Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Another "Fuji Reflection"

In December, 2007, while visiting in Los Gatos, California, I was introduced to blogging. I had an image in my digital camera of a new painting. The painting, Fuji Reflection, became the subject of my first post. A few months later in 2008 the painting was included in the 31st Exhibition of theTennessee Watercolor Exhibition in Knoxville, Tennessee. The juror, Cheng-Khee Chee, chose 60 paintings from the 213 that were submitted. I was very happy to have Fuji Reflection selected as one of the sixty. Look at the December post to view the first Fuji Reflection painting.

------------------------------------------------------------

Below is Fuji Reflection II, using the same apples, cloth, and silver pitcher as in Fuji Reflection I. I took many photos of the three Fuji apples, changing the arrangement of the apples and the cloth. The first Fuji painting was simply three apples on the striped tablecloth (see July Blog, A Wonderful Reception). The second painting used the pitcher for reflections The third painting is a variation of components. Those three apples have given me many happy painting hours



Thursday, December 4, 2008

Introducing Ninja

This is my cat, Ninja. She is a black domestic short-haired feline, but in her manner she is a diva. She will be ten years old on Valentine's Day, 2009

She began her life with me in Los Gatos, California. In this first picture she has not yet had her first birthday. My sleek black girl loves her comforts. She likes boxes and soft fabrics. She at times is very aloof and at other times very needy. I read her eyes and her body language; she seems to understand many of my words and phrases. She is my treasured companion. Every Christmas season I feature Ninja on a Christmas card. So far there are ten cards.

Young Ninja


Christmas cards featuring Ninja.

Christmas 1999


Christmas 2000


Christmas 2001: Ninja with the Nutcrackers


Christmas 2002: In the Poinsettia forest


Christmas 2003: The snow in St. Louis



Christmas 2004: Cozy in Knoxville


Christmas 2005: Still cozy


Christmas 2006: Ninja in a pear tree


Christmas 2007: A box for Ninja


Merry Christmas 2008: Ninja and the Gingerbread creatures.











Beach Grass at Surfside, South Carolina

A photo taken at Surfside Beach during a week in South Carolina in October was the source for the painting below. The little patch of grass growing in the sand caught my eye. The shadows cast by the grass look like nature's calligraphy making strokes across the sand ripples. That quiet, simple statement is what I found intriguing.