Monday, January 21, 2013

The Winter Grays

Yup, not, "The Winter Blues."  No, no, no.  Such is the impact winter has on me.  And I live in the desert where the sun shines most of the time!  I did my time in the Seattle, Washington area for a few years, and I'm done with that, THANK GOD!

A neighbor recently called me up and I answered the phone.  The first thing she said was, "You sound gray."  Oh, how perfectly right she was!  I had to laugh at her choice of the word.

Sorry to say, but I am gray this time of year.  The garden is long gone, the days are too short, work comes to us in tiny batches, and the holidays blasted in and out of our schedules leaving another hole of a different kind behind!  It's hard just trying to keep keepin' on!

So is it any wonder that I turn to my artwork to create a bit of Spring in my days?



There now!  Isn't that better?
Here's some more Spring-time therapy...



Ahhh, much better!

I painted these watercolors a couple months ago, in November.  Winter grays set in early for me!  Looking at them now, in their tiny format 2.5" x 3.5," fills me with hope and joy.  They make me feel like I've found a small, priceless treasure.  The best things come in small packages, don't they?



Isn't this funny?  I love the mannequin's presentation, as if to say, "Ta Da!"  I put this in my Etsy shop as one of the photos of this daffodil...



A simple one hour pencil sketch which represents my wintery mood.  The quick, dark pencil strokes testifies to my walking around my house like a caged animal!  Ha!  You laugh, but I'm serious!!!  Haven't you ever done that?  Sure you have, so I'm not alone in my temporary insanity...which is good.  I think.
And, the fact that a beautiful spring-time flower (sunny yellow, no less) is rendered in black and white is another commentary on my "Grays."  Happily, it is full of hope and the coming joy of Spring.  There is a light at the end of the tunnel.


Another promising endeavor is bubbling to the surface...


"Flora and Fauna Desert Collection I"
9" x 12"

"Flora and Fauna Desert Collection II"
9" x 12"


Here's a general idea of what they would look like framed...



I love the exquisite beauty of a pencil drawing.  Discovering Rembrandt and Durer was all the confirmation I needed to prove the glory of the pencil drawing.

These two desert tag collections are really exciting me with what else I can do with them.  These are just the beginning!

So as the days begin to lengthen, I draw and paint.  Full of hope and expectation of the coming growing season.  Gray will soon be...Sunny!

6 comments:

  1. Hello, I understand about the gray days of winter. It's cold here so most all our days are spent inside, we did get out for a little while in the snow, but the little ones hands got so cold. I try to remind myself that there is a beauty in each season that the other seasons don't have, I just have to look for it. Your art work is lovely, I especially like the birds. Glad you are venturing out and selling your art. I'm still trying to get my nerve up enough to take the last steps into the world of etsy. How has the experience been for you so far? Well, I'll stop rambling on, take care and God Bless.

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    1. Thank you. So far the experience has been positive enough. It is slow-going, as I'm sure it is for all who just get started. It is never easy to reach a target audience in anything. They pretty much discover you on their own, with any help you can provide in finding you. You just don't know until you try. Until then, it's just a bunch of speculation. So have as much fun with it as you can! Don't think in terms of 'failure,' but in terms of letting it grow while you nurture it!

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  2. Oh you! I'm so glad you stopped into see me at Corn!
    Glad to hear from you.
    I've been having pretty good time today, enjoying the outside and letting it flow into the house. The breeze was a little chilly in the shade but being in the sun was great! Last week we had wet rainy days. Snow north of us-- but still, even in Texas we have those 'gray' days---like LAST WEEK!
    I think your art is beautiful! I'm glad to see you have your etsy opened. I opened mine in Sept. of '12 and it I've had about 8 or 9 sales...mostly vintage stuff. I've only sold one HANDCRAFTED item. You mentioned in your reply comment above that it's hard to find a target audience...I'm having a tough time finding a niche craft!
    You know that "thing!" that is going to draw customers in droves to your sight to get what they want... I think the wash cloth market is 'saturated'! (pun intended)
    I think you'll get some buyers soon... are you advertising?
    I tried advertising thru etsy---but felt like I was just throwing money away. The best way I've found to advertise is to post it on my blog.

    whatever works...so glad to hear from you and chat with you and catch up!
    take care and blessings--- Keep painting because you are so talented.
    Pat

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  3. Your artwork is absolutely beautiful! I wish you well in your etsy endeavors! :)
    I hear you about having the winter grays, only I always call it the blahs.

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  4. I love the photo with the mannequin, made me giggle!

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  5. so creative .. beautiful artwork..

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