad to report my painting, "Community Garden New Years Day" was juried into the 2016 Wisconsin Biennial and was awarded 3rd place. When I selected the subject of the brussel-sprouts,  I was in the community garden looking around for my next subject.  The brussel-sprouts gave me an overwhelming sense of gratitude; they seemed to symbolize "abundance".   They seemed to signify that here on the very first day of the year,  all the people in the community were fed; there were leftovers, an abundance.     Well, I started the painting Jan.1 and by the end of the first session out, my paint was so stiff and the temperatures became bitter, I realized I was going to have to abandon the subject.   I went home and thought about it and then the next morning with my husbands help, we removed the plants (very smelly as they had warmed and thawed several times.. decay of vegetation...like a barn of gassy cows) and brought them to our back yard where we dug them into the snow and I continued the painting for the next 9 days.
 

 Bee Study 1.      I am thinking of titles for my two little bee studies....still wet.

 This is the same group of bees.  Bee Study 2

A view of the bees on my collection board (at top).  Off to the left (bottom) is a drawing of me by Cesar Santos and next to that is a painting of Cathedral Ledge, Jackson NH painted by Jennifer Keltos.  Both of these were made while we were at the Hudson River Fellowship 2014.  

One of the Museum Associates came out and took this picture of me.  Thanks for viewing.  The peony blooms are short lived in this weather...this Sat. they are dedicating the garden.

The start of todays study...I compressed the space between the flowers.  More room for the flowers!

Yesterdays study on the wall.

Nearly finished.

Most of the peonies are blooming right now.  Maybe I will go back tomorrow and try again!

Enjoyed painting the yellow peonies at the Hoard Historical Museum garden yesterday.  It is the Anderson collection of Intersectional Peonies....said to be the largest collection in the world of this variety! Silently contemplating fleeting beauty and wrestling with its hidden complexities compels me back to this site....I am all packed up and ready to start again.

 "The Kingdom of Hours", oil on canvas, 60x40 painted on-site in the Hoard Historical Museum

My painting "The Kingdom of Hours" has a new home in the permanent collection of the Fort Atkinson Club.  I made the painting on-site in the Hoard Historical Museum in the "bird room".   The birds are arranged in cases all around the small room.  After standing and painting for long hours I started to feel like the birds were observing me.  Fort Atkinson Club  Hoard Historical Museum

Painting today.  Forsythia in bloom at the fence.  I love this green board, the pot, the fence....somehow in its simple unkept way it is beautiful.  Hopefully I will be able to finish it on Wed.  I need to add the rope from a sled which has been out all winter....you can see it just under my open-m box.

Maybe I will do a larger painting of this before everything leafs out.