My Early Days-13

Another of my favorites that has hung in my home since 1983.  It is titled Left Ox after Neil Jenney and is painted in acrylics on a 12x24 canvas board.  It is painted nearly as a water color in that the paint was thin and brushed on in nearly single strokes.  Something I've seldom accomplished since!  Here is a sample of Neil Jenney's work.

Bipedal and Unilevar 57.5x57 acrylic, 1969

Here and There 58.5x78.5 arylic, 1969

Lines and Tracks 56x58 acrylic, 1968-69

Man and Challenge 59.5x71.3 acrylic, 1969

Threat and Sanctuary 61x123x3.25 oil, 1969

It's interesting, although all of the samples I found were painted in 1969, that the titles are all two complimentary or opposing ideas.  I wonder if that was a phase or if Mr. Jenney continued with that process throughout his career.  OK, I went to my archives and found many other paintings by Mr. Jenney, most of which continued this theme.

I painted yesterday and spoke to a neighbor friend.  I let the dogs in and out, out and in!  They got their two meals and I forgot to eat one!  I realize my life is much more structured and much less painful when other people are around.  Maybe man wasn't meant to be alone - Ya' Think?  But just where do you go to get the right person to be your family?  Oh well, back to my unstructured life...

My Early Days-12

 This was the first painting I did after Judith Bledsoe.  It has always been a favorite of mine.  The name of it is Conversation Tree.  It is painted on a 20x30 canvas board and has hung in my home since 1983.

 Later, I "tried" another, but in my opinion, it is a dismal failure.  The name of it is Mannequin and is painted on a 20x30 canvas board.  I started it in 2004 and completed it in 2009.  Here is a sample of Judith Bledsoe's work.

Kat Kins - 1991

Birds lithograph

Siesta - Sleeping Lady

Theodore au Chapeau III - 2006

Paysage A L'oiseau

I honestly have to admit, I just plain forgot to blog the last couple of days.  I think after Sheila left, I just shut down and lost time.  Somehow, I awoke today and realized I'd "lost time"!  Ha! Ha!

The last day Sheila was here, Saturday, we took it easy.  In the early morning we went to the Farmers Market where we were each given a beautiful peony that dropped all the petals by the afternoon.  She told us she had not figured out a way to keep them from doing that and that was why she was giving them away.  They were beautiful! 


In the early afternoon, we sat out on the balcony and enjoyed the breeze, the sun, the air, the aroma and the feel of the beautiful day.  All four dogs enjoyed themselves and laid out like they were sunbathing.  I guess they were!



Here are photos of each of them.

Bonnie is my sisters dog.  I am taking care of her while Beverly and Bob are on their honeymoon in Italy.

Annie is my precious Chihuahua.  I don't know why she does this, but in the sun she lies down like a "dead dog"  She is really OK!  Annie is 10 years old.

Stella is my mentally challenged rescue.  She is a great addition to our group, but a little "wonkie".  Stella is 6 years old.

Erin is my 30 pound black dog.  After a DNA test, we still didn't know what she was!  I found her after she was hit by a car in Citronelle, Alabama.  Maybe that explains why we don't know what she is!  Erin is 10 years old.

In the afternoon, we drove on up the mountain to 5000 feet.  We are staying at 3800 feet.  There is a large grassy field that the caretaker invited us to take a walk in a let our dogs run free.  I wish you could have seen how happy they were to roam and run.  It was a wonderful time and a beautiful spot too.

The 5000 foot marker on the mountain.

A view of the grassy field where the dogs ran.

A private pavilion and the view.

It was a lovely day and a wonderful way to end the week Sheila and I shared.  She left on Sunday.  The rest of the week, I will be alone and plan to paint, listen to audio books and possible visit with some of Beverly's friends and neighbors.  Beverly and Bob return the coming Saturday, June 8th, and I plan to return home on Tuesday, June 11th.  It will be interesting to see how my friends did there taking care of my home!

The North Carolina Arboretum

I'm not going to post my art today.  We went to the North Carolina Arboretum yesterday and there are so many pictures I want to post that I'm skipping "My Early Days".  To start, the mandatory photos of Sheila and me!  I met Sheila in college in 1966.  We were roommates in 1967 and very dear and close friends since.

Beckie

Placing these photos is a nightmare.  I wanted them to be side-by-side, but no luck, so here is Sheila.

Sheila

Then there was a lot of art scattered throughout the park and that is how this is OK, the mandatory art!  I failed to get some credit details on the outdoor sculpture but wanted to show it anyway.

Odd and Graceful 40x30 acrylic $2,900

Odd and Graceful 40x30 acrylic $2,900

Teresa Reilly 10-16-97, The Asheville Quilt Guild and The N.C. Quilt Symposium Board

Next came the Bonsai Garden which I was really taken with.  I photographed nearly all of the little guys!  Here are a few.

Shimpaku Juniper

Baldeypress

 

White Spruce, Hybrid Azalea, Woody Thyme, Wooly Yarrow & Loosestrife

Christmas Cheer Azalea and Dwarf Kingsville Boxwood

American Hornbeam, Red Maple, Shrubby Saint John's-wort, Virginia Spirea & Rhododendron

Then there are some photos just around the park here-and-there I want to share.

A work shed, possibly a refreshment stand.  Notice the grass roof!

Ampitheatre

Under Pergola looking toward one of many gardens

An overview of the Quilt Garden

Glimpse of stream on our long walk.

Finally, the funny part was, Sheila wanted to see the Rhododendron garden.  We took what WE thought was a short path to it.  It turned out to be close to a mile and then we had to return.  We were whining, exhausted, tired, sweaty, aggravated and out of shape!  We did have to laugh at ourselves but at the same time, it was an awful experience and we never did find the Rhododendrons!  Here is a photo of where we entered on the left and exited on the right.  NEVER AGAIN!  And then, the nerve!  They didn't even have a badge for my walking stick!

Say Good Morning, Gracie!

My Early Days-11

This was a picture on a shopping bag given when you bought a certain brand of hosiery.  I thought it was such a fascinating picture, I painted it for my bathroom.  It is done on a 16x20 canvas sheet and I painted it in 1987.  It was from an artist named Sandro Chia but I never knew the name of the piece.  Here is a sample of his work.

pittore 50x40 cm oil 1978

pittore nello studio 102x76 cm oil 2001

Mother and Son in Blue 106x130 cm oil 1990-91

Speed Boy 204x205 m oil 1981

Tre teste in campana 170x156 cm oil 2001

Yesterday, Sheila and I took a one hour drive to the Oconaluftee River.  The park was fairly well attended for this time of year.  The water was sensational and the park itself, just outside of Cherokee, was beautiful.

  It was a beautiful drive, especially coming home.  Instead of driving on the interstate highway, we drove on the older state highway on the way home.  The scenes were breathtaking.

My, my my!  It is certainly wonderful being in North Carolina for vacation!  It is heaven on earth!  I'm so glad my friend Sheila is here with me.  She has inspired me to get out and about in ways I would not have done without her.  We are having quite a time!