Paintus- Interruptus

I’ve been working on this piece, expecting to have finished it today.

” La Reine Market Seller ” Oil on Panel 11 X 14

Started it with a Burnt Sienna / Ultra Blue wash and a loose drawing with the brush.

I’ve been mesmerized by the works of Joaquin Sorolla and his depictions of his subjects under the hot Madrid sun. This site has a slide show of his complete works.

One should not get so hypnotized by muse or self that one doesn’t pay attention to how one wipes the unwanted paint off a palette knife.

They do not call it a palette Spoon, or a palette Fork, but a palette KNIFE!

Hence, Paintus Interruptus.

When well used, they are more like a Palette Shiv.

This experience must fall under the proverb employed by motorcycle enthusiasts:  ” There are two kinds of riders-those who’ve wiped out and those who haven’t wiped out yet “.

Too bad I didn’t need to add crimson to this piece- I could have had an endless supply. My thumb is in the shop for a few days- enough time to look through more pages of my Sorolla book.

This guy doesn’t have to be concerned about a useless thumb.

And neither does Chili Pepper…..he’s almost flaunting it in my face……

Thinkin’ Bout It- A New Painting

Don’t Just Do Something, sit there!

We’re used to the opposite edict.

Hurry, do something, clean, paint, organize life’s relentless messes, write letters to Congress, save a life, call your mother,  but do SOMETHING!

I’m going to do what she’s doing. My doppelgänger, above.

ˈdäpəlˌga ng ər| noun
an apparition or double of a living person.
ORIGIN mid 19th cent.: from German, literally ‘double-goer.’

It’s high summer, and low motivation. Why do I  think I can be Superwoman in the Tropics? Why am I the only senseless organism  still pushing it at 3 in the afternoon when every other mammal in the house is sleeping off the mid day heat?

Because we were supposed to Not Just Sit There- We were supposed to Do Something.

So I did this 6X8, loosey goosey, alla prima, fear of green painting. I’ve photoshopped for corrections in sharpness, but fear overcompensating and losing it completely. She really looks sun sprinkled in the original.

As I expect to be this week. A good friend arrives tonight from NY for a weeks’ vacation with us. And I’m going to show by example, how taking your time is not only essential, it can garner you extra attention.

Maybe a manicure though……..

Sorting Cukes- New Painting

Every Saturday since January, I’ve been volunteering at the newly formed Virgin Island Farmers Cooperative.

It’s a stellar combination: sustainably grown local produce, appreciative customers, banter among the crew, and a day outside. Oh, and inspiring subjects for photos and paintings.

” Sorting Cukes ” 6X8 oil on panel

St Croix was long known as the breadbasket of the Caribbean. After years of a downturn in recognizing the importance of locally grown food ( 90% of our food is shipped in- old and nutritionally deficient by the time it arrives here ), the VIFC is revitalizing food production as a vital and greatly appreciated necessity to the residents of St. Croix.

Lettuce, mustard greens, peppers, cucumbers, local fruits, real eggs with orange yolks, free range chickens, goat, lamb, pork, all hormone free.

It’s one of my favorite days of the week, tiring, hot, fun, and a refrigerator stocked with real food.

Taste being one of our senses, smell is definitely another. It’s humid, hot, things get moldy and mildewed faster than you can launder or bleach them.

So I laughed when I saw this sign for a new ” fragrance ” shop that opened here-

( Thanks Ted, for the photo )

I have personally forsaken Chanel No. 5, and Angel, my two previously favorite perfumes for the only fragrances that have any useful purpose here:

Febreze

Off

Lysol

and the new fave,

Purell

Some days, turp smells great by comparison.

Who Wants to Buy…?

We’re all wondering. Artists, car manufacturers, clothing retailers. What’s the value we place on art and does it become one of the first non-essentials to be eliminated?

This was the weekend of the Good Hope School Fine Arts Exhibit- a juried, Caribbean Art Show of about 50 artists. Eagerly awaited by locals and snowbirds, it’s one of the biggest events of the season here.

Patron traffic and interested traffic seemed considerably less than last years show. The usual feeding frenzy of private showings before the doors open,  was not a frenzy. More like a dietary fast. Red dots used to fly at this show in past years. Not this year.

I sold three paintings within 45 minutes.

OK, I didn’t faint. But damn near close.

Buying art should be as thoughtful a process as making it. Adios, frenzies. Isn’t it so much better to moderate our impulses and refine our choices, to be mindful in selecting what we bring into our lives and our homes.

I had inner tugs of conflict about prices in this new under-stimulated, yet to be bailed out time we’re living in. Lowered some prices at the last minute.

It didn’t seem to matter. If it moved or touched someone, it found a home.

These were the three-

“The Gatekeeper” 9X12 framed o/p

“August Sun ” 9X12 framed o/p

” The Elixir ” 11X14 acrylic

Valentines’ Weekend too. I felt the love.

Maybe I’ll be asked to make an appearance on Winfreys’ show.

Okra Winfrey-

Taken at our annual Ag Fair, also this weekend.

A glorious three day event- high spirits, great food, local everything, animals, bands, music, more food, plants, vegetables, sunburned feet, and more kissing than a frat party.

Food is eternal and a necessity. Art? You betcha.