Halloween Blog Challenge

“I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence, but it comes from within. It is there all the time.”
– Anna Freud



Halloween Party
5″ x 6″ Watercolor and Sharpie


Today is the day of the Halloween Blog Challenge.  An invitation went out within our blogger group (that means you!) to paint or create something Halloweeny.  Post it on your blog and comment here, with a link to your blog, so we’ll know where to go look at everyon’s art.

Ryan, from asmalltowndad blog, is away on his annual Halloween camp-out.   He did an amazing painting and you can go see it here.  You’ll LOVE it!!  I did, and I have flies buzzing around my head in it. 

I have had a lot of fun this week, doing all these little paintings.  I like the fun and playful side of Halloween.  When I lived in Huntington Beach, CA, there was always a party.  I have great memories of those parties.  I lived in a neighborhood close to the beach, where most of my neighbors were in their 20′s.  We made Halloween a fun holiday.

Now, I understand that the same (average income) young couples could probably not afford to live where we lived and the houses we lived in have probably been replaced by taller, fancier homes.  I was lucky to have that time in my life.  It was a terrific place to spend my 20′s.  We also had St. Patrick’s day parties, Cinco De Mayo, 4th of July….. you get the idea.  Yeah, we had fun!

About Anna Freud

Austrian psychoanalyst Anna Freud was a pioneer in the field of child psychiatry; she also worked closely with her father, Sigmund Freud, in developing his theories. She was born in Vienna in 1895 and fled to London with her parents in 1938, escaping the Nazi regime. When her father became sick with cancer, she took over his studies, becoming his intellectual heir. She founded the Hampstead Clinic to work with children. She died in 1982.

Jack-O-Lantern Home and Devil Costume

“From quiet houses and first beginnings,
out to the undiscovered ends,
there’s nothing worth the wear of winning,
but laughter and the love of friends.”
–Hilaire Belloc



Jack-O-Lantern Home
4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Pen

It’s the eve of the Halloween Blog Challenge.  I painted this one, because I really don’t like scary stuff very much.  Just to show you… I’ll share my version of a Devil Costume. 




Devil Costume
4″ x 4″ Watercolor

Sorry…… I am in the Halloween spirit.  Don’t forget tomorrow is the day we post our Halloween art to our blogs and link back here, so we all know where to go look.  I can’t wait!  he he

Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (27 July 1870 – 16 July 1953) was an Anglo-French writer and historian who became a naturalised British subject in 1902. He was one of the most prolific writers in England during the early twentieth century. He is most notable for his Catholic faith, which had a strong impact on most of his works and his writing collaboration with G.K. Chesterton.  Recent biographies of Belloc have been written by A. N. Wilson and Joseph Pearce.  For more, go to Wikipedia, the source for this information.

Manikin Trick or Treat

“Calm self-confidence is as far from conceit as the desire to earn a decent living is remote from greed.”
– Channing Pollack



Manikin Trick or Treat
5″ x 9″ Watercolor and Sharpie

Even a studio manikin wants in on the fun of Halloween.  I did this on some cheap paper I had here at the sign shop.  I’m having way too much fun this week. 

My very worst Halloween was when I lived in Huntington Beach, CA and my sister lived in San Diego.  They were having a Halloween party and I didn’t think I was going to be able to make it, since it was on a Friday night and I had to work that day.  At the last minute, I decided to go and I quickly came up with a pink playboy bunny costume.   (Okay… I was 27 and slender)  I got to the party a little late and when I walked in the door…… I discovered….. much to my dismay…. that the theme for the party was dungeons and dragons.  (gasp)   Everyone was in dark robes and I stood out, big time.     Can you say “Awkward”? 

About Channing Pollack

American playwright Channing Pollack is best remembered for his work massively redesigning the plot of the film Metropolis after it was shot. He was born in 1880. He worked in every aspect of New York theater, first as publicist for the Shubert family of theater owners, then as a drama critic who was banned from every Shubert theater, and finally as a playwright whose work included the morality play, The Enemy, as well as Clothes and The Fool. He died in 1946.

Witch’s Brew

“Our lives are filled with demands, responsibilities, expectations, places to go, people to see, things to do. We may get so caught up in the next task that we miss the golden moment happening right now. No matter where we are or what we are doing, if we stop to breathe slowly and notice our surroundings, we will find something to appreciate. We may see a glint of light reflecting off a pane of glass, the look in a friend’s eyes, or a small thoughtful thing that our partner does.

Spiritual development is nourished by our senses. The sights, sounds, tastes, touch, and scents in our immediate surroundings are the doorway to awe and mystery. When we awaken to the ordinary beauty in our everyday lives, warm and loving parts of ourselves grow and extend out to those we love.

Quiet yourselves for a moment, slowly breathe in and out, and focus on something you appreciate.”

–Merle and Mavis Fossum



Witch’s Brew
4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Sharpie

You may remember the pot from another post.  I was in the Halloween spirit and just changed it up a little.

Merle Fossum, MSW, LMFT, co-founder of St. Paul’s Family Institute, teacher, supervisor and clinician since 1963, offers regular consultation to Sanctuary’s staff.  Mavis Fossum is a family and marriage therapist.
They are the authors of  The More We Find Each Other.

Cat Costume

“We arrive at the truth, not by the reason only, but also by the heart.”
– Blaise Pascal



Cat Costume
4″ x 6″ Watercolor Postcard

Not exactly what you expected, eh? ha ha ha 

Don’t forget that Friday, October 29th, we are going to post Halloween pictures (or whatever) on our blogs, then link back here so that we can go look at everyone’s art.

It’s Halloween week, so I’m going to have some fun!  I had a busy weekend, so the only painting I got done was a quick 30 minute anniversary card for some friends that were coming over for a shrimp boil.

Believe it or not, that was my authentic first shrimp boil.  We cooked new potatoes, corn on the cob and 7 lbs of shrimp,  all in a big pot.  Then you just put it all out on the table and everybody digs in.  It was really fun and delicious!  Thanks, Bobby, for bringing the food!

About Blaise Pascal

Blaise Pascal was not only a mathematician and philosopher, he was also an inventor, having created the hydraulic press and the syringe. He was born in France in 1623. He showed a gift for math early: At age 12, he started rediscovering Euclid’s theorems on his own. Later, spurred by a friend who liked gambling, he developed the theory of probabilities. After a life-threatening accident in 1654 he had a religious conversion, which led him to write about religious ethics and belief. He died in 1662.

Pumpkin Harvest

“There can be no happiness if the things we believe in are different from the things we do.”
– Freya Stark




 Pumpkin Harvest
4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Acrylic Postcard

I painted the pumpkins with acrylic, then came back and finished it with watercolor.  This is a compilation of a couple images by Chelsi, plus a hint of my own imagination. 

About Freya Stark

French-Anglo travel writer Freya Stark was one of the first Western women to see the deserts of the Middle East. She was born in 1893 in Paris and spent her childhood split between her father’s family home in England and her mother’s in Italy. Her first book, Valley of the Assassins, brought her grants to continue her travels. She focused on remote areas of Turkey and the Middle East, seeking cultures that the modern world had not yet altered. She died in 1993 at age 100.

The Underdogs

“It is said that all you are seeking is also seeking you.  It has been waiting for you for a long time.  Once it is here, don’t move away.  Rest.  See what happens next.”
--Clarissa Pinkola-Estes



The Underdogs
4″ x 6″ Watercolor Postcard
Reference Photo by Chelsi Rae Glein

My niece, Chelsi, has always been a champion for the underdogs.  When I was painting from her photo for this, I was thinking about how she probably saw real beauty in this view of what I am guessing to be the reject pile, at the pumpkin farm.  I enjoyed thinking of what a delightful child she was and what an amazing woman she has become, while I added each little dab of color.

I also see the beauty, Chelsi Rae! 


Clarissa Pinkola Estés, PhD, is an internationally recognized scholar, award-winning poet, Diplomate senior Jungian psychoanalyst, and cantadora (keeper of the old stories in the Latina tradition.) In addition to her international bestseller Women Who Run With the Wolves, Dr. Estés is Deputy Managing Editor and columnist writing on politics, spirituality and culture at the newsblog TheModerateVoice.com and a columnist at The National Catholic Reporter online.  Connect with her on Facebook.

Country Breakfast

“When you get into a tight place and it seems that you can’t go on, hold on — for that’s just the place and the time that the tide will turn.”
– Harriet Beecher Stowe



Country Breakfast
4″ x 6″ Watercolor Postcard

This is my own interpretation of a photo by Jakesgram at WetCanvas.  I had fun just keeping it loose and a little wavy.  Cast Iron is beautiful in it’s own right, but I just love color! 

About Harriet Beecher Stowe

American author Harriet Beecher Stowe is known for her novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a rallying cry for the abolitionist movement. When she met Abe Lincoln in 1862, he said, “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!” She was born in Connecticut in 1811. Her brother, Henry Ward Beecher, became a renowned minister. After an unusually thorough education for a woman of the time, she began her career when she won a magazine prize contest. She died in 1896.

Father and Son

“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful what we pretend to be.”
– Kurt Vonnegut



Father and Son
4″ x 6″ Watercolor Postcard

I never said I was a portrait artist.   (I’m not even pretending to be.)  This is actually pretty awful, but in the spirit of fun and family, I decided to post it.

My niece, Chelsi, is an amazing photographer.  She posted some wonderful photographs of her little family’s trip to a Washington pumpkin farm, on her Facebook wall.  I got her permission to paint anything I wanted from those photos.  I hope she’ll forgive me for what I did to her husband and son. 

I promise, Chelsi….. better paintings to come.  he he he

About Kurt Vonnegut

Kurt Vonnegut, the acerbic American author, rose to fame with the novel Slaughterhouse-Five, loosely based on his experiences as a prisoner of war during the World War II bombing of Dresden. He was born in 1922 in Indianapolis. His fiction, a blend of science fiction and satire, became hugely successful in the 1960′s. Three of his seven children are his sister’s, adopted after her husband died in a train wreck and she died of cancer a day later. He lived in New York until his death in 2007.

Raccoon Tour Guide

“We are made to persist. That’s how we find out who we are.”
– Tobias Wolff

This is my 500th blog post!  Where did all the time go?   




Raccoon Tour Guide
4″ x 6″ Inktense Pencils on Watercolor Postcard

I know.  A raccoon is likely to steal a flowerdy hat, but he might not wear it.  Yeah, he’d never poke those holes in it for his ears first, either.  Unless….. he lived in Bethville, where anything is possible! 

Jakesgram from WetCanvas had the most adorable tour guide in a flowerdy hat and a cutie patootie raccoon in her references this weekend.  Her challenge was to see if we could paint in a way that was not realistic.  **grin**

Oh, a friend stopped by my shop on Friday to tell me that he likes my art.  He saw it on Facebook and he called me “Grandma Moses on speed”.   (Personally, I don’t see it, although I admire the artist and her tenacity.)

About Tobias Wolff

American author Tobias Wolff is best known for the memoir A Boy’s Life, about Wolff’s childhood with an itinerant mother and abusive stepfather. He was born in 1945 in Alabama and spent most of his childhood in the Pacific Northwest. His book In Pharaoh’s Army: Memories of the Lost War recounts his experiences as a young soldier in Vietnam. He is an acclaimed writing professor at Stanford University. He has three children.

Kitty and Blooms

And this is what I learned:  if I change my belief system, I can change my life. If we change what we believe, we change what is possible;we change reality. The mind changes the world. Consciousness is the tool of our liberation.

Christina Baldwin



Kitty and Blooms
6″ x 9″ Watercolor

 Here’s another older cat painting. It does seem odd to see me paint them in their real color, doesn’t it?

Nice fall colors.

I’m so thankful for our recent weather. It was such a brutally HOT summer and usually we just hop right from hot to a brrrrrring cold winter. This is the first fall we have had in ages, that lingered long enough for us to really languish in it and appreciate it.

People that frowned all summer, while wilting in the heat, are smiling and cheerful. It’s just amazing the affect the weather has on us. I hope you are enjoying a great fall where you are, too.

Christina Baldwin is an eloquent and witty speaker and educator who integrates the spiritual journey and the practical path in her retreats and workshops. She has taught nationally and internationally since the mid-1970s, and has contributed classic books in the emerging bodies of knowledge around personal writing, group process and spirituality. Her first work, One to One: Self-Understanding through Journal Writing is a pioneering text that has remained in continuous print for a quarter of a century. Its sequel, Life’s Companion, Journal Writing as a Spiritual Quest, extended the art of journal writing to spiritual practice.

In the early 1990s, Baldwin began developing a group process methodology that led to the concepts presented in her ground-breaking work, Calling the Circle: The First and Future Culture. This book has introduced thousands of people to a practical, hands-on structure for convening their meetings in circle and tapping collective wisdom. She has taken this work to the heart of mainstream culture in North America, Europe, and Africa.

Now living on an island near Seattle, Washington, she and author/educator Ann Linnea manage PeerSpirit, offering a variety of consulting seminars, practica, and wilderness programs. Their clients include health care corporations; health care delivery teams: university administrations, faculties, and graduate student programs; church congregations and religious administrative offices; provincial government housing administrations; Federal Corrections administration; industrial manufacturing teams; software development staff and project teams.

In 2000 – 2001, with the Berkana Institute, Baldwin co-developed the international initiative From the Four Directions, presented at the Women in Lucent Leadership Conference, worked with the Race and Gender Institute at the University of North Carolina, and consulted with the Center for Nursing Leadership. When at home she adores the peace of island life: beach walking, bicycling, gardening and kayaking.

Sweet Faced Cat

“It is necessary to try to surpass oneself always; this occupation ought to last as long as life.”
– Queen Christina



Sweet Faced Cat
4″ x 4″ Watercolor Pencil on Art Spectrum Colourfix Paper

YAY!  Finally, after much trial and error, I am able to post my blog, using my regular Firefox browser.  I must have installed and uninstalled and fooled around with every flash player and Java app known to man.  Something finally worked!  Whoooo Hooooo!! 
Computers can be the worst time eaters, especially when they are malfunctioning!   I am going to take another day off from mine, if I can resist that huge magnetic pull it has to my curious mind. 

This little cat is an older painting, but I thought I’d hang with the cat theme, since I didn’t paint many things over the weekend.  Oh, I take that back.  I painted all four of the outside doors of our house and the trim around them.  I painted the bases of 8 columns on the front porch, too.    It was a honey do weekend.  “Honey, do you know how to use a bigger paint brush?”

About Queen Christina

Queen Christina of Sweden was the most famous woman of her time, outshining Queen Elizabeth of England. She was born in Stockholm in 1626 during a rare astrological conjunction. Her father insisted that she be raised as a boy and changed the law so she could become his heir. She became the reigning queen at age five. She helped end the Thirty Years War but abdicated her throne in 1654, converting to Catholicism and moving to Rome, where she became a patron of the arts. She died in 1689.

Rainbow Cat

“The capacity for hope is the most significant fact of life. It provides human beings with a sense of destination and the energy to get started.”


– Norman Cousins

Rainbow Cat

4″ x 6″ Watercolor Postcard attached to Canvas

While I’m on a roll, I thought I’d share another little cat. Doesn’t it look sweet sitting on that little easel? One of the fun things about small art is the many ways it can be presented. This kitty’s eyes might follow you around the room though.


About Norman Cousins

American writer and editor Norman Cousins is best known for his book, Anatomy of an Illness, an account of how he used nutrition and positive visualizations, including laughter, to heal from an illness diagnosed as fatal. He was born in New Jersey in 1915. He served many years as editor-in-chief of the Saturday Review, a job he loved. Under his guidance, circulation increased from 20,000 to 650,000. He received the UN Peace Medal for his world activism. He died in 1990.

Hip Cat

“Many things which cannot be overcome when they are together yield themselves up when taken little by little.”


– Plutarch

Hip Cat

4″ x 6″ Watercolor attached to a black canvas

Just look at that face. Awwwww. Well, he has been given the wonderful honor of being my very first sale on Etsy! YAY!!! He is going off to live in New York. It just goes to prove that people really do have room in their hearts for a purple cat on psychadelics. **big grin**



I have had a few paintings on Etsy & Artfire for quite a while. It’s time consuming to add them, so I never really got serious about it. Maybe now, I have a reason to maybe add a few more. I have monetized my website, but have not really been selling much of anything there. I have never tried Ebay. Some friends of mine do really well there.



I just love to paint! This whole business of selling my artwork is a little awkward. But, I would like to be able to justify all the money I have spent on art supplies over the last three years. My husband worries about my feelings. Since he doesn’t “get” my art most of the time, he worries about the rejection. I just put it out there, with my sense of humor fully in tact. If it sells, great. If it doesn’t, then it’s not for lack of effort on my part. Sometimes I get a wonderful surprise like I got yesterday… an email that tells me someone named Susan loves my Hip Cat.



And that is awesome! Thanks, Susan!



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.

Santa's Errands

“To play it safe is not to play.”


– Robert Altman

Santa’s Errands

7.5″ x 10.5″ Watercolor

This painting was done from a photo of a statue in the London Bus Depot by Artastic at WDE. Of course, I had my way with him and he became Santa, running his pre-holiday errands. It was fun to do. I have been playing with Santa stuff, trying to come up with this year’s Christmas cards.

I am still having problems with WordPress, Blogger and Firefox. I am unable to use the uploader or the tags. I’m over in Internet Explorer, trying to get a blog post done. I’m crossing my fingers that it’ll work.



About Robert Altman

Robert Altman, the iconoclastic American filmmaker known for his naturalistic, multi-character dramas, has directed many acclaimed feature films, including M*A*S*H, Nashville, and The Player. He was born in 1925 in Kansas City, Missouri, to a socially prominent family. Alfred Hitchcock gave Altman his big break when he hired him to direct on the TV series Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Actors say they love to work with Altman because he gives them freedom to improvise. He died in 2006.

Watching the Dawn

"In reading the lives of great men, I found that the first victory they won was over themselves... self-discipline with all of them came first."


--Harry S. Truman
 

Watching the Dawn

6" x 12" x 1.5"

Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas

I am still not convinced that the bull doesn’t need more color.  Hmmmmm….. What color do you think?

Well, whatever the problem with my photo uploading is, it is with Firefox.  Internet Explorer is working just fine.  Thanks to the nice Wordpress Happiness Engineer, Maoko, for helping me figure that out.  How do you like that job title... Happiness Engineer?  I LOVE it!

Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the 33rd President of the United States (1945–1953). As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice-president and the 34th Vice President of the United States, he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his historic fourth term.  More...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_S._Truman

Texas Longhorn

"Character contributes to beauty.  It fortifies a woman as her youth fades."
--Jacqueline Bisset

Texas Longhorn
3.75" x 3.75" Watercolor

I enjoyed doing this.  The reference is by KreativeK at WetCanvas.   I am now working on a 6" x 12" acrylic painting of this little critter in Bethville.  I hope to have it ready soon, but I can't decide what color the longhorn should be.  **giggle**



Jacqueline Bisset (born 13 September 1944) is an English actress. She has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards and an Emmy Award. She is known for her roles in the films Bullitt (1968), Airport (1970), The Deep (1977), Class (1983), and the TV series Nip/Tuck in 2006. She has also appeared in several French productions and was nominated for a César Award for La cérémonie (1995). She was awarded the Légion d'honneur in 2010.

 More....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacqueline_Bisset

These Boots are Made for Dancing!

"It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg."
– C. S. Lewis

 

These Boots are Made for Dancing!

5.5" x 7.5" Watercolor & Acrylic on Yes! Primed Linen

This painting was done from a reference by KreativeK at WetCanvas.  Thanks, Kay, for sharing this great photo.  Yes! is a really fun surface to paint on.  It's smooth and normally accepts watercolor beautifully.  I think this particular pad has been compromised by extreme temperatures in my sign shop, because the watercolor was wanting to bead up.

Here is a photo at 2 hours.  

I imagine I have over 4 hours in it.  First I drew the boots with a watercolor pencil.  I then outlined all of the lines with a Sharpie.  All of the colors, except the black and white, were painted in with watercolor.   The black is Golden Fluid Acrylic and the white is Winsor & Newton Iridescent White acrylic.  

For the background, I smeared some iridescent white on with a pallet knife and my fingers, then mixed some yellow and red watercolor into some of the white acrylic and smeared it on.  When the boots were completed, I filled in the white background with watercolor.  

Are you ready to go dancing?  he he he

About C. S. Lewis

Anglo-Irish author C. S. Lewis, called Jack by his friends, is best known for his children's fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia. He was born in 1898 in Belfast but settled in England after serving in World War I. He belonged to a writing group with J. R. R. Tolkien, whom he credited for his religious awakening. Lewis went on to write many Christian-themed books. His marriage to Joy Gresham, who died of bone cancer, was memorialized in the movie Shadowlands. He died in 1963.

TAG! I'm it! (Giraffe by Ryan - asmalltowndad)

"I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it."
– Pablo Picasso

 

Ryan, from asmalltowndad blog, started a game of TAG.  I'm it!  He sent me this beautiful giraffe and I am to send a small piece of original art to one of our blogging buddies.  What a cool game!  

 

Don't you just love the eyelashes on this little beauty?

Thanks, Ryan!!  :)

 

About Pablo Picasso

Pablo Picasso, the Spanish painter at the forefront of Cubism, is perhaps best known for his painting Guernica, which depicts the hopelessness and violence of war. The masterpiece hung in the Museum of Modern Art in New York until democracy was restored in Spain; the painting was then sent home, where it hangs now at Reina Sofí a, Spain's national museum of modern art. Born in Spain in 1881, Picasso spent his adult life in France. Although he's known for his abstract paintings, his realistic work, particularly his Blue Period, was equally accomplished. He loved to be surrounded by friends and had multiple love affairs. He died in 1973.

Turkey Trot

“Persons with comparatively moderate powers will accomplish much, if they apply themselves wholly and indefatigably to one thing at a time.”
–Samuel Smiles

 

Turkey Trot
4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Sharpie

I thought I’d continue in my pink theme for the week.  I had fun painting this little postcard.  I used the same photo to paint these turkeys as I used to paint the ones I posted earlier.  The last painting was done in 2008.  The reference is from RubyRedDog2 at WetCanvas.

I have been successful at getting more work done by staying off the internet the last two days.  My computer must be mad at me though, because it is crawling at a snail’s pace today.

Samuel Smile

Name:	Samuel Smiles
Birth Date:	December 23, 1812
Death Date:	April 16, 1904
Nationality:	British
Gender:	Male

Dictionary of Literary Biography on Samuel Smiles

Asa Briggs, the twentieth-century social critic and historian who has devoted the most attention to Samuel Smiles, sums up Smiles’s general significance best: “Every society has its propagandists who try to persuade their fellow-citizens to develop a special kind of social character which will best serve the needs of the day. In mid-Victorian England one of the most important propagandists was Samuel Smiles, described by the editor of the Autobiography as ‘the authorized and pious chronicler of the men who founded the industrial greatness of England.’… Where Carlyle meditated on the abbot Samson, Smiles told his stories–true stories of men like Josiah Wedgwood, William Lee, James Brindley, and George Stephenson. He saw that the everyday work of applied science had its romance, and he found his heroes among the engineers, the inventors, and the enterprisers.” In addition to his contributions to industrial biography, he is remembered for the “gospel of work” that he propounded in Self-Help (1859), a guidebook to success and “getting on” that attained worldwide popularity in the Victorian period.