There's lots of elbow room in the studio now

Now that the eagle is out of my studio I have an extra 7 feet of horizontal space to work in and I've already filled it up with a variety of sketches and works in progress. After a long stall, I've decided to make Celtic Maiden into a mixed media work by adding 2-d and 3-d collage elements. I was inspired to take a new tack with this piece after reading Robert Genn's Painters Keys - I realized I was having a difficult time moving forward with this painting because it had become too "precious" to me, a struggle I spoke of in an post earlier this year when I was working on Tree of Life. I'm letting go of that preciousness and am adding textures and 3-d elements to the piece and am once again excited to work on it.

I'm also working on a piece inspired by a difficult few months my family went through half a dozen or so years ago - I was at my wit's end trying to communicate the love and support I had to give to one who was near and dear to me and who just wouldn't/couldn't hear it; words were not enough. It'll be an assemblage of sorts and my amazing Uncle and Aunt, who can create just about anything from a mere stick of wood (this time a 2x4), have created the substrate for me in the form of a shallow box containing a gridwork of compartments. Stay tuned ...

Flown the coop

Ready to go ...

Rick and his co-worker from BC Lions Society arrived at 10:30 this morning.

and out the door it went...

into natural daylight

rolling along

and into the truck



secured in the truck, along with prolific muralist Elizabeth Hollick's eagle

Bye-bye birdie.

Celestial Messenger is completed

Art Garage Sale Update

Thanks to all who have taken a look at the works included in my art garage sale. Since posting the sale I've sold 3 of the listed works and 4 unlisted works - you never know where a little shameless self-promotion may lead.

Art Garage Sale

I'm clearing out my art storage room to make room for guests arriving from Europe in late Spring. I've sorted through all the paintings hanging and leaning against the walls in the room and have organized an on-line garage sale (thanks for the idea Andrea). Here's a link to the garage sale. No reasonable offer refused!

It's all in the name

The back side of the eagle is all but completed - I'm making arrangements for a couple of strong folks to help flip it over tonight so I can finish the front by the end of the week. I've been contemplating a title for the piece for weeks and finally this morning at my physio therapy appointment, the moment I relaxed as I lay on a table having electric pulses encourage blood circulation into my neck and shoulders, a name popped into my head - Celestial Messenger - right out of the blue (forgive the pun). This seems to be the likeliest choice as it conveys the essence of the meaning behind the imagery. I checked online and discovered there were several sites that included the name 'Celestial Messenger', including one featuring a statue located at Holy Family Parish in the Philippines; an angel therapy practitioner; an Oregon artist; and many others - the majority were positive with the exception of the character mentioned in this one.

I still like the name and think I'll keep it.