Category: Uncategorized

So, where do I begin? (Insert sigh here as I ponder…)

First off, we moved from Florida. I left my position in recruitment marketing at Publix and took a role with a smaller company in the Metro DC area in December, 2018. It was time for a change, really. I loved most of my colleagues at Publix, but needed a change. We’d grown tired of the Florida incessant heat and lack of four seasons and we missed family.

Although my husband’s family is in the UK where he was born, most of my family is located in a 100 mile radius around Washington, DC, so when this small employer came knocking with an offer I couldn’t refuse, I jumped at the chance. It took until April, 2019 to sell our Florida home and settle into a great townhouse in Montgomery County, Maryland, commuting distance for both my husband and I. And it was about 15 miles from my sister and her family, an important factor in this move. Two decades-long friends are within 50 miles too and it means lots of chances for get togethers and fun.

And here we are, below, my lifelong BFF who lives in NJ, me, and my sister celebrating my milestone 60th birthday together in September, 2019. So glad we made this move but I’ve not had an ounce of free time to paint lately! I’m sure once I really settle in, though, I’ll be able to block time for painting and creating.

It’s New Year’s Eve and I’m hoping to make a few changes for 2020. First and foremost, as I said above, to carve out time for painting and creating. It shouldn’t be for lack of inspiration as in March, the hubby and I travel to Paris for our anniversary. I’ve been planning our trip and definitely will be taking in a few museums, for sure! We’ll see where the rest of the year takes us, but finger’s crossed it’s a great one!

If you’ve ever been to Wales, chances are, your heart and soul have been stolen by the rugged beauty of the countryside. My husband’s family lived there for decades and have a lovely farm right on the Atlantic above Barmouth. It offers a wild and captivating beauty, that place does.

Our last trip over, we drove to Northern Wales from Somerset Co., UK where the husband’s children live, to look in on his aunt in Barmouth. It was a trek, including the chance to cross the historic Severn at Bristol, and a ride through the Brecon Beacons over to Aberystwyth and north to Dolgellau and finally Barmouth. Despite the curvy route I couldn’t help but photograph the wild hills and mountains that make up Snowdonia National Park and the hiking and walking there. It was breathtaking!

I haven’t yet made much art from our trip, but here’s one little watercolor I did from that trip. I think it depicts some of the beauty of the area. It’s called The Road to Dolgellau.

I was really confused as we pulled into the town by the way my husband prounouced it and chose the title of this work for that reason. If you’re interested in the correct pronunciation of Dolgellau, it’s far different from the way it looks, thanks to it’s Welsh origins. Here’s a little video explaining it.

And if you’d like to learn more about the area around Dolgellau, here’s a nice little video about the trails from Dolgellau to Barmouth along the Mawddach Trail footpath. It’s utterly stunning and I hope to get back in the near future!

This new 16″ x 20″ abstract artwork is on stretched canvas with a 1-1/2″ depth and design painted on all edges.  It is of acrylic in the abstract expressionist style and can be hung either vertically or horizontally. There is a lot of texture to this work in blues, tan, white colors.

Here’s how it might look in situ:

The original is for sale direct through me. Two online galleries are also listing the original and offering reprints in different styles. Saatchi has a few sizes of very high quality art prints in fine art paper or canvas and FAA has licensed the work to offer reprints in a number of sizes and formats of prints as well as home accessories, tote bags and even bath towels from this print.

If you love this style but are interested in a work of this sort but using a different artist palette, feel free to contact me to explore options.

It is May and my brain was fixated on this rite of passage of every Catholic school child everywhere – the sacrament of First Holy Communion. I worked on this painting in multiple layers which obscure hidden secrets and symbols. It is mostly in oil over acrylic, with subtle gold leaf inlay, charcoal, graphite, ink and woodcut imprints.

I have been working on this painting for a good long while and it is finally birthed! “First Holy Communion” is an abstract painting in the vein of sacred art or religious artwork, but with an abstract twist. It is one of those that HAD to be painted. The muse beckoned… I already had the title in mind when working on this and it holds some deeply personal meaning to me in some of the symbols and images hidden within.

It is painted on Strathmore 400 140 lb (300 gsm) acid free cold-pressed paper, 18h x 24w. The original artwork is available for sale via Saatchi, along with high quality art prints and canvas reprints in limited sizes. Other merchandise and other print sizes are available through Fine Art America.

If you love this painting but would like to make an art acquisition of something in similar vein but using different colors, think about commissioning one of your own for your personal art collection or as a truly unique gift for someone special. I have limited slots available so why not ask?