Showing posts with label nature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nature. Show all posts

Pink Blossoms


Today we celebrate the official first day of the Spring season, happy day! My body feels a little confused this first spring in Charleston as it seems like we've been welcoming spring in since February when the early tulip Magnolias started blossoming. It feels so early to me but I welcome it.
Our favorites so far have been the pink ones, in our neighborhood there are massive huge Azalea bushes, which Carys picks from to make endless bouquets.


A nice surprise was to find that we have some small Azalea bushes underneath my favorite palm tree. I didn't realize that they were Azaleas until the buds started forming, it will be fun to watch the bushes grow bigger each year.



Another nice surprise has been these pink fire bushes next to our front steps.
The kids and I did some spring planting in our small front containers with Pansies and Sage. They look so great against this wild bush, each blossom looking like a fire work.
 

See, its like a pink explosion,


Then there is my favorite, ever! I have always loved Red Bud trees, and always wanted one. So last summer when we did our garden renovation I had a small Red Bud tree planted...and then waited all winter to see these blossoms,


Our little tree did not disappoint, I think she's just lovely!


Since I really can't contain myself in my excitement for spring here are a couple of other blossoms, not pink, but so pretty,


This is one of the plants that actually never stopped blooming throughout our mild winter, I know that they are related to the hibiscus plant but I don't know much else about them beside that the kids think they look like fairy lights.
 Spring is here!


Origins

 Origins

This is one of the three new paintings that I finished last week, just before my show. It was inspired by this picture,


 that I took on a walk at dawn on my family's farm in Ashville, NC, and by this post, both from last August.
When I finish a painting I usually like to sit with the image for a bit, to let it sink in, to digest it. I feel like I am still sitting with this one, there are so many things that I love about it, including the graphic simplicity.

The Opening of my show on Thursday night was wonderful, so many old friends surprised me by making a appearance, and it was especially sweet to hang out with one of my closest friends who flew out from California to be there. I had so much fun and will post some pictures soon!
Sending you wishes for a beautiful weekend!
xo 

August break: origins












Every corner of my mind is bursting with heaps of inspiration from our time on the farm.
When I am there it comes in great doses, every where I look, every walk I take, every time of day. I realize more with every visit to the farm that going there each summer as a child hugely influenced my inspiration and my appreciation of the subtle details in nature. The hazy light brings back some of my earliest memories...the thrill of getting up at dawn to ride in the wagon on the back of my grandfather's tractor to the blueberry field...
walking barefoot on the moss in the forest...
flattening my body to peer through the underbrush, wanting to know the mysteries of the darkness in the woods...
chasing the flock of Guinea Hens and loving the way their spotted feathers flashed as they ran...
the crunch of the gravel on the farm's dirt road.
Like pieces of a puzzle all of these bits stir within me, reforming a whole that I glimpse in parts as I work in the studio, places that I access, worlds that I disappear into.
Senses alive and fully awake.
The world of childhood regained for moment.

Thicket

Thicket

Can you feel it, the spring energy, its there...even if maybe right now it is all just in my head and in my body.
Yes, I'm dreaming of the smell of the earth, of a thick, dense growth of shrubs and flowers.
I am ready and waiting.

Prints of this new painting are in the shop today.

Deep Ocean

Deep Ocean

::The heart is deeper than any ocean, wider than any sea::

Today its a snow day here in NYC, the flakes are coming down thick and the city has pretty much called everything off...people are walking down the middle of the streets, pulling kids on sleds, and everyone is in a jubilant mood.
I think that we'll spend this afternoon building a snow fort in our backyard, then coming inside to get cozy.
I'm leaving you with another new painting, Deep Ocean...a piece about probing the layers and depths within our own hearts.
Its over in the shop now.
Happy Snow Day!

Bits of beauty

Bits and pieces from my recent trip, all swimming around in my head.
So much beauty to nourish the soul.

Golden light.

The HUGE yellow full moon.

L.A. stretched out before us.

Those black birds against that dusky sky, something about it makes my artist heart beat faster.

The little feet of my friend's baby in the sand.

A mysterious cave on a cliff side hike.

Jewels in the sunlight.

Patterns


Patterns, originally uploaded by leavesandfeathers.
I just learned how to create a photo mosaic, something I have been wondering how to do for ages. It was so fun that I may have found a new addiction, here I am up too late thinking, "oh come on just make one more!"
I found out about this site that has a program that allows you to create a mosaic through your Flickr account, here I used photos of natural patterns that I took throughout last year.
If you've ever wanted to make one, well I can tell you it just couldn't be easier!
And, my totes are now available for sale here and here!

Northern lights



The glow of these amazing photos just feels like the epitome of cozy to me. What a glorious way to celebrate the approach of the Winter Solstice at our darkest time of the year. There is something about the Northern Lights that seems so fantastical and surreal. It is one of those things that I just have to take on faith that it really happens so far north!
And those teepees call to even this "summer" girl!

* Images of the Northern Lights in Yellow Knife Canada, forwarded from friends in the UK.
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