I know I've been a bit sporadic at blogging lately. Life has been busy. A good busy, but busy. It hasn't left as much time as I'd like for beading, blogging and such. I've been traveling a lot, and just returned from a trip to Oregon where we were visiting with my brother and his family, and made a large migration of family to the coast to see my Dad. I rarely make it 'home' these days, but I do miss the Pacific Northwest.
I got a bit of time yesterday to paint before the flight home. I have a new toy called a water brush. You just give it a little squeeze and voila you've got water color paint to go. I gave my new toy a spin and painted a local icon called the St. John's Bridge (c. 1931). Its design is Gothic to echo neighboring Cathedral Park, and it was declared on St. Patrick's day that it would be painted green. The St. John's Bridge was the first of its kind west of the Mississippi; a suspension bridge, just like the Golden Gate in San Francisco (c. 1937). If you've ever been to Portland you know that it is known for it's bridges that crisscross the Willamette River that runs through the city. The bridges are simply everywhere, and add to the feel of this water city.
I managed to get some great 'moody weather' as my husband likes to call it. Personally, I love the rain and fog. It is relaxing and feels like home. I got a lot of it while I was there. The fog creates the perfect backdrop, and I decided to paint in a bit to my watercolor.
This week Sally asked us to create art for our Focusing on Life Challenge. It doesn't have to literally be art, it could be the art of jewelry design or component making. But I show you guys jewelry all the time. And her prompt was to not limit ourselves, to perhaps try something new. Ok, so art it is.
Honestly, one of the things I've been thinking about is doing some painting. This is a little bit of a cheat as I did this painting about a year ago. I've been so crazy busy at the office that I haven't had a chance to get out to find the materials: a canvas, paints a few brushes. But it is something that has moved up my 'to do' list. I will give it a go soon, but for now I decided I would tell you why I've been interesting in painting.
Almost a year to the day, I was in New Zealand visiting my sister. And I asked her one morning what was up with the blank canvas she had propped up in her guest room. She said she had been thinking about doing a painting but had just never gotten around to it. I knew immediately it was going to be our project. I told her we were going to paint it so she had something to remember our time together. That confidence has nothing to do with whether or not I can paint, it's just that we always like to find a little something either to do, or buy together that will remind us of each other since our visits are so infrequent.
So now the questions was what; what to paint? My sister suggested tulips since they are her husband's favorite flower. So we were off to the store to pick up paints and brushes. Over the the next 3 or 4 days we spent our afternoons out on the deck sipping local NZ wine and painting. A time I will indeed remember. We started with layers of blue for the background and then gave it a rest for the afternoon to dry. The following day we added sweeping grass and then the next day we added tulips. We signed it "Machata-Sargent" for a little fun. Our two married names, and a play on Singer Sargent for those who know the amazing classic American artist, and one of my all-time favorites. This painting now hangs in my sister's foyer. I told her that she didn't have to show it prominently, but apparently her husband insisted.
