More from My Journal

 This is my next page from my daughter Suzanne's garden. She grows vegetables too!

Carmen

A Vacation at Last - A Page From My Journal

 

We visited my daughter Suzanne and her husband Kirk in Virginia and it was better for me than medicine. Suzanne is an avid gardener, so I had some good subjects to paint in my journal. An added bonus: she's a great cook.

Carmen

A Day in the Gardens with Pieces of Eight

Our Pieces of Eight Painting Group spent a lovely day at Rock City Gardens, photographing, drawing and, to our surprise, eating a delicious lunch. The gardens keep growing (pardon the pun) and one of the great additions is a small cafe with fabulous food. Here is a page from my journal, and below, Denette, Kathy, Donna and Fay.

Words from my grandmother's garden:

The kiss of the sun for pardon, 

The song of the birds for mirth, 

One is nearer God’s Heart in a garden 

Than anywhere else on earth.

Van Gogh Slept Here, Original Oil Painting on Gallery-Wrapped Canvas 8x8 Provence France

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This is Saint-Paul Asylum, Saint-Remy, France, where Van Gogh spent a year. He was seeking treatment for his mental illness, and he painted 100 paintings while living there. The place is still a facility with patients, but we only saw the part open to tourists. It was a thrill to actually be in Van Gogh's room. His mental health improved there so much that he was allowed to wander the countryside and paint to his heart's content. 

Carmen

Dragonfly Wings, Watercolor on Paper, 11x14 Wildlife Painting

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This departure from my norm is in response to the September challenge for the Pieces of Eight painting group, to create art from patterns in nature. I love oils, but it's fun to do watercolor now and then. There is an actual blue dragonfly like the one I painted.

Carmen

The Garden, 11x14 Oil on Panel, Painting of Cheekwood Gardens Scene

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We were in Cheekwood Gardens in Nashville when I saw this scene. It made me think of the many Impressionist paintings I have seen of people sitting in gardens. Impressionists frequently made use of dappled shade in their art, but there wasn't any of that in this spot. The people were sitting in bright sunlight, and seemed a bit overdressed for the warm day.

Carmen

Sunshine Girl, 16x20 Watercolor Print, Giclee of Child in Garden

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This is a giclee print of a watercolor that I am particularly fond of. The purple and green complementary colors and the warm sunshine backlighting her hair remind me of the day this child was opening a seed packet to plant flowers in the garden. It's a wonderful age, when you can tell a child what to do, and they actually do it. I miss that!

I need to send out a thank-you to all the Nigerian friends that I didn't know I had, who are just dying to send me millions of dollars. Every day there is a new email from these generous people. For some reason they are just loaded and they can't wait to share their wealth with their special friend, me. It's hard to believe anyone would fall for the scam, but some must or they wouldn't keep sending these things. My last offer was from a woman who wanted to send me exactly $10,500,000 dollars.

For a much better deal, check out my Etsy page at https://carmensart.etsy.com

Carmen

Oil Painting, "Down the Garden Path," 6x6, Oil on Canvas, Small Daily Painting

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I wanted an Impressionistic look, so I painted this small painting with a very large brush. I restrained myself from putting in a lot of details, which is not easy for me. I painted this once before, but with detail, and I wanted to do a loosey-goosey one for a change.

I love paths in paintings--I always wonder where they lead. Guess what's at the end of this shady path? More shady paths. 

Carmen

Hydrangea, 6x6 Oil on Canvas

Hydrangeas are very hard to paint. Each one is like a bouquet. They grow in lush profusion in Washington State, in colors I never knew possible. This is the most common Hydrangea, and I like the complementary colors with the lavender and green.

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Flowers are the alphabets of angels, whereby they write on the fields and hills mysterious truths. ---

-Benjamin Franklin