Blood Hound Zentangle

“Laughter is the closest distance between two people.”
– Victor Borge

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Zentangled Blood Hound

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I love that quote!  My sister and I were applying Linseed Oil to our mom’s new fence, while we were in Idaho.  It was hard work… horrible work… yet my sister and I laughed the whole time.  We were getting as much oil on us as we were on the fence.  Laughing non-stop!!!  We laughed our hearts out.  It was fun and it was like we hadn’t been apart at all.  I love her so much and that is a memory we will always have.

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Another strange zentangle painting.  A little odd, but fun for me none the less.

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About Victor Borge
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Danish pianist Victor Borge was affectionately known as the Clown Prince of Denmark. Born as Børge Rosenbaum in 1909 to musician parents, he began playing piano at age three. After a stint as a classical pianist, he began combining music and jokes. His anti-Nazi jokes landed him on Hitler’s enemies list. In 1942, he was named Best New Radio Performer by the American press. His Comedy in Music show on Broadway was the longest running one-man show in the 1950′s. He died in 2000.

I would love your opinion...

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.”
– Andy Warhol

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Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Eufaula Postcard Possibility

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Seriously… I’d love to know if this works.  I am playing with the idea of my art layered with actual photographs.  Tomorrow, I’ll show you another one.  I’m thinking the bright colored one here, with a sailing photo behind it.

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I am officially a short timer.  I leave for my Idaho trip on Thursday.  I thought I might be goofing off a little this week, but my sign shop customers had a different idea.  It was crazy in here yesterday.  I’ll certainly be ready for a rest. 

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About Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol, the American pop artist, is probably best known for his silk screens of Campbell Soup and Marilyn Monroe. He was born as Andrew Warhola in Pittsburgh in 1928. His style borrowed from comic books and advertising; he wanted to remove the separation between commercial and fine art. His studio, the Factory, became a hub for the New York art scene. He was also a prolific filmmaker. He was shot three times in the chest in 1968 and narrowly escaped death. He died in 1987.

Imagine that you have magnets in your shoes?

“The best antidote I have found is to yearn for something. As long as you yearn, you can’t congeal: There is a forward motion to yearning.”
– Gail Godwin

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I like that.  Yearning has a forward motion.

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Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

A Tower with Outside Stairs?

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There is just so much wrong with this, but who cares?  It’s a bookmark and what are we doing when we read a book?  We are stretching our imaginations, right?  So, imagine that you have magnets in your shoes and the stairs are steel.  You won’t fall.  But, you can lean way out or duck and roll into that lowest opening.  Can’t do that without magnets in your shoes. 

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About Gail Godwin

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American author Gail Godwin is best known for her well-developed characters in such novels as A Mother and Two Daughters, The Odd Woman, and Violet Clay, all National Book Award nominees. She was born in 1937 in Alabama and raised in North Carolina. She married and divorced twice and lived with composer Robert Starer for 25 years until his death in 2001. They collaborated on ten musical works. She has written 13 novels and two short-story collections. She lives in Woodstock, New York.

Working on some new Eufaula Postcard Art

“Man’s main task in life is to give birth to himself, to become what he potentially is.”
– Erich Fromm

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Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

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Eufaula Postcard Art

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Having a little Fun with some designs for some new Eufaula postcards.   I didn’t paint this one with a black background, but I used Photoshop Elements to add the black.  If you look at the hi res version, you can see how much it needs to be cleaned up.  So this is not ready to go to the printer at all, but it is a start. 

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About Erich Fromm

Erich Fromm, the humanist German psychoanalyst and author, is best known for his book, The Art of Loving, which describes love as care, responsibility, respect, and knowledge. Born in Germany in 1900, he emigrated to the United States in 1934, fleeing Hitler’s regime. He taught at a number of universities in the U.S. and Mexico and wrote eight books delineating his view of human nature. He believed that modern society makes us feel isolated and long to reach out to others. He died in 1980.

Weathered Suitcases

“In prosperity our friends know us; in adversity we know our friends.”

–John Churton Collins

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Weathered Suitcases Spruced Up – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor

Travel is the topic this week for for Illustration Friday.  I found the photo in the WetCanvas Reference Image Library.  It was contributed by OldRockChick.  I loved the wonderful old suitcases, that were (of course) brown,  beige and white.  I really enjoyed doing this one! 

Twinkies are back!  Anybody going to go find some today?

John Churton Collins (26 March 1848 – 25 September 1908), English literary critic, was born at Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire.

From King Edward’s School, Birmingham, he went to Balliol College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1872, and at once devoted himself to a literary career, as journalist, essayist and lecturer. His first book was a study of Sir Joshua Reynolds (1874), and later he edited various classical English writers, and published volumes on Bolingbroke and Voltaire in England (1886), a Study of English Literature (1891), a study of Dean Swift (1893), Essays and Studies (1895), Ephemera Critica (1901), Essays in Poetry and Criticism (1905), and Rousseau and Voltaire (1908), his original essays being sharply controversial in tone, but full of knowledge.

In 1904 he became professor of English literature at Birmingham University.[1] For many years he was a prominent University Extension lecturer, and a constant contributor to the principal reviews. On 25 September 1908 he was found dead in a ditch near Lowestoft, at which place he had been staying with a doctor for the benefit of his health. The circumstances necessitated the holding of an inquest, the verdict being that of accidental death.  Source:  Wikipedia

Future – Hunter & Gage - My Sweet Great Nephews

“If we wait for the moment when everything is ready, we shall never begin.”
– Ivan Turgenev

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Future – Hunter & Gage

Hunter is a newborn and Gage is three and a half.  They are my great nephews.  These are their little feet.  The word for Illustration Friday this week is “future” and I can’t think of anything more perfect than these two little boys.

I am going to paint it, so this also a future painting. 

About Ivan Turgenev

 

Russian novelist Ivan Turgenev, celebrated for his dark, realistic novels about Russian life, is best known for the novel Fathers and Sons, about the conflicting ideologies between generations. He was born in 1818 to a wealthy Russian family. He and his brother were raised by an abusive mother who was rumored to have smothered one of her serfs. He rose to fame with A Sportsman’s Sketches, which may have influenced the Tsar to free the serfs. He died in France in 1883.

Tribute to Another Time - A Rusty Old Truck

“Three grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.“
–Joseph Addison

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Tribute to Another Time – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor

Sunday, I had a little time to paint.  (yay!)  I was waiting for approval (of the pencil sketch) on the commission I’m working on and the hubby didn’t feel good, so he was napping.  The word for Illustration Friday this week is “Tribute”, so I thought this old truck fit the bill.  I painted it from a photo by Lisilk at WetCanvas.

…. and I made chili. 

Joseph Addison (May 1, 1672 – June 17, 1719) was an English politician and writer. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend, Richard Steele, with whom he founded The Spectator magazine. Along with Steele, Addison would contribute the majority of the content for three of the most influential periodicals of the eighteenth century: The Tatler, The Spectator, and The Freeholder, all of which set standards for literary taste and literary criticism that would endure throughout the remainder of the century. Addison was also an accomplished poet and playwright, and his tragedy, Cato, would become one of the most popular plays of the eighteenth century English stage.  More…

The Quilt & The Shoe – for 6x62013 Rochester, NY

“When thinking won’t cure fear, action will.”
– William Clement Stone

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

The Quilt & The Shoe – 6″ x 6″ Watercolor

This little painting is headed for Rochester, NY.  For the last 5 years, I have participated in an event at the Rochester Contemporary Art Center called 6×6. It is a huge fundraiser for the gallery.  I started doing it for the resume, but continue for the fun.  Last year, I forgot and they contacted me and reminded me because they had paintings from every state except Oklahoma.   Of course I dashed one off to them.

In 2012, they sold 2417 6″ x 6″ paintings.   They receive art  from celebrities, international and local artists, designers, college students, youth and ME, from all over the world.    We are not allowed to sign the front, so no one knows who did the painting they are purchasing.  (There is a form with info on the back.)  Each piece of art sells for $20.  They raffle off positions 1-20 for first grabs at the art.

When you purchase your painting, they tell you who the artist is.   They reveal the names of all the sold out artists on July 5th, and artwork can be picked up 10 days after that.    If you click the 2012 link, you can see photo gallery from last year’s event.  It takes a ton of wall space!

You can purchase paintings online, beginning June 4th, as well.   This is their 6th year with this event.

About William Clement Stone

American businessman William Clement Stone overcame an impoverished childhood to head an insurance empire. He was born on May 4, 1902 in Chicago. His father died when he was three, leaving the family in debt. Stone dropped out of school to help his mother sell insurance. He called cold calls “gold calls,” and started each day saying, “I feel happy! I feel healthy! I feel ter-r-r-ific!” He cowrote the book Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude with Napoleon Hill. He died on September 3, 2002 at age 100.

Myth or Madness? – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Ink

“There is nothing more potent than thought. Deed follows word and word follows thought. And where the thought is mighty and pure, the result is mighty and pure.“
–Gandhi

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Myth or Madness? – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Ink

Myth is the word of the week for Illustration Friday.  I used that to inspire me when I painted this for my friend, Bobby Ott’s 70th birthday card.

Legend has it… there is a wonderful little place called Ott, where some tiny little magical people live.  It is thought that they are protected by a large, but affectionate creature who  has never been seen by humans…. until now.

Inside this Birthday card, I told Bobby that as he gets older and has an occasion to question his sanity, all he has to do is pull out this card to affirm that no matter how crazy he may seem…. there is at least one person crazier than him.  (me)  He giggled when I gave it to him.

Mohandas Gandhi (October 2, 1869 – January 30, 1948)  was the last child of his father (Karamchand Gandhi) and his father’s fourth wife (Putlibai). During his youth, Mohandas Gandhi was shy, soft-spoken, and only a mediocre student at school. Although generally an obedient child, at one point Gandhi experimented with eating meat, smoking, and a small amount of stealing — all of which he later regretted. At age 13, Gandhi married Kasturba (also spelled Kasturbai) in an arranged marriage. Kasturba bore Gandhi four sons and supported Gandhi’s endeavors until her death in 1944.

Happy New (I mean Moo) Year! – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

“If a little dreaming is dangerous, the cure for it is not to dream less but to dream more, to dream all the time.”
– Marcel Proust

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Happy New (I mean Moo) Year! – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

New is the word this week for Illustration Friday.   Well, here I go again… pretending I know how to draw a cow!  Can you tell they are drunk?  Someone filled their trough with champagne!  

Have a very Happy New Year!  I’m excited about all the wonderful possibilities in 2013 and I’m getting a running start.  I love this life!

About Marcel Proust

French writer Marcel Proust is renowned for his book In Search of Lost Time (formerly translated as Remembrance of Things Past), an autobiographical novel that Somerset Maugham called the greatest fiction to date. He was born near Paris in 1871. He had a severe asthma attack at age nine that nearly killed him; he remained in poor health much of his life. His bedroom was lined with cork for soundproofing; he wrote his novel at night and slept during the day. It took him 13 years to write the 3,200 page opus. He died in 1922.

The Glow from Within – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

“I think in terms of the day’s resolutions, not the year’s.”

– Henry Moore

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

The Glow from Within – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

Glow is the word this week for Illustration Friday.

 ”Never underestimate the glow from within.” –Beth Parker

With people, and tired old buildings… don’t judge the outside too quickly.  You could be missing something wonderful on the inside.  I painted this from a photo by Painter65 at WetCanvas.

Merry Christmas!

About Henry Moore

British sculptor Henry Moore is known for his voluptuous abstract figures. He was born in 1898 to a poor mining family. After Moore served in World War I, he became the first student of sculpture at Leeds School of Art; a sculpture studio was set up specifically for him. As he studied primitive arts, his own work became more abstract. He established The Henry Moore Foundation in 1977 to promote public appreciation of art. He died in 1986. His work can be seen in public spaces all over the world.

Sno-Cone Business in the Snow – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

“The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.”
–Mitch Albom

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Sno-Cone Business in the Snow – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

Snow is the word this week for Illustration Friday.   As I painted this, I realized why most Sno-Cone businesses are little buildings on wheels.  he he he  Life is fun, isn’t it?  I can’t imagine my life without art….. and pink paint. 

MITCH ALBOM is an internationally renowned and best-selling author, journalist, screenwriter, playwright, radio and television broadcaster and musician. His books have collectively sold over 33 million copies worldwide; have been published in forty-one territories and in forty-two languages around the world; and have been made into Emmy Award-winning and critically-acclaimed television movies.  More at mitchalbom.com.

Explore the World with Reading – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Ink

“Surround yourself only with those people who are going to lift you higher.”
– Oprah Winfrey

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Explore the World with Reading – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Ink

Explore is this week’s word for Illustration Friday.  What better way is there to explore, than through reading?  I love books!  I am so glad that I like to read.  The world opens up to you with books, and takes you wherever you want to go. 

Right now, I am reading The Silent Sea, a Clive Cussler novel and I’m in Argentina fighting off bad guys and trying to get back to my submersible, which will take me back to The Oregon, our high tech ship.

I painted this from a reference by SkattyKat at WetCanvas.  Kat lives in France and had wonderful images to paint from!

Clive Cussler is the author of many New York Times bestsellers, most recently The Spy and Lost Empire. He lives in Arizona.

Oprah Winfrey

Media giant Oprah Winfrey was born in the poor rural town of Kosciusko, Mississippi on January 29, 1954. In 1976, Winfrey moved to Baltimore, where she hosted a hit TV chat show, People Are Talking, after which she was recruited by a Chicago TV station to host her own morning show. Later she went on to pursue her two-and-a-half decade stint as host of the wildly popular Oprah Winfrey show.  More….

Stretch for Illustration Friday – 4″ x 4.5″ Watercolor & Ink

“Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.”
– e. e. cummings

Stretch for Illustration Friday – 4″ x 4.5″ Watercolor & Ink

Stretch is the word this week for Illustration Friday.  This little girl is stretching to get the snowman’s hat on just right.

About e. e. cummings

The writer who became known as e. e. cummings was an experimental poet whose idiosyncratic typography complements the music of his poetry; he published more than 900 poems, two novels, and four plays. He was also an accomplished painter. He was born in Massachusetts in 1894 and entered the ambulance corps in World War I but ended up in a detention camp after expressing his pacifist views. He died in 1962. “In Just-” was his most famous poem.

Whiskers for Illustration Friday – Watercolor

“What I think about surrounds me. What I allow to be entertained in my mind becomes a reality. If I think negatively, I will attract negativity in my life. On the other hand, if I concentrate on developing positive thoughts, I will attract positive people and events to my life. My potential will be increased.

 I cannot control what thoughts come into my mind, but I can control my perception and reaction to them.”

–Anonymous – from the book Help for Helpers, Daily Meditations for Counselors

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Whiskers for Illustration Friday – Watercolor

Whiskers is the word of the week at Illustration Friday.  I spent the weekend working on commissions, so my whiskers kitty was painted a while ago.  It is all watercolor and sprinkled with folly. 

That anonymous person has put into words what I live by.  I just love that!!

Free Shade – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

“We fear to trust our wings. We plume and feather them, but dare not throw our weight upon them. We cling too often to the perch.“
–Charles B. Newcomb

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Free Shade – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

Tree is the word this week at Illustration Friday.  I had a good time painting this one.  Usually I paint the critters first, then move to the background, but I did this one backwards, since tree was the word of the week.   I didn’t know what color the cows were going to be until I dipped my brush in that pink. 

I couldn’t find any biographical info on Mr. Newcomb, but I liked the quote.

Shy Panda Hides Behind the Big Pink Elephant – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

“Learning to live from conscious intention rather from habit energy and past condition is the path of awakening.”
– Fred Eppsteiner

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Shy Panda Hides Behind the Big Pink Elephant – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

Shy is the word of the week for Illustration Friday.   The photo references came from two photos by Connie VanWisssen at WetCanvas.  Connie lives in the Netherlands, but her friend Wilma took the panda photo in Tibet and her brother Stef took the elephant photo in Uganda.

WetCanvas is a wonderful art community to be a part of.   I have been hanging out there since the summer of 2007, when I started painting again for the first time in 30 years.   They gave me a ton of encouragement and I have made some great friends.

Fred Eppsteiner is the Dharma Teacher of the Florida Community of Mindfulness with students in FL and NC. A practicing Buddhist for over 40 years, and a psychotherapist for more than 30 years, Fred has trained extensively in both Zen and Vajrayana/Dzogchen lineages. He received Dharma Transmission from Thich Nhat Hanh in 1994 and is the editor of two books: The Path of Compassion and Interbeing. For more information on Fred and the FCM, access www.floridamindfulness.org. 

Black Cats are Haunted by Halloween – 6″ x 6″ Watercolor & Ink

“Were the diver to think on the jaws of the shark, he would never lay hands on the precious pearl.”
– Saadi

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Black Cats are Haunted by Halloween – 6″ x 6″ Watercolor & Ink

Haunt is the word of the week on Illustration Friday.    If you see a black cat over the next few days, give them a friendly pat or hug.   This is a scary time of year for them.    Their owners hide them inside  to keep them safe from all the pranksters that are out and about after dark on Halloween.   So… I thought I’d paint some happy looking black cats. 

I have an alarm clock that automatically changes for daylight savings.  The problem is the clock is 15 years old, so it changes when daylight savings used to be.  The moral of that story is… I got an extra hour of sleep today.  I was an hour late for work, but since I work by myself, I’m the only one who noticed.  he he

About Saadi

Saadi was a Persian moralist poet best known for Gulistan (The Rose Garden), which combines prose and verse, and Bustan (The Fruit Garden), which includes histories, anecdotes, and fables. He was born in 1184 and lived in Shiraz in what is now Iran. For 30 years, he traveled throughout the Middle East, including Turkey, Egypt, and Arabia. One of his most famous poems adorns the entrance to the Hall of Nations at the UN building in New York. He died when he was 107 years old.

Stormy Sky for Illustration Friday – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Ink

“What is important is to keep learning, to enjoy challenge, and to tolerate ambiguity. In the end there are no certain answers.”
– Matina Horner

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Stormy Sky for Illustration Friday – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Ink

Sky is the word this week for Illustration Friday.  I discovered an amazing photographer at PaintMyPhoto…. PixelBloke took the photo I painted this from.  It was so fun to bring it to Bethville. 

Sunday, I worked on a couple more historic Eufaula buildings.  One of them is the Armory, which was built in 1936 by the WPA program.  The other on is the Foley Mansion, which was built in 1901 and burned in 1962.   I need to go to the library and find some better photos of it.  It’s amazing!

About Matina Horner
American psychologist Matina Horner is best known for her groundbreaking research in the late 1960′s on smart women’s fear of success, which became known as the Horner Effect. She was born in 1939 in Massachusetts. During her 17-year tenure as president of Radcliffe College, she helped integrate the women’s college into a mainstream presence for women on the Harvard University campus. She has received several awards and serves on the boards of many institutions.

Water For Everybody! – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

Discover your magnetism!

 ”Plant the seed of desire in your mind and it forms a nucleus with power to attract to itself everything needed for it’s fulfillment.”
– Robert Collier

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Water For Everybody! – 5″ x 7″ Watercolor & Ink

This is for Illustration Friday and the word “Water”.  I had so much fun doing this painting!   The background is loosely based on a photo by Theclosetpainter on Paint My Photo.  The birds are painted from a photo by Robin Lovelock at the same site.   Don’t you just love those birds? 

Robert Collier

Robert Collier’s inspirational books have changed the lives of thousands. He was a prolific writer and progressive publisher who strongly believed that happiness and abundance were within easy reach.

Robert “Bob” Collier was born April 19, 1885, in St. Louis, son of Mary Ferguson and John Collier. His mother died when he and his older brother were not yet teenagers. His father traveled widely as a foreign correspondent for Collier’s Magazine (founded and published by his uncle, Peter F. Collier). Robert was educated in a church seminar school and was expected to become a priest, but before taking his vows, he decided against the life of a clergyman and headed for West Virginia to seek his fortune.  More about Mr. Collier here.