Life is a Great Big Canvas

 Morning Sunbeam was an assignment for the advanced still life class I took at Academy of Art University. I was to choose an area in my home and make a composition out of it. This was a challenge for me, a mental and emotional challenge, because although I crave order in my life, my house does not reflect that. My house is often messy and disorganized. But this one area, I was able to find a good composition, and to me it speaks of peace even when there is chaos. You can't see the chaos in this picture, but it's in the room. The focus is on the stillness, the bright sunlight peeking through a window you can't see, slowly creeping over the wall, reflecting in the glass shade of the table lamp. It's a moment of stillness, whispering in your ear to take just a minute and...breathe...appreciate what is in front of you. This is available on by website www.dancingelephantart.com and through my etsy store:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/238017485/morning-sunbeam-original-still-...

 Trophies is an original still life oil painting, that was painted in 2015 while I was still in art school, in an advanced still life painting class. I was able to choose my own subject matter, and wanted to do something different than the traditional fruit and pottery that often defines the still life genre. My husband and son are passionate hunters, and so I took inspiration from their pastime to create this one of a kind still life.  This painting shows the tail feathers of a turkey shot by my son (good eating although somewhat tough), and an elk antler from a kill, from either my son or husband (also good eating!). It was really fun trying to make the feathers soft, the antler bumpy, and the gun shells look like shiny metal. This painting is available for sale from my website, www.dancingelephantart.com .

This was an assignment from my last still life class in college. I love vintage Pyrex pitchers, and have a collection of them. I also love painting the illusion of glass and metal. I am thinking about expanding from this one painting into a series of Pyrex pitchers. What do you think?

Today is the day that I graduate from college. It is a major milestone for me. It is one of those things that I never believed would happen, yet here I am. I married young, and we started our family soon after getting married. We both agreed that I would be a stay at home Mom, to personally raise our children. And I did. I put aside any possibility of working or going to college, and even put aside my paintbrush to focus on the kids. I had no regrets in staying home with them, and I believe my kids turned out great because I invested my life to make sure that I was always there for them. However, the desire to create art and become a better artist always gnawed away at me. I taught myself to do quite a bit, but I always felt my art was missing some quality to make it better. I had talent, but not professionalism, and definitely had no confidence in my art or ability. My sister, Cathy, decided to go to college in her late 30's, to become a pharmacist. She worked really hard, ...