Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Same Car Next Year – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.”
– Plutarch

Yeah!!!

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Same Car Next Year – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

I painted this from a reference photo by Susan (surob) at WetCanvas.  Here is what she said about the photo…

“I title this “Same Car Next Year”. It is difficult to dispose of things, especially large things in Japan so this is one way of sprucing up your junk car. We visited 2 years in a row. Same car, just different flowers.”

Of course, I had to add the flowerdy wall and the colorful graphics on what was a plain yellow, down and out car.  he he he  :)

About Plutarch

Plutarch, the Greek historian who penned more than 46 anecdote-laced biographies of famous Greek and Roman figures in his Parallel Lives series of books, was more interested in exploring the influence of character on a man’s personal destiny than in writing dry histories. He was born in Greece during Roman rule, most likely in the year 46. He traveled extensively through the Roman Empire, finally returning home to become a priest of Apollo at the Oracle of Delphi. He died in the year 120.
It’s interesting to me that in 2012, we are quoting something said before the year 120:)

Monday, January 30, 2012

The Quilted Dog ATC

“Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.”
– Samuel Ullman

This has been one of my favorite quotes for ages.  Being an enthusiastic woman with her share of wrinkles…. it just makes me feel good!

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

The Quilted Dog – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor & Sharpie ATC
It’s been a while since I have painted one of my quilted critters.  This was fun and it’s tiny.  After working on brown and white signs a lot lately, it was way fun to play with color yesterday.  I did five little ATCs to share with you this week.

The reference photo by Susan (surob) at WetCanvas was of a black dog.  :)

Samuel Ullman

For years, Samuel Ullman (1840-1924) and his prose poem “Youth” have been known and admired by the Japanese. However, both the man and his work are largely unknown in the United States, even in Birmingham where he spent the last forty years of his life in service to the community.
The Samuel Ullman Museum was created to advance Ullman’s vision by examining his civic, educational, and religious ideas and endeavors. The museum is a facility of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and exists through the efforts and contributions of citizens and corporations in Japan and the United States. The Samuel Ullman Museum provides visitors with an opportunity to explore the life of the poet and to be inspired by his work

“YOUTH”
Samuel Ullman
 Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of the deep springs of life.
 Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity of the appetite, for adventure over the love of ease. This often exists in a man of sixty more than a boy of twenty. Nobody grows old merely by a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals.
 Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. Worry, fear, self-distrust bows the heart and turns the spirit back to dust.
 Whether sixty or sixteen, there is in every human being’s heart the lure of wonder, the unfailing child-like appetite of what’s next, and the joy of the game of living. In the center of your heart and my heart there is a wireless station; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage and power from men and from the infinite, so long are you young.
 When the aerials are down, and your spirit is covered with snows of cynicism and the ice of pessimism, then you are grown old, even at twenty, but as long as your aerials are up, to catch the waves of optimism, there is hope you may die young at eighty.

LOVE it!!

Friday, January 27, 2012

Another Sneak Peek at Bethville III

“Once the ‘what’ is decided, the ‘how’ always follows. We must not make the ‘how’ an excuse for not facing and accepting the ‘what.’”
– Pearl S. Buck

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Another Sneak Peek at Bethville III – Watercolor

The proofs I did for these paintings are in watercolor.  The big ones will be in acrylic.  I have yet to brave a large watercolor.  I have never painted a full sheet.  One of these days I’ll give it a go.

Today is the 12th day that I have worked at the sign shop without a day off.  After tomorrow, I’m going to force myself to take a rest.  I’m going to paint on Sunday!  Yay!!!   :)

About Pearl S. Buck

Prolific American author Pearl S. Buck is best known for her 1931 novel, The Good Earth, which depicted peasant life in China; the book, published by the John Day Company, won the Pulitzer Prize. She was born in West Virginia in 1892, but her missionary parents raised her in China. She and her first husband lived in China until 1934, when they had to flee the political strife. She later divorced and married John Day’s publisher, Richard Walsh, in 1935. In 1938, she became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in literature. By the time of her death in 1973, she had published over 70 books, including collections of stories, poetry, and children’s literature.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Sneak Peek – Bethville III – Crop 1

“He who cannot change the very fabric of his thought will never be able to change reality.”
– Anwar al-Sadat

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Sneak Peek – Bethville III – Crop 1

I worked Saturday and Sunday, so I didn’t get to play with my paint, so today and tomorrow, you get another couple peeks at proofs for my new Bethville series.  I can’t wait to get more done on these.  I was going to paint them for my house, but I just got accepted into a new gallery that is opening in March and I really need to work on inventory for them.    The hubby doesn’t know this yet, so I may have to pull them from his steely grip.  :D

About Anwar al-Sadat

Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat won the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize in conjunction with Israeli prime minister Menachim Begin for the Camp David Accords. He was born in Egypt in 1918. He participated in the 1952 coup to oust the corrupt King Farouk and became president in 1970. He led Egypt into the Yom Kippur War to reclaim part of the Sinai Peninsula. When that failed, he took the risky diplomatic path, opening the door to détente. He was assassinated in 1981 by Muslim extremists.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Lovely Old Pencil Truck

“We’ll never make perfect decisions, and wanting to make the perfect choice keeps us paralyzed.”
– Leo Babuata

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Lovely Old Pencil Truck – 3″ x 5″ Watercolor & Sharpie

This truck was an old pencil truck, parked at the Derwent Pencil Museum.  Painted across the truck was “Cumberland Pencil Co., Ltd”.  Rather than paint the lettering on it, I added flowers.   I do enough of that in my day job.   Another fun one!  :)

Leo Babuata
Zen Habits is about finding simplicity in the daily chaos of our lives. It’s about clearing the clutter so we can focus on what’s important, create something amazing, find happiness.
It also happens to be one of the Top 25 blogs and Top 50 websites in the world, with about 230,000 readers, and is uncopyrighted. Zen Habits features one or two powerful articles a week on: simplicity, health & fitness, motivation and inspiration, frugality, family life, happiness, goals, getting great things done, and living in the moment.

My name is Leo Babauta, and I’m the creator and writer here. I’m married with six kids, I live in San Francisco (just moved here from Guam), I’m a writer and a runner and a vegan. Read more: My Story.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Invisible Owl

“Trust your hunches. They’re usually based on facts filed away just below the conscious level.”
– Dr. Joyce Brothers

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Invisible Owl – 3″ x 5″ Watercolor

In the photo reference by Lin (oldrockchick) at WetCanvas, there was a baby owl front & center.  I was more intrigued by the people and buildings in the background, so that’s what I painted.  The owl was white with slight gold accents and waaaaay beyond my capabilities.  So…. I practiced my body language painting.  It was fun.  It does kinda look like these people are trying to find that owl that everybody was talking about.  :D

About Dr. Joyce Brothers

The popular American psychologist and advice columnist Joyce Brothers first found fame by winning The $64,000 Question game show. She was born in 1928. Her influence, through a daily newspaper column, radio and TV shows, and more than ten best-selling self-help books, has made her one of the ten most admired women in America, according to a number of polls. After her husband died in 1989, she wrote her most personal book, Widowed, delving into her own grief. She lives in New York.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Watercolor Bottles

“I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do! That is character.”
– Theodore Roosevelt

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Watercolor Bottles – 4″ x 6″ (no Sharpie)

I had a great time doing this painting (and without a sharpie.  he he)  It is done from a reference photo by Lin (oldrockchick) at WetCanvas.

About Theodore Roosevelt

Known both for his larger-than-life personality and his many achievements, Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest US president at age 42. He was born in 1858 in New York. He led the Rough Riders, a motley volunteer cavalry, to victory in the battle of San Juan Hill. As the “Trust Buster” president, he instigated some 40 lawsuits to break up monopolies. An ardent conservationist, he put 230 million acres under federal protection. The Panama Canal was begun under Roosevelt. He died in 1919.

Friday, January 20, 2012

You Made Me Smile

“Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, but only saps today of its strength.”
– A. J. Cronin

Boy… isn’t that the truth!

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

You Made Me Smile – 3″ x 5″ Watercolor & Sharpie

I painted this for my friend, Donna Pearce, who is retiring from her job as the editor of our local newspaper, The Indian Journal, at the end of the month.  We had a surprise party for her last night at the VFW and this was the card in her gift bag from me.  Donna is a very wonderful person.  She works so hard and never complains.  She has generously given her valuable time to the community, wherever she was needed.  We served on the Eufaula Area Arts Council board together.  Donna sings, writes, paints, and smiles all the time.  I am proud to call her my friend and I will miss her constant presence all over town.  Enjoy your retirement, Donna!

This card was painted from a reference photo by Lin (oldrockchick) at WetCanvas.

About A. J. Cronin

Archibald Joseph Cronin, the Scottish novelist who wrote as A. J. Cronin, had a full career as a doctor before turning to fiction. He was born in 1896, worked as a Royal Navy surgeon during World War I, and later was appointed Medical Inspector of Mines in Wales. Some of his most famous books are The Citadel, The Keys of the Kingdom, and Pocketful of Rye. His works were known to reflect both his religious beliefs as a Roman Catholic and his medical training. He died in 1981.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

The Blue Horse

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
–Ralph Waldo Emerson

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

The Blue Horse – 3″ x 5″ Watercolor

Lin (oldrockchick) hosted the WDE at WetCanvas last weekend.  She posted a challenge, to paint one of her reference is monochrome.  This was my response and I had a great time doing it.  Here is what Lin had to say about this wonderful horse reference…

“Max the one-eyed shire horse. One of a rare breed of heavy horses bred at Eglwswrw Shire Horse Farm in Pembrokeshire,Wales. Max lost an eye when he got a thorn in it and it got infected and sadly he had to retire when they couldn’t save it. He was still pulling the visitor trailor round the farm field 2 years ago when we went but they were arranging to retire him as soon as his friend Jackson the ex-drey horse was trained to pull it more slowly. He is a people lover.”



Emerson believed in individualism, non-conformity, and the need for harmony between man and nature. He was a proponent of abolition, and spoke out about the cruel treatment of Native Americans. Influenced by the Eastern philosophy of unity and a divine whole, emphasizing God Immanent, to be found in everyone and everything, Emerson sowed the seeds of the American Transcendentalist movement. He realised the importance of the spiritual inner self over the material external self through studying Kantianism, Confucianism, Neo-Platonism, Romanticism, and dialectical metaphysics and reading the works of Saint Augustine, Sir Francis Bacon, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and William Shakespeare among many others. During his lifetime and since Emerson has had a profound influence on some of the 19th and 20th century’s most prominent figures in the arts, religion, education, and politics.

More information can be found at http://www.online-literature.com/emerson/

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Red Tulips

“I could not, at any age, be content to take my place in a corner by the fireside and simply look on.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt

That quote reminds me of my late mother-in-law. When her husband died, we brought her down to the lake for a few days. After about a day, she said “I cannot sit here and look at this lake one more minute. Take me back to the city.” She was a hoot!  Absolutely a city girl.  :)


Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Red Tulips – 5″ x 7″ Inktense Pencils

My hubby went outside with the chainsaw to cut a few trees.  I didn’t want to take my eyes off him for long with that tool because he is not exactly steady on his feet.  I sat at the window and did this little painting while I was watching him work.  Hey… it was cold out there.  ;)

Eleanor Roosevelt

“Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home – so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.”
Eleanor Roosevelt

More on Ms Roosevelt here.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Little Red Farm Truck

“A man can fail many times, but he isn’t a failure until he begins to blame someone else.”
– John Burroughs

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Little Red Farm Truck – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Sharpie

This is another painting of the same truck, from the photo by Elainesq at WetCanvas.  It’s so fun to just make up what that old rusty truck could look like all cleaned up.  :D

John Burroughs was born on April 3, 1837 on his family’s farm in Roxbury. He spent his youth working on the farm and exploring Old Clump Mountain. His favorite place he called Boyhood Rock, where he would sit and study the ways of Nature around him.

He was a teacher, a journalist, a treasury clerk in Washington, DC (where he met and befriended Walt Whitman), and a bank examiner before returning to his beloved Catskills. In 1871, his first book Wake Robin was published. In 1874 he bought a small farm in Esopus, and devoted himself completely to his writing. Later, he would divide his time between “Slabsides“, his summer retreat at West Park, near Esopus, and “Woodchuck Lodge” in Roxbury.

Source:  Catskill Archive

Monday, January 16, 2012

Pink Farm Truck

“Hope is not a dream, but a way of making dreams become reality.”
– Cardinal Leon Joseph Suenens

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Pink Farm Truck – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Sharpie

In the reference photo by Elainesq at WetCanvas, the truck was under the barn awning and was actually rusty and tired looking.  I drug it out into the open and gave it a fresh paint job.  :)

About Cardinal Leon Joseph Suenens

Cardinal Leon Joseph Suenens played a major leadership role during the Second Vatican Council in the early 1960′s; his reforms include reciting the liturgy in modern languages, expanding the role of laypersons, and opening a dialogue with other religions. He was born in 1904 in Brussels. Wealthy relatives wanted him to study economics and manage their fortune, but instead he entered the priesthood. He was witty and charming, with an enthusiasm for soccer. He died in 1996.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Pink Geese Go For a Walk

“The one important thing I have learned over the years is the difference between taking one’s work seriously and taking one’s self seriously. The first is imperative, the second is disastrous.”
– Margot Fonteyn

I LOVE that quote!  :)

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Pink Geese Go For a Walk – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor Postcard

Didn’t I warn you earlier in the week that I had a thing with pink last weekend?  There’s more pink coming.  he he  I really enjoyed the reference photos Elainesq posted in the WetCanvas WDE, for us to paint from.  If you haven’t tried it, go take a peek at the Weekend Drawing Event in the All Media Art Event forum.  It’s great practice and very inspiring.  I’m signchick over there.  We had references from Australia two weeks ago and this coming weekend, we’re in Britian with oldrockchick.  Fun!!  :)

About Margot Fonteyn

Margot Fonteyn, the elegant British prima ballerina, is considered one of the truly great dancers of our time. She was born in 1919 in Surrey. She made her debut in 1934 as a snowflake in Nutcracker and was a leading ballerina within four years. She flirted with retirement in the late 1950′s until Rudolf Nureyev defected from the Soviet Union; he became her dancing partner for the next decade, a brilliant creative match despite their 20-year age difference. She died in 1991 in Panama.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Scrap Bag Duck

“Become so wrapped up in something that you forget to be afraid.”
– Lady Bird Johnson

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Scrap Bag Duck – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Sharpie

Doesn’t he look like he came from your fabric stash scrap bag?  I have a lot of little pieces of fabric and no big pieces right now.  Just enough to do little projects.   I just recently rediscovered my old love of fabrics and sewing.  I just need a LOT more hours in my day.  :D

This was painted from a photo of a duck by Elainesq at WetCanvas.

About Lady Bird Johnson

Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson, the wife of President Lyndon Johnson, is known for her concern for the environment. She was born in Texas in 1912. Johnson asked her to marry him seven weeks after they met. She supported his career by keeping his congressional office running after his heart attack, stumping for Democratic candidates, and visiting 33 countries as his emissary. She founded the Wildflower Research Center and worked to pass the Highway Beautification Act. She lived in Texas until her death in 2007.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Itty Bitty Kitty ATC

“Morality, like art, means drawing a line someplace.”
– Oscar Wilde

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Itty Bitty Kitty ATC – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Quickie Watercolor
I did this little 20 minute watercolor sketch from Elaine’s WetCanvas photo of her cat Mollie.   Sometimes it’s fun to just play, right?

About Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde, the clever, colorful Anglo-Irish writer, is best known for the play The Importance of Being Earnest and the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. He was born in Dublin in 1854 but left when his lady love became engaged to Bram Stoker. He was a leading member of the aesthetic movement and embraced its doctrine, “Art for art’s sake.” Though married with two children, Wilde was known to have affairs with younger men and was jailed in 1895 for “gross indecency.” He died in 1900.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Up, Up and Away

“Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of someone else.”
– Judy Garland

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Up, Up and Away – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor

I was having a bit of fun with pink paint last weekend.  It will become more apparent as the week goes on.  :)  
This was painted from a reference photo by Elainesq at WetCanvas.

About Judy Garland

Beloved American actress Judy Garland will always be associated with her role as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. She was born Frances Gumm in Minnesota in 1922 to vaudevillian parents. She made her stage debut at age two and a half. She starred in 26 films over 13 years and became a huge star. In 1950, MGM ended her contract. Though she primarily gave concerts after that, she did star in a few more films, including her famed role in A Star Is Born. She died in 1969.

Monday, January 9, 2012

Red Tractor in Tulip Field

“Action is the antidote to despair.”
– Joan Baez

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Red Tractor in Tulip Field – 6″ x 6″ Watercolor

What a morning I have had.  I drove my little Jeep Wrangler this morning because I broke the garage door last week that my shop truck goes into.  10 minutes into my commute, it overheated and I pulled off the road.  I waited for a tow truck for two and a half hours.  That’s why I am just now posting today.   My day can only get better!  :)

I painted this from a WetCanvas photo by Elainesq.

About Joan Baez

American singer Joan Baez, known for her clear soprano and her belief in music as a tool for change, is widely considered the godmother of modern folk-rock. She was born in New York in 1941. She is an ardent activist, working for civil rights, nonviolence, and worker’s rights. She received the ACLU’s Earl Warren Award for her commitment to international human rights and, at the 2007 Grammy’s, was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Her music includes the chart-topping version of “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and the album Diamonds and Rust. She has one son.

Friday, January 6, 2012

Gold Coast Australia

“Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2011

Gold Coast Australia – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Sharpie

This was painted from a photo of the Gold Coast in Australia by Christine (Crispur2005) at WetCanvas.  As I was working on this, I kept thinking of the old Jetsons cartoon.  Funny thing is that when Christine saw this, she also thought of the Jetsons with no hint from me.  I used to love that cartoon when I was a kid.  :D

About Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson helped spark the transcendentalist movement with the essay Nature, which described his belief in the spiritual essence of humanity and the natural world. He was born in Boston in 1803. He was a Unitarian minister until he resigned in 1832 to become a philosopher and writer. He suffered the untimely deaths of many of his loved ones: three brothers, his first wife at age 20, and his eldest son at age five. Emerson died in 1882.

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Party Elephants

Speak when you’re angry and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.
–Lawrence J. Peter

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2011

Party Elephants – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Sharpie Postcard
I painted this little postcard from another of Christine’s (Crispur2005) photos at WetCanvas.  They were wood or brass figurines (hard to tell) and if Christine didn’t live in Australia, I’d probably have to go to her house and kidnap them.  I fell in love!  :)

Lawrence J. Peter (1919-1990) was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and began his career as a teacher in 1941. He received the degree of Doctor of Education from Washington State University in 1963.
In 1964, Peter moved to California, where he became an Associate Professor of Education, Director of the Evelyn Frieden Centre for Prescriptive Teaching, and Coordinator of Programs for Emotionally Disturbed Children at the University of Southern California.

He became widely famous in 1968, on the publication of The Peter Principle, in which he states: “In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence … in time every post tends to be occupied by an employee who is incompetent to carry out its duties … Work is accomplished by those employees who have not yet reached their level of incompetence.” The Peter Principle became one of the most profound principles of management from the University of Southern California. It is a heavily quoted principle at the Marshall School of Business.

Another notable quotation of his is that the “noblest of all dogs is the hot-dog; it feeds the hand that bites it.”
From 1985 to his death in 1990, Dr. Peter attended and was involved in management of the Kinetic Sculpture Race in Humboldt County, California. He proposed an award for the race, titled “The Golden Dinosaur Award” which has been handed out every year since to the first sculptural machine to utterly break down immediately after the start.  Source:  Wikipedia

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Chicken Dinner

“May I mindfully acknowledge that others, like myself, are still growing spiritually, and forgive their past offenses, as I forgive my own, so I can know the blessings of a loving heart.”
– Jean Smith

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2011

Chicken Dinner – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor Sketch
I did this sketch from a reference photo by Crispur2005 (Christine) at WetCanvas.  Christine lives in Australia and she said this was Christmas dinner for the chickens.  I like that!  :)

Jean Smith is such a generic name that I found artists, politicians, photographers, baseball players, etc.  So rather than give you information about the wrong person, I’ll just say that a very insightful person, named Jean Smith, is responsible for today’s quote.  I got it from my wonderful little book called Wrinkles Don’t Hurt by Ruth Fishel.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Cactus Postcard

“The art of living lies less in eliminating our troubles than in growing with them.”
– Bernard Baruch

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2011

Cactus Postcard – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor

This was a little quickie I did from Crispur2005′s WetCanvas photos.  She really had some wonderful references and I had a great time!  :)

About Bernard Baruch

The American financier and unofficial presidential adviser Bernard Baruch was known as the “Park Bench Statesman” for his penchant for taking meetings on park benches. He was born in 1870 in South Carolina. By the time he was 30, he had become a millionaire. During World War I, Woodrow Wilson asked Baruch’s advice on economic issues, which began a long-term relationship with the White House. He refused to become Treasury Secretary in FDR’s cabinet, preferring his unofficial role. He died in 1965.

Monday, January 2, 2012

Painting a Pot of Peppers in Watercolor on Masa

“Warm, eager, living life – to be rooted in life – to learn, to desire to know, to feel, to think, to act. That is what I want. And nothing less.”
– Katherine Mansfield

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

 Paint a Pot of Peppers – 10″ Watercolor on Masa Paper

Happy New Year!   I hope you had a safe and memorable New Year’s Eve.  I was asleep by 10, but I was at home with my husband, who I love more than I could have ever imagined, so my night was perfect.  I painted this little painting on Sunday.  I had a great time!

Over the weekend, I did 6 little paintings from references by Crispur2005 at WetCanvas.  It was a great way to change the year over from 2011 to 2012.  Not a hangover in sight.  :D


Katherine Mansfield stares out of her photographs with a direct gaze that challenges the observer. Courageous, contradictory, self-willed, single-minded, argumentative, elusive, in both her life and her work, she has always defied the attempts of posterity to pin down the qualities that fascinated her contemporaries. Bertrand Russell admired her brain and would have liked to seduce her; Virginia Woolf said she ‘stank like a civet cat that has taken to street walking’ but admitted that she loved her ‘I suppose in my own way’, and that Katherine was the only writer whose writing she was jealous of. Christopher Isherwood and Aldous Huxley were among a number of writers who borrowed not only her words, but also her character for their novels. D.H. Lawrence used her as the model for Gudrun in ‘Women in Love’. He and his wife lived in a ‘menage a quatre’ with Katherine and her husband which ended in such animosity that he afterwards sent her a postcard saying ‘You are a loathsome reptile; I hope you will die’. His wife Frieda also disliked Katherine but acknowledged that she ‘knew more of the truth than anyone else’.  Source:  www.KatherineMansfield.net