Photograph from Edgemere...was cleaning out some of my photos on hard drive and cropped this one and had to share it, this is in our backyard in Rhode Island.

Gazpacho...garlic bread, red wine.....mmmmm good, practicing my alphabet, journaling and calligraphy tonight, went for walk up to the top of mountain this morning, then down the hill to town for una cafe con leche...practicing my Spanish as well all the time (but I can not do this in Espanol)....friends gave me some medicine for my annoying cough, enjoying my new BOSE speakers, now that I have the cables to re-charge them with...had a tour of Pat & Willy's orchid collection...I think I changed my clother 5 times today, one for morning chills, then took off sweats, put a skirt on, then changed to go to town, then back and put more comfy clothes on to paint in, now PJ's..typical day in the life of me.....here in paradise....gazpacho was deliciouso. I brought my soup blender down here with me along with my garlic press. I know, pathetic but I am here for 3 months...we have the prayer flags up in the studio...and I am still in a bit of chaos here, painting outdoors and indoors, monotypes in the back studio and a gigantic easel with beginnings of paintings, a huge nest is my still life, and looking for more kinds of nests, (sticks and stones) for this theme, lets see where it will take me....started thinking about last year and this is actually a really good place to see the unusual nests for my inspiration, one I found made with horse hair, another made of just dry grasses, another, of this paper-like material, another looks like fungi, another in geometric patterns..."I am a bird, I am a bee", ...OMG, the study of nests is becoming an obsession. Is that ok? Yes Lori it is ok. Get out of your rut and explore some new paths in your painting. I have to have these talks with myself..the life of an artist...everything has a purpose ya know! mmmmmmm..

The Allure 

(inspiration for recent paintings)

photograph by LBB

The brugmansia's slender, fluted bells proffer
their deadly champagne, their alluring, toxic flowers
dangling as if they'd been gassed, angel's trumpet 

they're called -as deadly as the single carbon
bound to oxygen you inhale, motor running.

(excerpt from poem, Cloud Forest by Lise Goett)

I forgot how to paint...trouble in paradise!

And I don't like the this blog... I can not get it to look right, bear with me I need to re-design this thing. They changed my original template, I am working on it.

Pedro & Bella Dona

It rained today, off and on, and I have this stupid cough. I slept really late this morning, felt so groggy rest of day. but, in- between raindrops I went for a short walk, to see what kind of "stuff" I could find like sticks, stones, flowers, ya know ....stuff......Carlos was just finishing up a chore with a refrigerator in one of the studios, so I practiced Spanish with him....anyway, walking along with him, he leans down and pokes a stick in a hole and calling "Pedro, Pedro".........I'm going.....huh? There is crab living in a hole by the steps, in water from a drainage pipe, the crab kept reaching out for him and the stick...couldn't believe it! No kidding. Pedro, the land crab.

Christmas Festival of Lights was Saturday night in San Jose, it was awesome, lots of pagentry and fireworks, I love fireworks...train ride this Wednesday up north on a day trip...working on a large painting of a flowering tree. I will show progress....time for bed...I have got to slow down....lol...it's just because I don't feel good and it's raining and I want to curl up and read...poor me.

Drawing, planning composition, color choices

Some color harmony, yellow green, salmon and determining shapes.

Festival of Lights brings over a million people into San Jose

Can you believe it? 1 million ...OMG

Beginning at around 3 in the afternoon on yesterday, flocks of family and friends crowded into the streets of San Jose for the city’s annual Festival de La Luz, or Festival of Lights! Every year the event brings over a million people out to share in the Christmas festivities and celebrations. The tradition has continued here in Costa Rica for more than a decade. Ticos celebrate the tradition to remind their children and future generations of the importance of the holiday spirit, the significance of family and friends, and to pass on the traditions of the past. The lights of the festival represent the beginning of the holiday season and hope for the New Year to come. The event ended at around 11:00 pm and fireworks marked the beginning of the Christmas season event! It is one of the most important holiday events in Costa Rica...This was my first time...Susan, Jane, Carl, Wayne, Bernarda and her family came, we ate, we walked, we rang in the Christmas season...and we had an adventure we won't forget...floats, marching bands, lights, fireworks, acrobats, clowns, pagentry, puppets, colors...I know I lost a few calories with all the walking we did too from one end of city to the other....yahoooooo..I didn't bring my camera, I was afraid someone would grab it.

I'mmmm back!

Yes, back in sunny Costa Rica. There is a most intoxicating perfume in the air tonight as soon as the sun went down. I am enjoying this night ....so much....I am always a bit reluctant when packing to come here, leaving family at the holidays, leaving Cal, leaving my little cottage by the sea and the gardens too. Tonight was a really nice welcoming of tapas at Pat & Willy's "hacienda" (I love the layout of their home, open one side to the gardens and green vistas), anyway, nice get-together of artists and long term residents (12). The weather of course today was glorious, and I succeeded to unpack and find a place for everything, realizing what I have forgotten to pack as well, I thought I packed so much stuff, but now less than I thought and still overweight and carrying an extra suitcase. I'll make do for 3 months...I think I brought the things I can use in my art, and excited to start this year's series of art making.. I am sooooo hooked up with technology too this year, the Iphone, the computer, the (gift) of my BOSE wireless speakers (awesome), a printer, the tablet, the x hard drive, do ya think I have enough to play with? Along with all my works to do on paper....OMG wish me luck...The speakers are soooo cool, and now have to recharge it, I played it so much today, and I forgot the charger in RI...shit! I finally got the colony printer to work to, it's been a troubleshooting day. I also went to do grocery shopping and at the counter I did not have any money, ya, I forgot money! I had to borrow some from Carlos, friend from colony here, geesh. A bit mixed up today and I will blame it on the altitude (4000 ft), not atittude...lol, I am on a mountain high, what can I say!  December 6th- February 28th, 2011

London Series 2011

London, England has inspired these photographs while my stay here of two months, September 2011, feelings of delight, magic and the whimsical. These are only the start of this enchanting depiction of merry ole England series, I hope to exhibit these soon back home in RI, USA.

Magic of Brighton...photograph from London Series

Many Cups of Tea on Camden Passage...photograph from London Series

Exhibiting in Oslo, Norway

A friend that I met in Cost Rica, Irene Christensen has invited me to show my B&W drawings with her in her native country of Norway. She still operates a studio in Oslo and has a studio in New York City also. I have been making art along with other artists in the Julia and David White Artist Colony in Dec-Jan-Feb for the last 6 winters... now. Irene and Charles have been great friends while there and they were also our guests at our wedding this past July..so nice. They are both incredible artists and are truly an inspiration to me always. Whether coffee in the morning or in our studios working, they provide support, encouragement and demonstrate that living an artist life is still so very special and unique. I love them...thank you Irene & Charles for being a muse, and my friends.

Wedding Website

Wedding@Edgemere

Wedding was lovely, beautiful day, smiles, friends, family, lots of food, cello music, songs of love, cupcakes, candy, flowers, roses. Love was definitely in the air. "food for the soul". Looks like no one came though...hee hee...no but wait....

Wedding Bliss

July 9th, 2011 we begin our new journey as Mr.and Mrs. We could surely use your advice and well wishes. Share with us your wisdom about marriage, love & life. Let us in on the secret to being a loving husband and wife. Email us a few words with insight we could use on our way. Long after this day, whatever you write, we're sure to treasure. Sometime in the future we will take your advice with....great measure!

Please share your prayers and thoughts and wishes!

Me

The Waterfall of Peace (La Paz de Catarata)

Costa Rica

Breathtaking, not me the waterfall!

Happy Valentine's Day

PURA VIDA

Esta Manana

I finally got this printer to work with just the black ink, yippee! Experimenting with B&W photos for inspiration for paintings. Nest Series is turning into "Nest-Scapes", so we will see where it takes me. Fun!

Had 12 people in my studio for dinner last night, "pot-luck", (my kitchen sink has been clogged since until Carlos got some draino to unclog it just a little while ago. yahooooo...)it was great time. Set up long table, everyone sat around it. Soups, chicken, rice, fish, salad, fruit salad, apple pie with vanilla chip ice cream, oh yea and wine....and Cacique (one of the national liquers here in Costa Rica), kind of like vodka, smooth made from sugar cane. Linda and Tom joined us artists last night for dinner too. They were working at the National Reserve Chirripo, both artists but working in reserve on taking care of, pruning, planting trees, etc.... Linda & I met last December as artists in the colony here. I forgot to take a picture of us...geesh...what's wrong with me.... for the blog.

Beginning of week I went to Manuel Antonio Parque on the Pacific, it was really great, swimming in the ocean riding the waves, sunning myself, it's hard work, but somebody has to do it. Seven of us went, wonderful time, except I had white knuckles coming home, the driver was not as good a driver as me...heehee. Anyway we got home safe. Working on lots of ideas today, feeling like a good "art day".

I went for a swim today in the pool here and on the way I saw a large bird lying still/dead on the grass, yellow, blue, spotted feathers. it was a Quetzal bird, I felt so bad, who knows how it got there. but I went and got my scissors and I cut some feathers off it, I know disgusting, but I gave the feathers another life and glued them on to a small metal bird I bought at a junk shop the other day. This little metal plain shiny clip-on bird was just waiting for some feathers to find him. So, here it is. Rather serendipitis, that I am working on the "nest-scapes" series right now. mmm...my muse is speaking to me.

Creepy

Melon Market

The Colors of El Parajo

We went to ZooAvi, which is where they have rescued birds and animals and then let them return to the wild after they have recovered. I thought these close ups of the parrot made interesting abstracts. Can you believe these colors. Yummy!

My RI Study Group Mystery Project

 The Magical Mystery Tour

This is a link to a project (click on this title above and turn up the volume), I just finished for my Lettering Arts Study Group in RI due today. It is not perfect, but a challenge non-the-less.

MYSTERY-something that arouses curiosity or
suspense, obscure, or of enigmatic
quality, the inexplicable, or a story, film,
which arouses suspense.

This is a pananoramic view of the Volcano Arenal in the northern part of Costa Rica. I used a "photostitch"  software method after taking these 7 different shots in my camera. The volcano did not want to show us her colors this day, but it was still an awesome experience being so close to one of the 7 active volcanos here. They say you can see the lava at night coming from the top sometimes at special observatory lookouts. This picture shows some steam coming from various places along the side near top of cone. But, very often the top is in the clouds. This is not a bad day, the last time it really threw lava was in 1963.

 

"What induces you, oh man, to depart from your home in town, to leave family and friends, and go to the country-side over mountains and valleys, if it is not the beauty of the world of nature which, on considering, you can only enjoy through the sense of sight; and as the poet in this also wants to compete with the painter, why do you not take the poet's descriptions of such landscapes and stay at home without exposing yourself to the excessive heat of the sun? Would that not be more expedient and less fatiguing, since you could stay in a cool place without moving about and exposing yourself to illness? But your soul could not enjoy the pleasures that come to it through the eyes, the windows of its habitation, it could not receive the reflections of bright places, it could not see the many flowers which with their various colours compose harmonies for the eye, nor all the other things which may present themselves to the eye."  ...... Leonardo da Vinci, The 'Paragone

Tres las amigas de artistas

Me...Carol...Nina...

@ Casa Conde, Playa Panama, Costa Rica, January 2011

Update

Amarillo

watercolor 10x7

Playa Panama in Guanacaste on the pacific, parrots, Palo Verde, jungle cruise, blue herons, crocadiles, feeding the capuchin monkeys, sunshine, Cesa, tipico lunch, cas, frijoiles, pool, vistas, islands, green hills, heleconias, Lankester gardens, orchids, rain, waterfalls, wind, red macaws, cafe con leche, iguanas, one creepy snake, hilltops, painting, photographing, cooking, sculpting, sharing, palm trees, the most unusual flora, drawing patterns...oropendulars, University of Peace, Cal, Carol, Nina, .....bananas & yellow flowers...

And Life Itself is on the Wing

"And Life Itself is on the Wing"

(work in progress)

7 x 11 watercolor, white ink, and gold leaf 

This is the beginning of a series of paintings I have started themed "Nesting". It came from thoughts of comforting places, encompassing the need for peace, and then letting go to imagination. I was drawing with some sticks & stones in my sketchbook, practicing some writing excersises with the actual word as well, then went for a walk and found this little nest on the ground, and this is what came out of that afternoon, I feel it is still a work in progress. Other paintings in this series have been started too. It a slow moving series of paintings, but I am throughly enjoying this process of finding a subject that found me and then developing it into more un-traditonal ways using my watercolor and mixed media techniques. Sticks, nests, natural elements, colors, poetry have new meaning when I combine them.