Princess

An African princess ..... the reflected glow of firelight.... blue shadows ... contemplating her betrothal? .... She seems happy with her future.

This journal page began with an old design of mine also. The eye (on your left) was cut out and pasted, then the princess emerged.

Let's Go Fly A Kite....

Let's go fly a kite,

Up to the highest heights,

Let's go fly a kite,

and send it soaring,

up through the atmosphere,

up where the air is clear,

oh let's go, fly a kite!!

The Mary Poppins video brings back childhood memories for me and maybe will for your too....

When I paint pictures like this, there is always a story attached to it. Sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously. I have always loved songs that tell a story - The Hurricane by Bob Dylan, The Ballad of Georgie Boy by Rod Stewart, The Boy With The Moon And Star On His Head by Cat Stevens. Levon by Elton John - even Joelene by Dolly Parton and Lucille by Kenny Rogers - I love the tales and the images that they create. There is a richness there that doesn't exist in a basic song.

I find that more and more these days, I must have some writing paper nearby so that I can scribble down the story as I am painting. I want more from my paintings than something that is just nice to look at. Something I need to consider developing further.......

Snowbird

Today I found myself with a day empty of plans, with plenty of time to play. The body of the tree is one of my old doodles from long ago, pasted in the journal and painted around. The snowbird emerged seemingly from nowhere and insisted on sitting at the top of the tree. It is very, very hot here today, so maybe it is my sub-conscious desire for coolness taking over!

Pink Pages

In these pink pages I have pasted some little designs I made years ago. Once they were buried away in a box. Here in my journal they get to see light of day.

I have been listening to podcasts over at notes from the voodoo cafe that Suki kindly alerted us to ..... artists talking to Rice Freeman-Zachery about their love for the art they make and the importance of journaling to the creative process. These artists are so generous in sharing their wisdom and experience. I found myself taking down notes, it's all great stuff, too good to miss!

Then, as if all that creative goodness was not enough, I watched teesha moore's new videos sharing her journalling techniques and tips. After a couple of months at a distance from art every day, I'm now all squirmy & motivated, itching to get started! Every day!

Snail Control

This is our resident Blue Tongue Lizard basking in the morning sun. He has a most beautiful bright blue tongue that I was unable to capture with the camera. They are common in backyards in Australia and are always welcome because they love to eat snails. (They are too slow moving to catch anything else!) So it's no coincidence that his home is right next to my herb/veggie garden where the snails congregate in the evenings. They don't mind humans, tho we'll have to try and keep the cat away from him if we want him to stay!

My copy of Steve Pressfield's The War of Art arrived yesterday and I read it in a couple of hours. There are some great insights & advice in this book. The focus of Book 1 is 'Resistance' and how to recognise & understand it, stare it in the face and sit down to create anyway. So I did!