Get ready to smile out loud...

I just love the English language and the wonderful variety of options we have to create images around words. I began with baseball terms a week or so ago and find that I keep thinking up more paintings...

I was driving home yesterday and came up with this one to add to the collection that I recently posted. Yeah, I usually don't post this often, but just can't stop thinking up these things. I may need to get away from my easel soon and get out in the garden. The daffodils are almost ready to bloom - it truly must be spring.

Use you imaginations - think baseball terms. Do you know what this is???

And, since I seem to be in this 'silly' mood, take a look at what I saw on my iPad the other day when I checked my email. Look closely at the line below "The Artist's Brain."  

Maybe that's been the issue all along - my brain in empty!

Okay - since you haven't guessed the title of the dancing chickens... it's "The Fowl Line"

It's Spring, it's snowing, it's BASEBALL

A few days ago I posted a baseball painting and said I would post more... here is the 'poster-like' ink and watercolor painting that I finished yesterday.

I find myself getting very serious about my painting and getting tighter and tighter. I need to loosen up with humor...sketching helps me do this. And, how could I not find laughter when I went in search of baseball ideas? This is all I could easily fit in this 16x20 inch frame, but there are more images to be found. Challenge yourself...

We woke up this morning - the first day of spring...it's snowing! Perhaps this will cheer us up.

It's almost spring - time to think baseball

Recently an art league friend approached me and asked if I would do some baseball paintings. Hmmm...It turns out that a friend of hers has a restaurant in Baltimore and is going to celebrate the beginning of baseball season - an evening celebrating with the family of Mark Belanger - former Oriole shortstop. The artwork would be part of a fundraiser for a school in Baltimore.

At the time, it seemed like a good challenge - so I said OK. It's been along time since I attended a baseball game... I went on line looking for ideas.

After pouring through a lot of pictures, I came upon a photo of a group of boys sitting on a bench with their arms around each other. I thought - that's it! I clicked on the picture and went to the site to get permission to paint the photo. Within a few hours I received an answer that said they had just picked the photo off the internet and therefore they couldn't give me permission to use it. It seemed it was, as 'they' say..."up for grabs."

I sketched it out.

Then did a watercolor underpainting

I decided to add numbers to the shirts and changed it a little.

I framed it and was pretty happy with it until the following day...when I opened up the paper ...
There, staring at me was the same picture! Only this time, instead of having plain shirts - like I had seen in the on-line photo - the shirts had ads for a realtor on the boys' backs...right where I had put the numbers!

I still like the picture. It is going in the show (along with a couple other things that I will post). Proceeds from any sales go to Mother Seton Academy in Baltimore and it promises to be a fun evening.

For more information - Google - G&A Coney Island Hot Dog Restaurant and head there for a great celebration on March 28th at 7:00pm.

A Pink Rose

It is interesting to me that there are some people in my life that I see infrequently, but when we meet we pick up immediately as if we had not been parted. The conversations seem to go a higher level - not just the 'how's the weather?' 'what's been going on since we last met?' kind of conversation.

I recently had an opportunity to participate in one of those lovely dialogues. A friend (whom I had not seen in a year) and I sat down to talk . . .and listen. She shared an amazing story of her spiritual journey from this past year. It was a story of letting go and trusting God. I was very touched by her words . . .and that she so easily shared them with me.

When we parted I couldn't stop thinking about her story and was inspired to do a simple painting.

Thank you for your trust - here's a pink rose for you.