Remembering Kurt Vonnegut

 Go into the arts. I'm not kidding. The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven's sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something. ~Kurt Vonnegut

(Book: A Man Without a Country)

Member's Show Monroe-Walton Center for The Arts

 I have three paintings in the MWCA member's art show. The artwork in this show is fabulous. You need to stop by and see the show. Link to MWCA's Facebook Page, like it, and keep in the flow of all the wonderful shows, classes, meetings, events, etc.  Link here to like and get all the scoop on what an art center can offer.

My work:

Dove

                                                                       Pink Jungle

                                                                     Blackbird Garden

I like to visit thrift shops and pick up vintage cardboard framed prints. Like to paint my own images and voila, it's already framed. The first two paintings were on recycled framed prints. The last one on a canvas and in an old Victorian frame. Recycle, recycle, recycle. I never paint over someone else's original work. I honor their paintings - good or bad - as original art. Most of the time a piece will wind up in my personal collection of art by other artists.

2023 Time To Bloom

 

     I'm not making any promises about changes in 2023. Sometimes old, comfortable habits are the hardest to break. And what do I think I want to do differently in 2023? I have a sweet life that works for me - my house, my friends, my long distance sis and brother, my books, art, and of course the dogs. The cherry on top is the Monroe-Walton Center for the Arts. Who could ask for anything more?

     Yet at night sitting in the den I love to sit and create in, surrounded by my dogs, I wonder what is missing. And I'd already figured that one out at the beginning of November. People are missing. I rarely have anyone over to visit, have dinner, a glass of wine (or in my case diet soda). 

     I've decided it's time to open my doors and invite friends to join me. I'm going to bloom friendships this year. My excuses that the house is a mess with my painting supplies, art stacked everywhere, thrift store purchases on the dining room table, and four naughty (but darn adorable) Chihuahuas who still will poop on the floor in front of company no longer will be my excuses.

    The house got straightened up for the holidays and a few friends stopped in. I was in heaven. This will continue, I promise myself. And my friends are awesome. No one blinked an eye when Odette peed in the hallway and then came dancing back out to sit on someone's lap.

     I'll keep you posted. And don't be surprised if I invite you over for dinner. The next big hurdle for me. Cooking.

     Wishing everyone a glorious and loving 2023.